Beetle Spin Success???

[Jason Preslar]

I like the Beetle Spin lures and the Crappie Thunder lures as well simply because of the wide range of species that they appeal to; have any of you guys had success with these lures for big panfish?

[David, aka, "McScruff"]

I used to catch most of nothing on Beetle Spins - I was sick and tired of hearing about them, in fact! It seemed everybody and their brother caught fish on them, while I was always stumped. It has been said that, "...there is no wrong way to fish a Beetle Spin." But you could have fooled me.

Then, this year, I actually caught something on one. I used the lure out of frustration, using it simply because night was falling and I wanted something that made noise in the water. Since then, things have been well... different.

Now I rarely go anywhere without one and I tend to keep one hanging right on my vest. The most productive pattern has been the small size "0" with a light colored (white, chartreuse, yellow, etc. ) grub, or twist-tail trailer. I use them as a primary search tool around weed-and-wood structure. A good side of them is that the bigger sunfish tend to strike them. They can also be fished fast or slow and they are what I’d call “snag-less.” They'll hang up, but not a lot.

The other day I caught a large long-nosed gar on one, in fact… thankfully he threw the hook before I landed him.

The bad thing about Beetle Spins is that, like all such baits, they are primarily a warm-water proposition. Inactive, cold fish won’t show much interest in them. This places them pretty firmly in the late spring/summer/early fall genre. It also seems safe to say that they are a lure for larger waters – but, I don’t have a lot of experience with them. That may not be so in all cases...

Here's a brim I caught on one just the other day:

[John Sheehan]

I agree David, with your comment about Beetle spins being primarily a warm water proposition.I have had success very early  in the year however using Beetle spins and catching Pickerel which seem to be fairly active in colder water .

Jason-Like you, I have had multispecies success this year and last with Beetle spins or similar jig spins .Tube ,Split tail grubs,and Twister style trailors all work great .It's important to have a variety of blade sizes and use them according to water clarity with the bigger thumping Colorado blades working best with stained or cloudy water conditions.

A slow crawling retreive on bottom for Crappie ,as fast a retreive that still tracks well (not too fast or the bait turns over) for White Perch ,and a moderate stop and go for Bass,Gills and Yellow Perch is sometimes a very good formula for success!

[David, aka, "McScruff"]

Neat bag of fish on the Beetle Spin, John. I'm most impressed with the white perch - Ive caught these only on worms, dead on the bottom.

I like your mention of differing blade styles, too. All in all, I've changed my tune on the jig-spinner.

Jason - Again, the Beetle Spins come in a variety of sizes. I've had the best luck on sunfish with the smallest size. You can also hang your own jig heads on them, as I've mentioned before, which opens the door to all sorts of options.

[chris kowaleski]

I As well  have had a wide variety of success on a beetle spin. I use the smallest one and have caught crappies, bass, sunfish, and a lot of catfish on them. I do also usually tip it with a chunk of nightcrawler though.

[David, aka, "McScruff"]

Ive never tipped mine with any thing. Maybe I should try that. Waddaya think?

[John Sheehan]

I can see where /when that would be a good ticket .I also have never done that .

I have never caught Catfish on them. what kind of retreive works for Cats?

[chris kowaleski]

I'm a simple guy and usually just do the same retrieve at all times,  just reeling in and sometimes slower than usual. And i think the reason for the cats were because of the body of waters i was fishing. The one lake they would be up against walls feeding or spawning, i don't remember. and the other was a small creek, and they were pretty small as well.

[chris kowaleski]

I think there is no reason to not try it! My success rates are much higher with it tipped than not.  I'm more of a live bait guy because i feel like it will usually always catch more fish, so with the tipped beetle spin it'd be more fish, with the added fun of them hammering it. 

[David, aka, "McScruff"]

"My success rates are much higher with it tipped than not...."

Well, with that said I believe I'll give it a whirl. I rarely go fishing without some worms; I've even started raising my own, lately. This way I ensure a ready supply.

I'll try worm-tipping the jig spinners on my next fishing expedition.

[Allen Morgan]

I keep some of the silver-colored and the gold-colored beetle spin frames in my Plano boxes.  I've also got some different sized blades so I can change blade sizes.  A bigger Colorado blade will allow you to fish high in the water column, and slower.  Something to think about...

I buy the frames by themselves, and keep a variety of jigheads in the box as well, so I can change weights.  I also keep a variety of soft plastics so I can customize the bait to my liking.  I don't normally tip them, but that might help me catch more fish.

[David, aka, "McScruff"]

We're thinking alike, Allen. I do the same things...

[Jeff Soto]

I use them, but I'll thread on a cricket instead of the plastic grub it comes with. Works very well, and they just clobber it on a slow roll over the bottom.  The only problem is the cricket gets taken off pretty fast, but usually the fish gets hooked.