Spoons were among the first lures invented and remain one of the most
successful lures of all time. Coastal angling and spoons go back together
throughout history. Ask any coastal angler which lure to choose for catching
redfish and a spoon will be included on their list. For many of those anglers
a spoon holds the top spot on their list.
If you're fishing for redfish start with a weedless spoon. The weedless
feature allows coastal anglers to fish a spoon in areas interspersed with
grass. Redfish like to hang out in grass because that's where the food lives.
Small crabs, small shrimp and small baitfish all live and grow in grassy
areas.
The spoon most often used to pursue redfish is a weedless gold spoon.
In either the or 1/2 oz. version, it's the favorite of many coastal anglers
and hard to beat. Spoons work great for the beginner because they can be
properly worked with any tackle. Simply throw the spoon out and make a steady
retrieve. Anglers want the spoon to wobble on retrieve, not spin.
Gold weedless spoons are a great way for beginners to start but there
are a few variations beginners should also consider. One is a copper colored
spoon. In some areas a copper spoon will out produce a gold colored spoon.
One company, Texas Tackle Factory of Victoria, Texas, has recently re-introduced
the copper weedless spoon. Company President Keith Rainwater heard about
copper spoons from a lot of fishers in the Port O'Connor, Texas area so
he decided to make some.
"There's a big following of copper spoons in the Port O'Connor area,"
Rainwater stated in an interview. "There was a void left when all of
the other companies decided not to make their weedless spoons with a copper
finish. We try to give our customers what they want."
Another spoon beginners will find useful is a silver spoon with single
treble hook. To fish, this spoon probably looks very similar to small baitfish.
A small, silver treble hooked spoon, in the 1/8 or 1/4 oz. size, is a great
lure for catching speckled trout, Spanish mackerel and other fish. The silver
spoon is also easily worked by both beginners and experienced anglers, by
simply throwing out the spoon and retrieving it with a steady retrieve.
One thing anglers add to their spoon is a small, brightly colored tag.
Most spoons are sold with small red, pink or orange tags included in the
package. Often seasoned anglers will not fish a spoon without this tag and
for good reason. The tag helps you catch more fish.
The small plastic tag is often a target for fish species other than those
the angler is after. Needlefish are notorious for snipping at this tag.
Piggy perch also find the tag irresistible. Attracting baitfish to the lure
may also attract the game fish's attention.
Anglers can make their own tag by buying a package of fluorescent pink,
soft plastic, shrimp tails. Simply slice the shrimp tail like you would
a sausage in thin slices, hang one of the slices on the spoon hook and you're
set.
Spoons can also be used when fishing for larger fish like bull reds and
crevalle jack. Large silver spoons, 2 to 5 oz. in weight, are a great option
for the beginner to start their fishing for these big fish.
These spoons weigh enough that beginners can cast them the extra distance
often required when fishing for larger fish. Again anglers simply cast a
large spoon in front of the school of fish and make a steady retrieve. The
fish will find the spoon.
As with any lure make sure the spoon hook is very sharp. To test the
sharpness simply run the hook point down your thumbnail. A sharp hook point
easily digs into the nail without any pressure. If the point does not dig
in, the hook point needs to be sharpened. Anglers should check hook sharpness
several times during the day especially after catching a number of fish.
Usually the hook point will need to be touched up with a file.
It's also a good idea to mash down the barb on the hook. Barbs were designed
to hold bait on a hook, not the fish. Hooks with a mashed down barb actually
penetrate easier than hooks with a full barb. Anglers will find single hook
spoons are much easier to remove from fish, especially large jacks or redfish.
Large fish are hard enough to handle without having to worry about a thrashing
fish snagging a treble hook into you when removing the hook. With a single,
barbless hook the fish is easily released.
Large spoons sold with a big treble hook can easily be converted by removing
the treble hook and adding a strong split ring with a single hook. The less
time it takes to handle large fish the more likely they will be released
in good shape. The single barbless hook makes this possible.
Spoons are a great way for the beginner to start coastal fishing. They
don't take much practice to use and anglers using spoons will find out they
are great fish catchers.
Start with a spoon and you'll start catching fish.
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