Best Painted Blade Spinnerbaits for El Salto and Picachos
I always thought that painted blades on spinnerbaits were for two extreme situations – either super-clear water or super-dirty water.
For the clear stuff, I’m old enough to remember when former tour-level pro Danny Correia won a big tournament on Lake Winnipesaukee on a spinnerbait that therefore later became known as the “Winni Special” – a heavy bait with chartreuse head, blades and skirt. On trips up to New Hampshire I threw it a bunch and just about had my arm broken by mean-spirited smallmouths on a few occasions.
In dirty water, I think of the red “kicker” blade popularized in the muddy waters of Oklahoma. That too entered my bag of tricks in the late 1990s. I learned that even in clear or lightly-stained situations our Mid-Atlantic tidal river bass want to murder that little red blade.
Still, the water at Lake El Salto and Lake Picachos is usually neither crystal clear nor very dirty. It’s typically a very fertile shade with a light stain. I don’t think I brought any painted blades on my first couple of trips, but that was a mistake because in 2013 my friend Terry Conroy put on a clinic with a 1 ounce Yamamoto spinnerbait with white and chartreuse willows. He didn’t catch more fish than I did, but his average size was much better, including a 9-plus that wrapped him around every tree in one small cove. His line held, our guide went in the drink to retrieve it, and he got his picture and got his spinnerbait back.
Right after that trip I ordered several of them, and subsequently did quite well with both the Yamamoto light wire and heavy wire versions. They’ve become tough to acquire, though, particularly in the one ounce size, so I was forced to look for other options.
That need first found a home with War Eagle, which makes painted blade spinnerbaits in all chartreuse, white and chartreuse and “cole slaw.” During November and January trips when the fish have been shallower and in thick brush, I’ve had some really good days with them, although you do need to be careful as they will eventually break.
After that, I also had some great trips using a Spotsticker double willow “Mini-Me.” Owner Ryan Coleman not only makes a great lure for when fish are feeding on smaller baitfish but you need some extra weight, but he also has some unique and intricate blade designs on colors like the “Reehmer,” Blue Billet, Tilapia and “Money.”
As I’ve written previously, on our most recent trip I did quite well with a 1 ounce Nichols Pulsator Depth Finder in Bombshell Shad, another gaudy color that they seemed to want to kill. Nichols has done a really good job in recent years of adding painted blades outside of the normal white and chartreuse to their lineups. These include not only the basics with metalflake, but also various reds and black/blue patterns. I’m becoming a big fan of their lures and I think I’ll need to do some more testing to make sure.
Of course, those aren’t the only companies that make quality painted blade spinnerbaits. Some others that I’ve used and liked outside of Mexico include the Stanley Vibrashaft Dirty Water Willow Spinnerbaits (check out the hot pink version) and the Strike King Tour Grade Painted Blade Spinnerbaits (Denny Brauer kicked my ass on the California Delta with a predecessor of the latter).
Could you get by exclusively with simple smooth blades in gold or nickel? I’m pretty sure that you could, but spinnerbaits don’t weigh much and don’t take up too much space. I know that I’ve already written about my love of hammered blades, and now I’m adding to your next Tackle Warehouse purchase and your overall luggage weight. If that’s a problem, consider getting just the blades, and swapping them out on baits you’re already bringing. Here are some painted blades that are readily available:
Even among the whites and reds and chartreuses there may be some variation, so find the ones you want and prepare to show the big bass something a little bit different. I typically have not done well with reds in interior Mexico (with one exception) but I’m anxious to try out a black and blue spinnerbait to see if it works as well as a jig or worm in that pattern.
