A bit out of fashion but still very successful. Some people will
still refuse to use anything else. The special thing about spoons is their built
in irregularity even on a straight retrieve. I have to admit that I do not use
the very often so I will not have as much to says about them as about the other
lures.
But I have caught some fish on them: trout, pike, zander, perch and garfish.
Important Factors
Weight
The (relative) weight of spoon is determined by the material and
the thickness of the metal sheet it is formed or forged from. The lightest
Spoons can hardly be cast and are mainly used for
trolling behind a downrigger or a piece
of lead. The lighter the spoon is, the more lively it will flutter. But a
certain weight is needed to make it castable and run deep enough. Heavy Spoons
will move slower but also tend to produce stronger vibrations. Watch out when
you like to dress your trebles: the action of a light spoon can be completely
destroyed by that.
Size
You will find Spoons from the size of a toe nail to the size of
a shoehorn.
In my experience even a big fish is quite likely to take a relatively small
spoon but normally you will chose sizes which fit your quarry. You would chose a
spoon a smaller than the plug you'd use for the same fish. Like a lot of lures
you will chose larger lures to go deeper.
Form
Most spoons are pretty much oval or fish shaped.
Some have just a simple arch like, well a spoon but most are curved in an
S-shape if you look at them from the side. And then there are some quite exotic
shapes and bends and some even resemble plugs.
Dressed Hooks
As already mentioned one has to be careful dressing a spoon. I
have managed to completely destroy the action of a thin spoon by attaching a
single hook with a twister to it. The use of red plastic fin attached to the
rear split ring is wide spread. But Spoons are also often fished with naked
hooks.
Colour
Most Spoons have a metal colour: silver, gold
und copper are the classic colours. The irregular flashing is probably one of
the key attractors of the spoon as it is the best imitation of the flashing
flanks of small fish of all lures. A lot of spoons are also painted with various
decors or have glittering or holographic foils stuck to them.
Presentation
Spoons have a tendency to run quite shallow if you retrieve them
moderately fast. If the spoon rotates regularly you are pulling it to fast. It
is best to fish them rather slowly but you should feel it working. It should
have an irregular wobbling movement, doing a full turn once in a while is ok. A
spoon has got a relatively narrow speed range with which it works well. A saw
tooth retrieve accelerating the lure and letting it drop back down can often be
successful.
