SPIN CLASS IN SESSION

BY BRIAN KELLY

Long, cold winters are the perfect time to build up your coho lure selection for the upcoming season.

Creating your own spinner patterns can give you an edge by giving finicky coho a di erent look after they have seen all the same store-bought patterns during the season. Spinner components – from the blades to the bodies – are available in a wide range of colors, which will allow you to tweak color combos to create that must-have spinner during the peak of the run!

Start the spinner building process with a 6-inch, .035-inch-diameter, loopedend stainless steel wire shaft. After playing with di erent gage wire over the years, I have found this size to be rugged enough to stand up to the abuse of mean coho without being too rigid, which doesn’t allow as much vibration from the spinner blade.

The looped end is where the build begins by adding a split ring and hook. While hook sizes and style can vary greatly, I tend to stick with a treble in the No. 1 to 1/0 size range for saltwater purposes and a single hook in the same size for flowing freshwater. Always check local regulations for any hooksize restrictions; the use of the split ring will allow for ease of hook style change if necessary.

From here, you can get creative with body styles and beads, but the

The components required to create a spinner begin with a 6-inch, .035-inch-diameter, looped-end stainless steel wire shaft. “I have found this size to be rugged enough to stand up to the abuse of mean coho without being too rigid,” author Brian Kelly writes. Other elements include bullet weight, di erent-sized bead spacers, split ring, hook, clevis, blade and plastic squid body. (BRIAN KELLY)