The Toolbox · Lure Wheel
Can’t decide what to tie on? Spin. Forty-six lures from my tackle box, collected over 30 years, are on this wheel. You get three spins a day, then the wheel goes quiet until midnight.
From my tackle box
Every lure on the wheel is one I actually fish. The basics are in the Armory starter kit with what they cost, and the Rig Builder sets up the line for whatever you tie on. Check the Salmon River gauge before you go, then ring the Skunk Bell in the Guild Hall.
Spins are counted in your own browser only. Nothing is sent anywhere. No account, no tracking, no cookies from the wheel.
Open the whole tackle box (46 lures, 10 trays)
Spinners
- Rooster Tail, size 3The spinner that keeps working. Cast, retrieve, repeat until something argues back.
- Mepps AgliaThe classic French-blade spinner. Reel just fast enough to feel the blade thump.
- SpinnerbaitFlash and thump you can run through wood and weeds. Slow-roll it in cold water, burn it when they chase.
- BuzzbaitGurgles and squeaks across the top. Low light, calm water, steady retrieve, and wait for the weight before you set.
- Bladed jig (Chatterbait)A jig with a blade that makes it shake hard. Rip it free of the grass and hang on.
- Underspin jigA jig head with a little blade underneath. Swim a soft minnow on it, slow and steady.
Spoons
- Krocodile spoonFlashy, deadly, easy to cast. Covers water when you have no idea where the fish are.
- Little CleoA hammered, humpbacked casting spoon. Long casts, and a wobbling flutter on the drop.
- DardevleThe red-and-white stripe every pike knows. Wobble it back steady and let the treble do the work.
- Johnson Silver MinnowA weedless spoon. Throw it into the slop where other lures would snag.
- Kastmaster casting spoonHeavy for its size, so it casts a mile. Count it down, then reel steady with a twitch now and then.
- Jigging spoonDrop it straight down, rip it up, let it flutter back. Most hits come on the fall.
Crankbaits
- Shallow-diving crankbait, blue/grayThree feet max. Works in damn near every freshwater spot. Time tested, so stop overthinking it.
- Squarebill crankbaitBuilt to bang into wood and rock and bounce off. Crash it through shallow cover.
- Medium-diving crankbaitDig it along points and drop-offs so it bumps bottom now and then.
- Wake baitSwims just under the surface and pushes a V-wake. Slow and steady over shallow cover.
Jerkbaits & minnows
- Floating Rapala minnowIf you can only buy one lure, this is the one. Twitch it, pause it, hold on.
- Rapala X-RapJerk, jerk, pause. It darts side to side and hangs there, and the bite usually comes on the pause.
- Suspending jerkbaitIt stays put when you stop reeling, which is the whole trick in cold water. Long pauses, sharp twitches.
- Rapala CountDownA sinking minnow. Count it down to the depth you want, then twitch it back. Good in current.
Topwater
- Walking bait (Zara Spook)Rod tip down, twitch on slack line and it walks side to side. Wait for the weight before you swing.
- Hollow-body frogThrow it on the lily pads and slop and hop it across. Count a beat after the blow-up, then set hard.
- JitterbugThe night-time classic. Slow, steady retrieve so it wobbles and gurgles on calm water.
- Whopper PlopperA spinning tail that churns and clacks on top. Steady retrieve, and change speeds until they tell you.
Soft plastics
- Yamamoto Senko (stick worm)Rig it weightless or wacky and let it fall on slack line near cover. Watch your line: most bites come on the drop.
- Texas-rigged wormBullet weight, hook tucked into the plastic, so it slides through brush. Drag it, hop it, feel for the tap.
- Wacky-rigged wormHooked through the middle so both ends shimmy on the fall. Docks and weed edges.
- Drop shotWeight on the bottom, bait on the line above it. Shake it in place for fish holding deep.
- Zoom Fluke ★ Dan’s go-toTwitch it just under the surface and it darts like a hurt baitfish. Rig it weightless and work it fast.
- Paddle-tail swimbaitThe tail kicks on a plain steady retrieve. Swim it at whatever depth the fish are.
- CrawIt looks like a crayfish, so fish it like one: on the bottom, hopping and dragging around rock.
- Finesse wormSmall and quiet for tough days. Shaky head or drop shot, little shakes, lots of patience.
Jigs
- Jig head and a soft plasticBaby bass, green pumpkin or watermelon. Buy bulk, eBay lots. Just trust.
- Marabou jigThe feathers breathe even sitting still. Under a float or swum slow for crappie, perch and trout.
- Football jigThe football head rocks over rocks instead of wedging. Drag it slow on hard bottom with a craw trailer.
- Swim jigA jig built to be reeled, not hopped. Swim it through grass and along wood.
- Bucktail jigDeer hair and a lead head, as old school as it gets. Hop it along bottom or swim it.
Swimbaits & hard baits
- Jointed sunfish swimbaitLooks like the panfish they eat every day. Slow and steady so the joints swing, around weed edges and docks.
- Blade baitA thin metal blade that vibrates hard. Lift it off bottom and let it fall back. A cold-water favorite.
- Glide baitBig and slow, gliding side to side with each turn of the handle. Made to pull big fish out to look.
Live & natural bait
- A nightcrawlerThe OG bait. Universally effective. Fish cannot resist, and neither can your budget.
- A scrap of chicken under a bobberStraight from the budget post: little scraps of chicken might end up your most effective bait. Wrap the bobber twice.
- PowerBait dough baitMold it on a small treble, float it just off bottom, and wait. A stocked-trout staple.
River & trout extras
- Woolly buggerA fly that passes for a leech, a baitfish or a bug, depending on the day. Strip it or swing it through current.
- Float rigSet the float so the bait rides just off bottom and let the current carry it. Watch for the dip.
- Yarn fly (egg pattern)A puff of yarn that drifts like a loose egg. Dead-drift it near bottom when the trout and salmon run.
Throw five on it