As I have mishaps with my lures I always save the parts for repairs and often to make home made lures. Treble hooks, snap rings, and beads all make good reusable components for making one of the best crappie and bass lures ever created, the 'in-line' spinner bait. In this post allow me to show you how to take your spare parts and make a crappie and bass killer.    

   
Some spare parts you will need are feathers, spinner, a clevis, swivel, split rings, beads, stiff wire and a treble hook. Tools needed are needle nose pliers and some sewing thread.


First, dress the treble hook. Do this by wrapping feathers or other material with sewing thread around the hook.    
   
Next you will need a straight wire for the body of the spinner, make a small loop with needle nose pliers this will be the “tail” of the lure.    
Place the beads and spinner clevis on the wire or shaft, then close the “nose” of the wire with another loop made with the pliers. I then place a swivel between the shaft and the treble hook with split rings to give the hooks a full 360-degree swivel to keep the fish from throwing the lure during the fight.      

   
This type of lure is a simple design and they are very easy to make from your spare parts. 

                                      
 Mepps made original ‘in-line’ spinners and their design has possibly caught more fish species and broke more records than any other lure. The lures never stopped working, but for some reason many southern bass anglers just stopped using them for some reason. You can not discount a classic lure, there is a reason they are classic.  However the Mepps In-Line Spinner is still popular in Europe and Canada and the Northeaster United States. If you are fishing for smallmouth or largemouth bass, crappie, pike, musky, panfish or trout the 'in-line' spinner will catch all of them, even a home made one.    

There are some advantages to using an In-Line Spinner, they are stabile, virtually weedless and, yields a fantastic hooking percentage. This style of lure could very well be one of the all time best selling lures, and simply one of the best, but you can save your money if you save your parts.  Kepp in mind that you will want to stock up on the original Mepps spinners after you catch a few fish.


Here is a picture of an old in-line spinner from my wifes antique lure collection. This one may have been home made as well. These have been around for a long time.

Now lets discuss some tips for using your new (home made) lure.    

• A slow and steady retrieve gives fish time to feel, hear and see the lure. A slow role usually works for most situations. If the fish are finicky try varying your speed until the fish tell you what they want.   
•  Allow the lure to fall, by stopping the retrieve and dropping the rod tip. This often will initiate a strike.   
• Paint the spinner in perch or other baitfish pattern or simply use a permanent marker to color one side of the blade. Draw or paint eyes near the front of the blade to give it the look of a minnow.
• Troll the spinner by adding a snap swivel and a weight a couple of feet in front of it to get the spinner deeper.      

 There is something special about catching a fish on a lure you made yourself. The sense of accomplishment is somehow enhanced by the adrenaline of the catch.  Give making this simple and inexpensive lure a try, you will be glad you did, because like I said, they are crappie and bass killers. For pike and musky you will want to use bigger materials. I look forward to seeing the lure you have made.    

Happy Fishing!    

Visit Mepps web site at: http://www.mepps.com/