spinner length in relation to water depth

[mnfathead]

Well my cabin fever has arrived, tying spinners some thought on different lengths and how that relates to the depth your fishing. Any input is greatly appreciated, thanks

[gunner55]

The lake I usually fish is a stained water lake were with a little wind the walleyes can be pretty shallow so I keep my lengths on the shorter side.If I'm fishing up on top/above(6'-8')the weeds 18"-24" usually with a bullet(~ 1/4 oz or less) sinker.But my usual MO is to fish the weededge(~10'-14') with a 1 oz. bouncer then I go a little longer,say 3o"-54".Sometimes when I try the deep weededge/base of the dropoff,typically 16'-23',I will go a little longer.

[Walleye Guy]

Spinner snell length correlates more closely to water clarity than depth in my opinion. In really clear water I will usually run at least 8 ft snells. If the water is more stained I will go with 4 ft. The only time I go with shorter than 4 ft is when I am in the BWCA fishing from a canoe. Weeds can play a factor too. I usually fish weed edges and not over the tops of weeds with spinners however.

[Cicada]

My first inclination was that snell length is related to water temperature. In the spring and fall I keep them short because the fish seem more bottom related. During the summer when the fish are suspended a longer snell might work better.

But another factor that might come into play is the type of structure you are fishing. Wouldn't a shorter snell work better around weeds where line control is critical? Those fish are around the weeds actively feeding and the strike would be more reactionary. Deeper off shore structure might need a longer snell to allow more freedom of the lure to do its thing and the sinker be less apt to spook the fish that are not as aggressive.

[kfk]

I've never associated snell length with depth on spinners myself. I've never really found a magic snell length in any situation and in most conditions something in the neighborhood of 3-4 feet seems to work fine for me. However, if I'm working tightly to a weedline or in an area of lots of rocks I'll shorten my snell to reduce snags, sometimes to only a foot or so.

If you use slow death rigs, they follow pretty much the same guidelines as spinner rigs.

I do know that if snells get too long. the spinner will basically drag on the bottom and generally, I want my spinner rigs to to run somewhat above the bottom, again to reduce snags and because more fish will see them if they run up a bit. Floats or running suspended spinners are another option but a different topic. Snell length on Lindys rig is also a different topic. I find that when tying spinner rigs, making them long enough to be used in most situations is the way to do it because they can always be cut shorter while in the boat.

[harvey lee]

I have a few boxes full of different length's. I let the eyes tell me what they want.

Typically I will run a snell length of approx 4ft. If the fish are not hitting it and I know they are there, then I will add a few feet as they could be a bit spooky depending on water clarity. Seenm's in the shallow water and if the water is very clear, those fish are spooky and then I just add to the length and hope they hit.

For my SDR's, I use a 5ft snell and that seems to work out fairly well in many situations.

[JohnMickish]

My Snell length is all related to water clarity, speed and type of structure. Rocks = shorter, clear water = longer. If I'm targeting suspended fish I'm not going to use bottom bouncers I will be using trolling weighs and long snells.

[Northlander]

My Snell length is all related to water clarity, speed and type of structure. Rocks = shorter, clear water = longer. If I'm targeting suspended fish I'm not going to use bottom bouncers I will be using trolling weighs and long snells.

Ditto