Chatterbaits & Spinnerbaits

Chatterbaits and spinnerbaits at Charlie's Fishing: bladed jigs, spinnerbaits and bucktail spinnerbaits for pike, perch and zander

Chatterbaits and spinnerbaits are the lures we tie on when we want to cover a lot of water fast and still fish through weed without hanging up. Both have a metal blade that sends out vibration and flash, a weighted head with a single upturned hook, and a skirt or bucktail that gives the lure its body. That makes them perfect for weedy lakes and polders in spring and summer, for coloured water where a fish has to feel the lure before it sees it, and for searching new water for pike, perch and zander. On this page you find every chatterbait and spinnerbait we stock: the compact PXS Copper Head Blade and BIM Tackle Roaring Lion chatterbaits, the hand-tied BIM Tackle ChaCha Bait bucktail chatterbaits, the PXS Guppi SP, DSTYLE D-Spiker Compact and Kaesu RANKA spinnerbaits, and the heavy BIM Tackle Tiger Pike Spinnerbait and Savage Gear Da Lil Bush bucktail spinnerbait for pike. Below you find how the three types differ, which trailer softbait to put on the hook, how to fish them and which one to pick for which situation.

Chatterbait, spinnerbait or bucktail spinnerbait: what is the difference

A chatterbait, also called a bladed jig, is a jig head with a hexagonal metal blade clipped to the nose. On the retrieve the blade knocks against the head and makes the whole lure shake with a hard, fast vibration and a lot of sound, while the skirt and the trailer softbait behind it swim with a wide wobble. It runs below the surface at any depth you choose and is at its best around weed edges, along reed beds and over shallow flats in coloured water. A spinnerbait has a bent wire arm with one or two spinner blades on top and the hook with a skirt on the lower arm. The blades turn around the arm and send out flash and a steady thump, and because the wire arm runs in front of the hook point, a spinnerbait slides over weed and branches better than almost any other lure. A bucktail spinnerbait is a spinnerbait with natural hair instead of a silicone skirt: more volume, a slower sink and a subtler, breathing action that pike like on a slow retrieve. The BIM Tackle ChaCha Bait sits between the types: a chatterbait blade with a hand-tied bucktail body, which is why you also find it in Mouse & Bucktail Lures. For plain blade baits and lipless crankbaits without a skirt, see Vibration Baits.

Chatterbaits: PXS Copper Head Blade, Copper Head Blade Junior and BIM Tackle Roaring Lion

The PXS Copper Head Blade from PXS Pitch and Strike is our standard chatterbait for perch, zander and pike. It has a high-pitch blade, a lifelike 3D fish head, a hand-tied silicone skirt and a Teflon coated 5/0 hook, and it comes in 10.5 g and 12 g, both 8.5 cm long. The big hook takes a 10 cm shad or a 4 inch craw as a trailer and gives you a solid hook-up on a zander or pike. The PXS Copper Head Blade Junior is the same lure scaled down: 7 g (7 cm) and 9 g (8 cm) on a 2/0 hook, the one for perch, for shallow canals and for days when a smaller profile gets more takes. The BIM Tackle Roaring Lion Chatterbait is a 7 g bladed jig built for light, steady retrieves in open water and among weed beds. It swims with a subtle vibration at low speed, has a hand-tied silicone skirt and a 1/0 single hook with a trailer guard that holds even a soft softbait in place without tearing it. All three fish well on a 2.10 to 2.40 m rod with 10 to 30 g casting weight and braid; add a fluorocarbon leader for perch and zander and a thin wire or titanium trace where pike are around, from Lines and Leaders. More from these brands in PXS Pitch and Strike and BIM Tackle.

Bucktail chatterbaits: BIM Tackle ChaCha Bait, Flashy, Junior and Mini

The ChaCha Bait from the French brand BIM Tackle is a chatterbait and a bucktail jig in one, hand-tied from natural fibres and hair. The blade up front throws out a vibration that pike pick up from a long way off, and the hair behind it pulses and breathes with every turn of the handle, giving you a lot of volume for little weight. The BIM Tackle ChaCha Bait is the full size: 28 cm, 50 g (60 g wet), a sink rate of about 3 seconds per metre and two single hooks, built for pike and big zander in 1 to 5 metres of water. The BIM Tackle ChaCha Bait Flashy is the shiny version with extra flash for coloured water and low light, in Junior (20 cm, 30 g) and Regular (28 cm, 50 g). The BIM Tackle ChaCha Bait Junior (20 cm, 30 g, two single hooks) is the size we fish most on polders and canals, and the BIM Tackle ChaCha Bait Mini (20 cm, 18 g, one single hook) is the lightest, for shallow water, slow retrieves and perch and zander next to pike. Fish them on a steady retrieve with the rod tip up to keep them over weed, or let them sink and work them along a drop-off; you can slide a softbait onto the rear hook for extra bulk. Read our BIM Tackle ChaCha Bait review and see Mouse & Bucktail Lures and Pike.

Spinnerbaits: PXS Guppi SP, DSTYLE D-Spiker Compact and Kaesu RANKA

The PXS Guppi SP Spinnerbait is a compact 10 cm spinnerbait with two custom stamped willow blades in sizes 2.5 and 3.5, a 3D baitfish head, a luminous bead for low light and a Teflon coated 2/0 hook in every weight. It comes in 9 g, 11 g and 14 g: the 9 g for perch and shallow canals, the 11 g as the all-rounder, the 14 g for deeper water, wind and zander. The DSTYLE D-Spiker Compact 7g from Japan is a finesse spinnerbait for pressured perch, pike and zander: a subtle profile with powerful textured blades that start turning at once and keep turning on the fall, a low centre of gravity head that slides through cover, a hanger under the head for extra weight and an extra sharp 2/0 hook that hooks up without a trailer hook. DSTYLE describes it as a spinnerbait you can fish almost like a worm. The DSTYLE D-Spiker Compact 10.5g is the 3/8 oz version for longer casts, a little more depth and a faster retrieve. The Kaesu RANKA is the Japanese spinnerbait for anglers who want to tune their lure: it weighs 10.6 g on its own and 14.2 g with the included 3.5 g tungsten weight, so you can switch between a slow roll near the bottom and a fast mid-water retrieve. Its Knocking Blade System lets the front blade touch the rear blade for irregular speed changes and contact noise, or you switch it off for a stable, classic action around weed and structure. It carries a 3/0 wide gape hook. See DSTYLE, Kaesu and, for the same lures on black bass, Black Bass.

Pike spinnerbait and bucktail spinnerbait: BIM Tackle Tiger Pike Spinnerbait and Savage Gear Da Lil Bush

For pike you want weight, a strong frame and a big hook. The BIM Tackle Tiger Pike Spinnerbait is built for exactly that: 32 g, a reinforced Strong Harmonic Steel wire frame, a willow blade and a Colorado blade together, and a chemically sharpened single hook that takes a softbait trailer for extra volume. The two blades let you cast far and fish slow and deep between weed beds, and the lure holds its depth even on thick braid. The closed eye takes a snap or a leader lock without trouble. The Savage Gear Da Lil Bush is the bucktail spinnerbait in a smaller profile: 12 cm, 15 g, a rotating blade and a natural bucktail skirt that keeps moving on a slow retrieve. It is light enough to fish over shallow weed and around structure without losing its action, casts accurately and works in clear and coloured water, which makes it a good spinnerbait for pike on small polders, ditches and canals and for perch and zander along weed edges. Fish both on a wire or titanium trace where pike are around. More pike lures in Pike, Pike Softbaits and Savage Gear Lures, and read The best pike lures for every season.

Trailers: which softbait to put on a chatterbait or spinnerbait

A trailer is the softbait you slide onto the hook behind the skirt. On a chatterbait it is not optional: the trailer gives the lure its profile and slows the sink, so the blade can do its work. A craw with flapping claws gives the most vibration and suits a slow retrieve along weed and bottom, a small paddle tail shad gives a baitfish profile for a faster, steady retrieve, and a slim finesse shad keeps the lure compact for pressured perch. From our own range, the Walobaits Maramba Craw 3" (7.6 cm) is named by Walobaits as a jig trailer for perch and zander and fits the 2/0 hook of the Copper Head Blade Junior, Guppi SP and D-Spiker Compact. The Rapala CrushCity Cleanup Craw (8.8 cm) with its kicking claws and the HideUp Stagger Craw 4" (10.2 cm) fill out the 5/0 hook of the Copper Head Blade and the 3/0 of the RANKA. For a baitfish profile, the Greenfin Samba Paddle 7 cm and the Toppies Skeletonius in 7 or 10 cm are soft enough to swim behind a blade, and the HideUp Stagger Original 3" (7.6 cm) is the finesse choice for clear water. On a spinnerbait a trailer is optional: add one on the Tiger Pike Spinnerbait for volume, leave the D-Spiker bare when you want the subtle profile DSTYLE designed it for. Trim the trailer so it ends just behind the hook bend, and match colour to the skirt or go one shade brighter in coloured water. Browse Craws & Creature Baits, Paddle Tails and Zander and Perch Softbaits.

How to fish a chatterbait or spinnerbait: weed, coloured water and retrieve

The basic retrieve is a steady wind, just fast enough to feel the blade thump in the rod tip. Vary it from there: a slow roll close to the bottom in cold or clear water, a burn with short pauses over shallow weed in summer, and a lift and drop along drop-offs, where most takes come as the lure falls and the blade flutters. Over weed, keep the rod tip up and start winding as soon as the lure lands, so it stays above the tops of the plants; when the blade touches a stem, give the rod a sharp rip to pull it free, because a chatterbait tearing out of weed is a classic trigger for pike and perch. In coloured water, pick a rattling blade and a dark or chartreuse skirt, such as the Copper Head Blade in Black Knight or Chart Pearl or the ChaCha Bait Flashy, and slow down so the fish can find the lure. In clear water go lighter and more natural: the D-Spiker Compact, the Copper Head Blade Junior in Ghost Shad or the Roaring Lion on a steady retrieve. Perch sit in schools along canal walls, harbours and weed edges and want a 7 to 11 g lure fished mid-water; zander hold deeper along drop-offs and bridge pillars, where a 12 to 14 g chatterbait or the heavier Guppi SP rolled slowly near the bottom works; pike take the whole range, from the Da Lil Bush over shallow weed in spring to the Tiger Pike Spinnerbait and ChaCha Bait in the deeper water of autumn. Strike firmly on a take, since the single hook has to pull through the skirt and trailer. For more on these waters, read Canal fishing and city water fishing for pike, perch and zander, and compare with the lipped and lipless hard lures in Crankbaits & Twitchbaits, Jerkbaits, Topwaters and Metal Jigs and Spoons.

Which chatterbait or spinnerbait for which situation

• Perch in canals, harbours and along weed edges: Copper Head Blade Junior 7 or 9 g, Guppi SP 9 g or Roaring Lion with a small craw or finesse shad.
• Pressured perch and zander in clear water: D-Spiker Compact 7 g on a slow, steady retrieve, or the Roaring Lion.
• Zander along drop-offs and bridge pillars: Copper Head Blade 12 g or Guppi SP 14 g with a 10 cm shad, slow rolled near the bottom.
• Pike over shallow weed in spring and summer: Da Lil Bush, ChaCha Bait Mini or Copper Head Blade 10.5 g with the rod tip up.
• Big pike in deeper water and autumn: Tiger Pike Spinnerbait 32 g, ChaCha Bait or ChaCha Bait Flashy Regular.
• Coloured water and low light: ChaCha Bait Flashy, Copper Head Blade in a dark or chartreuse colour, or the RANKA with the Knocking Blade System on.
• Searching big water fast: Guppi SP 11 or 14 g, D-Spiker Compact 10.5 g or RANKA with the tungsten weight.
• Shallow polders and ditches: Da Lil Bush 15 g or ChaCha Bait Mini 18 g. See also Pike, Perch, Zander, Hardbaits and Softbaits.

Why buy chatterbaits and spinnerbaits at Charlie's Fishing

We stock chatterbaits and spinnerbaits from PXS Pitch and Strike, BIM Tackle, DSTYLE, Kaesu and Savage Gear Lures, picked because they keep running true at the slow speeds and over the weed that European pike, perch and zander water asks for, and because every one has a hook we trust. Everything ships from our stock in the Netherlands with fast delivery across Europe, and we are happy to help you match a lure, trailer and trace to your water. Looking for a gift for a predator angler? The Charlie's Fishing Giftbox is also in this collection.

What is the difference between a chatterbait and a spinnerbait?

A chatterbait, or bladed jig, has a flat metal blade on the nose of a jig head; the blade knocks against the head and makes the lure shake hard, and a trailer softbait behind the skirt gives it body. A spinnerbait has a bent wire arm with turning spinner blades above the hook and skirt; it gives flash and a steady thump and slides over weed and branches better. Use the chatterbait for a hard vibration along weed edges and in coloured water, and the spinnerbait to cover water and fish through cover.

Do I need a trailer on a chatterbait?

Yes. The trailer gives a chatterbait its profile and slows the sink, so the blade can work. A craw such as the Walobaits Maramba Craw or Rapala CrushCity Cleanup Craw suits a slow retrieve, a small paddle tail such as the Greenfin Samba Paddle 7 cm suits a steady retrieve, and a finesse shad such as the HideUp Stagger Original 3 inch keeps the lure compact for perch. On a spinnerbait the trailer is optional.

Can you catch pike on a chatterbait or spinnerbait?

Very well. Pike love the vibration and flash, especially over shallow weed in spring and summer and in coloured water. The BIM Tackle Tiger Pike Spinnerbait and the ChaCha Bait are built for pike, the Savage Gear Da Lil Bush fishes shallow weed for them, and the Copper Head Blade with a 10 cm shad catches them too. Always fish a wire or titanium trace where pike are around, and strike firmly, since the single hook has to pull through the skirt and trailer.