Ringin' the Dinner Bell
When the walleyes aren't listening, use a bigger bell.
We’ve all been there; it’s the walleye bite that isn’t happening, even though everything tells us it should be. The fish just aren’t on; there’s nothing going --nada.
When walleyes are supposed to be hitting spinners yet fishing is tough, it’s the time to wake up the ‘eyes with something that isn’t a spinner but kinda acts like one.
Huh? A spinner that isn’t a spinner? A spinner-that-isn’t that out-spinners the real thing?
Sounds a bit confusing? Yeah, it can be. However, the thing is that the Lindy Shake-E-Blade does all of that.
It’s better than a spinner in many situations calling for one because its six-sided blade really rings the dinner bell—especially for fish that aren’t actively feeding.
That’s not to say that the Shake-E-Blade won’t work on active fish, because it will. It catches walleyes whenever a spinner will and in situations where a spinner won’t.
It’s kind of an all-around answer to the walleye blues.
There are three major reasons that the Shake-E-Blade hits the spot with hungry and not-so walleyes. The first is that it’s something that few walleyes have seen before. This unique blade style is different. Rather than the standard spinner blade that spins around a leader, the Shake-E-Blade sports a flat blade that vibrates wildly from side to side and from up to down.
It is tied in the center of a snell that sports brass-plated and colored beads to provide both color and noise and includes red hooks to give a bit of blood flash.
If you want to see it in action, go to You Tube and type in “Lindy Shake-E-Blade” to check it out. You’ll get a pretty good idea of the outrageous hula dance the Shake-E-Blade performs when trolled at its ideal speeds (0.5 to 1.5 mph).
This dance is something that few walleyes have seen, and most of those that have ended up in batter.
The second reason the Shake-E-Blade is a must-have for walleye fishermen is that the lift it creates lets a walleye guy fish it in places he ordinarily couldn’t fish a spinner.
Spinner blades and the Shake-E-Blade create “lift” when they spin, and each style and size of blade provides more or less lift than other styles. Lift is the distance the spinner or Shake-E-Blade rises above the plane when pulled through the water. The more lift a lure has, the higher it rises.
“One of the reasons I like the Shake-E-Blade,” says walleye pro Jon Thelen, “is because it lets me fish in situations where a spinner doesn’t work.
“For instance when you want to tick the tops of weeds, the extra lift you get from the Shake-E-Blade lets you fish above them or in places where scattered weeds really bog down a spinner.”
(Here’s a hint: If you’re trying to fish above weeds, rather than use an in-line sinker or bouncer, slide a Lindy X-Change clevis on your mainline above the primary swivel and then clip on a No-Snagg sinker. The sinker can be changed readily to fine-tune the weight you need to keep the rig just above weed tops, and it will act as a blocker to catch any weeds that hit the line.)
“That’s the same reasoning for fishing this over snaggy rocks. You can fish the Shake-E-Blade a bit higher above bottom because of its lift and still catch fish because of its attraction.”
The draw of the Shake-E-Blade is the third reason that it’s a natural for walleyes. The action is so erratic and the vibrations it puts out so intense that a walleye just has to eat it.
“Really,” says Thelen, “this is an ideal lure for dark, dingy water or low-light conditions and it’s superb for those times when you need to draw fish from a ways away like in the Great Lakes. It’s also good in Canadian waters where there is a lot of tannic acid stain in the water.
“Actually, it’s good anywhere the water isn’t clear. But that’s not to say that it isn’t good in clear water.
“In low light conditions, say real early in the morning or late in the evening, the Shake-E-Blade is perfect. It’s also good when the fish are scattered, and you need to draw them to the lure.”
While the action, noise and vibration are all triggers for fish in off-colored water, another draw is the fact that the lure’s path is wider than an ordinary snelled spinner.
Because of its gyrations, the Shake-E-Blade has a modified hunting action; that is, it swims to both sides of a true line. That is especially the case when you’re fishing it in current conditions where the instability of the current creates micro-eddies and swirls and such. That instability creates a wider range of side-to-side movement, and that wider path gives a wider reach to the Shake-E-Blade’s attraction.
That action carries through from the blade to the live bait itself. Thread a crawler onto the harness and watch it dance. The Shake-E-Blade imparts so much movement that the crawler looks more alive than it would in real life.
The Shake-E-Blade is offered in a single-hook rig for leeches and minnows and a two hook harness. There are 11 different finishes that range from hammered silver and brass through fluorescent paints to a series of custom finishes.
If bottom bouncers are more your style, you might find the Shake-E-Blade Bouncers more suited to your needs. All styles are also available in convenient kits.
No matter what color or finish you choose, there is one thing for certain, the Shake-E-Blade will ring the dinner bell for walleyes wherever you fish it.