As fishing has advanced beyond a simple wooden pole and string, so have lures evolved to match. While some anglers choose to stick with live bait, there are endless benefits to the choice, selection, and customization that comes with synthetic lures.
Saltwater lures are specialized from other lure counterparts in that their material components must withstand the rigors of salty environments. Thus, their metal must be non-corrosive, but they can also be comprised of plastic, wood, or rubber as well.
This guide aims to simplify the choice process based on a variety of factors including environmental, preferential, and target specifications. With over 20,000 fishing items in our inventory, Outdoor Shopping has the most extensive lineup of fishing equipment online today! Shop our inventory of saltwater lures at Outdoor Shopping.
Types of Saltwater Lures
While any lure can in essence become a saltwater lure when made of the right materials, there are a few that are well-known as effective lures in salty environments.
Jigs
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A heavy, lead-headed bait with a single lure designed as a presentation lure is called a jig. With an attractive skirt or tail, bass jigs are styled to look as ‘alive’ as possible, making for a great lure to get bass out of their hiding spots and onto your hook. These lures tend to be subtle and discreet, having the ability to sneak into bass territory without creating the disturbance that a live bait would.
There are a few types of jigs to keep in mind when selecting your saltwater lure:
Lead-Head Jigs: These consist of weighted hooks with lead heads just behind the hook’s eye. They imitate saltwater bait fish, crustaceans, and invertebrates - but their lifelike appearance depends upon the angler’s skill.
Swimbaits: These are lead-head jigs molded inside of plastic bodies.
Bucktail Jig: Any jig with deer hair attached falls into this category.
Metal Jig: Consisting of - you guessed it - metal, these jigs should be cast out and allowed to bounce across the bottom. A leader and swivel should be added to the jigs to stop the line from twisting.
Vertical Jig: These are designed to move quickly, with the angler pulling the rod up and down to simulate life in the jig.
Eel Skin Jig: Designed to mimic eels, as eels are often used as live bait.
Spinners
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These lures utilize a basic ‘territory protection’ instinct rather than imitating baits, luring fish to bite just by their aggressive features like movement and colors. The spinner blade, a flat metal spoon-like oval, is attached to the lure near the top eye. The blade spins around the body to create movement.
Spinnerbaits
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Also known as ‘safety pin baits’ because of their iconic shape resembling an open safety pin, these baits feature a weighted end with a single hook and skirt and an end with 1 or more spinners. The blades can reflect light and can be drug on fast retrievals for more action or dropped vertically. They do not imitate any kind of fish or marine animal, but engage fish with sound and movement.
Plug Fishing Lures
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Designed to look like minnows, crayfish, or other bait fish, plug fishing lures are made of molded plastic or carved wood, and some have a plastic or metal lip to enable the lure to dive deeper. Because they’re designed to imitate live bait, the true effectiveness lies in the skill of the angler. There are many subsets of plug fishing lures, and here are some that work well for saltwater conditions:
Casting Swimmers: These are subsurface plugs that work best in rough conditions.
Poppers: These feature a vertical concave surface that makes a popping noise when jerked with the rod tip.
Crankbait: These imitate wriggling fish and are typically not ideal for use around weeds or heavy cover.
Stick Baits: With no special action, these baits are thin and at the command of the fishermen's actions.
Spoon Fishing Lures
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As one of the oldest types of lures dating back to the 1840s, spoons resemble the concave shape of a spoon. This shape causes the lure to wobble side-to-side upon retrieval, drawing fish to their movements. Many fishermen believe that there’s truly never a wrong season for fishing with a spoon lure, and its popularity has driven it to be labeled as one of the best all-season, all-species hard lure baits around! There are different types of spoons, and two categories work best for saltwater conditions:
Spoon Type | Weight/Species | Guidelines |
Casting | Range from ultra light 1/36 ounce for panfish up to over 3 ounces for big muskies, pike and lake trout. The most popular sizes are 1/4-3/4 ounce used for bass, walleyes and pike. | These spoons work best when cast 10 to 20 feet beyond the area they believe the fish are and retrieve through the strike zone. All casting spoons have either a treble or a single (siwash) hook attached with a spilt ring which allows the hook to swing freely as the spoon wobbles. |
Trolling | A typical 3″ trolling spoon only weighs about a 1/8 ounce which makes them too light for casting but are an excellent lure choice for salmon, trout, walleyes or other open water species. | These are much thinner and lighter than casting spoons. Flat line trolling requires that the speed and amount of line out should be the main consideration, as well as in using depth control rigging such as downriggers and dipsey divers. |
Soft Plastic Lures
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Soft bait lures date back to the 1950s when fishermen began using the rubber from old inner tubes for attracting fish. What fishermen gained in their ingenuity and new bait tactics, they lost in the lifelike appearance because of the stiff rubber that didn’t mimic natural movements.
Today, soft bait lures have come a long way. The evolution of plastics have given way to an extensive variety of choice when it comes to lures. Thus, it’s of no surprise that fishermen using soft bait lures find themselves many times becoming confused with the choices available.
Choosing Lure Colors
Choosing the right lure color depends on the conditions of the environment as well as the type of fish you’re looking to catch.
Light Penetration: Clear waters and bright skies call for more translucent lures. With darker conditions like murky waters or cloudy days, it’s best to stick to darker black and purple colors.
Conditions | Visibility Distance | Lure Colorings |
Poor Visibility (muddy waters, cloudy days) | 1-2 feet |
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Medium Visibility | 3-15 feet |
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High Visibility (clear water, sunny days) | 15-25 feet or more |
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Target Species: Many bass, for instance, will spook at highly unnatural colors, so even the brightest days call for natural or translucent soft bait lures. Even red colored lures tend to just be the accent colors with the primary coloring a natural pigment.
If you find yourself in extremely dark conditions or muddy waters, be sure to utilize other lure additions like scents to attract fish without looking unnatural. Glow-in-the-dark lures are best served for Crappie fishing during dawn or dusk.
With over 20,000 fishing items in our inventory, Outdoor Shopping has the most extensive lineup of fishing equipment online today! Shop our inventory of saltwater lures at Outdoor Shopping.
