You can get by with a swivel in still water, but the bead chain system reduces any chance of line twist because it's harder to foul with vegetation." "This is particularly important in current. "Clip the bead chain to the bottom bouncer and tie your leader to the bead chain," he says. Although pulling a Smile blade is similar to trolling metal blades, he recommends adding a bead chain swivel to the rig to eliminate leader line twist. Loomis favors a 5-foot leader, though he often goes shorter in current and longer in clear lakes. "Due to the Butterfly's translucent material, you can create finishes impossible with metal," Leer says. "But the offset-shank, in-line spinner also moves whatever is behind it in a crankbait-like action." Both Loomis and Leer also note the near-limitless array of colors available in non-metal blades. "You can fish slower than with a metal blade, so you can finesse-fish in cold water and other tough-bite situations," he says. "But a Smile Blade is deadly in that range. "At speeds faster than that, you run the risk of wadding up the leader if something goes wrong," he says. Loomis says the Smile Blade excels at speeds from. Lightweight blades that perform at slow speeds excel in finesse situations, though they're not limited to such applications. "A larger bend lets anglers run a whole 'crawler and still get a full roll," Loomis says. The latter version features a larger Mustad Super Death hook with a deeper bend. "The presentation is a natural fit for a Smile Blade," says Bob Loomis, director of marketing, explaining that Mack's Lure first released the Smile Blade Slow Death Rig, followed by the recent introduction of the Smile Blade Super Slow Death Rig. Washington-based Mack's Lure, maker of the mylar Smile Blade, has also tapped the popularity of slow-death rigging. And the rig's hook imparts an erratic, spiraling action with live 'crawlers and softbaits." "The polycarbonate Butterfly Blade rides higher, trolls slower, and produces different flashes and vibrations than metal blades. "But Northland's new Butterfly Super Death rig puts a whole new spin on things," he says. His choice has been the Crawler Hauler Speed-Spinner, a pre-tied option with a Colorado blade. When Leer wants to speed up while increasing flash and vibration, he ditches the floating body in favor of a spinner blade. You also get more of a hunting action as the rig moves side to side." "But the addition of a buoyant body, like the Gum-Drop Floater in Northland's Gum-Drop Floater rig, raises the bait off bottom and allows slower trolling speeds. "You can fish the hook solo behind a bottom bouncer," Leer says. The system revolves around the Crawler Hauler Hook, which features a VMC cone-cut point and reverse-barb bait-keeper midway down the shank. Leer, Northland Fishing Tackle's product manager, has used the company's Crawler Hauler lineup since its inception several seasons ago. He says it dovetails well with recent side- and 360-scanning trends on the electronics front. Leer sees the tactic as a great way to bridge the gap between livebait rigging and trolling crankbaits, and says it excels whenever you want to cover water, notably along tight contour lines and the edges of fish-holding cover. While slow-death rigging started with just a hook, they're now used with spinner blades and in some cases spoons for added flash and vibration." "It was born on the Missouri River system as a way to find and trigger wandering walleyes, and initially centered on a half-Ânightcrawler threaded onto a kinked Aberdeen hook, causing the bait to rotate on a slow to moderate troll. "Slow-death rigging has been around awhile," says Minnesota walleye ace Chip Leer. As the rig rose from obscurity, a number of manufacturers built hooks and rigs aimed at this market, giving anglers more options for giving their riggings a new twist. You can also cover water, either in search mode or when syphoning up scattered fish. It's no surprise, given the uncanny ability of a slowly spinning bait to trigger strikes when other methods don't. Once a top-secret tactic known only to a handful of guides and touring pros, slow-death rigging has become a go-to presentation for anglers across the Walleye Belt.
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