Metal baits · Spoons and spinners

Vintage Fishing Spoons and Spinners: How to Identify the Metal in the Box

Every old tackle box has a tangle of metal: spoons, spinners, spinner baits, trolling blades, and odd little things that flash. Most lure collectors start with wooden plugs and overlook the metal. That is understandable, because a lot of it is common. But early spoons and spinners include some of the oldest artificial lures in American fishing, and even common ones can be identified and sorted with a few habits.

The site already has detailed guides to two famous spoons, the Dardevle and the Johnson Silver Minnow. This guide covers the metal bait category as a whole.

Sorting the metal

A careful history

The metal spoon is one of the earliest American artificial lures. Julio Buel is widely credited with early commercial spoon production in the mid 1800s, and spoons and spinners from his era are among the oldest pieces collectors pursue. Through the late 1800s and early 1900s, many tackle companies produced spoons and spinners, including well-known names such as Pflueger and Shakespeare.

In the twentieth century, a few metal baits became household names, among them the Dardevle and the Johnson Silver Minnow. In-line spinners from European makers such as Mepps became widely popular in North America after the Second World War, and later American in-line spinners followed.

How to identify a spoon or spinner

1. Find the stamp. Turn spoons over and look at the back. Tilt spinner blades under light. Stamps are often shallow and worn; a loupe helps.
2. Record the exact wording. Maker name, model, size number, patent marks, and city if present. Partial words are still useful.
3. Measure. Length without hooks or split rings, and blade length on spinners. Many makers used size numbers.
4. Note the finish. Nickel, brass, copper, gold-tone, painted, enamel, or a combination. Describe what you see, not a color name you think it should be.
5. Check the hardware. Split rings, swivels, clevis style, wire gauge, and the hook. These can help date a piece and reveal replacements.
6. Compare. Catalogs, reference books, and verified examples of the same maker and model.

Blade shapes and terms

Spinner blade names are widely used in fishing and are handy for describing what you have:

Shape alone does not identify a maker; many companies used similar blades. Use shape as one clue among several.

Hardware as a clue (in general terms)

As with plugs, hardware can help place a metal bait in time and reveal later changes. In general terms:

• Hooks were often replaced on spoons. A shiny modern hook on an old spoon is a common sight.
• Split rings and swivels are easy to swap. Look for consistent wear and patina across all the metal.
• Clevises and shafts on spinners: bent or replaced shafts are common on fished examples.
• Feathers, hair and skirts on treble hooks or spinner baits often deteriorate or get replaced.

The site’s hooks and hardware guide covers how to think about replacements in more depth.

Condition and patina

• Plating: intact, worn on high points, or worn through to base metal?
• Tarnish or patina: even and natural, or patchy from partial cleaning?
• Paint (on painted spoons): chips, flaking, hook rash.
• Bends or kinks in the blade, shaft or wire arms.
• Rust on hooks, rings or wire.
• Stamp legibility.
• Card, box or envelope present? Packaging often helps identification.

Cards, boxes and envelopes

Many spoons and spinners were sold on cards, in small boxes, or in paper envelopes. Packaging tends to be scarcer than the lure inside because it was thrown away. When packaging survives, it often carries the model name, size and finish, which makes identification much easier. Treat it with the same care as a plug box, and check that the bait inside matches what the packaging describes. See the site’s guide to matching boxes to model and era.

Researching value

We do not quote values. To research a spoon or spinner:

1. Identify maker, model and size from the stamp and measurements.
2. Search sold listings using the exact stamp wording.
3. Compare only like with like: same model, similar finish condition, with or without packaging.
4. For early or unusual metal baits, check reference books and ask experienced collectors.

A sorting method for a box of tangled metal

Most people meet metal baits as a knot in the bottom of a tackle box. Here is a calm way through it:

1. Put on gloves and work over a tray. Old hooks are sharp and often rusty, and loose split rings disappear.
2. Untangle without force. Bending a spinner shaft or a spoon to free it does more damage than the tangle. Work the hooks out one at a time.
3. First pass: separate by type. Spoons in one group, in-line spinners in another, spinner baits, trolling rigs and loose blades in their own piles.
4. Second pass: marked or unmarked. Check each piece for a stamp. Put marked pieces aside for research.
5. Third pass: packaging. Anything on a card, in a box or in an envelope gets its own spot. Do not remove baits from cards.
6. Bag and label. Small bags with a note of maker, model and size if known. Keep hooks covered so they do not scratch neighbors.
7. Research the marked and packaged pieces first. They are the ones most likely to be identifiable and of interest to collectors.

Unmarked metal baits are not worthless. Some early pieces were never stamped, and some regional makers sold unmarked spoons. But without marks or packaging, identification depends on comparing shape, hardware and construction with documented examples, which takes time and experienced eyes. Describe them honestly as unmarked.

Storing metal baits

Keep spoons and spinners dry and separated so hooks do not scratch other pieces and blades do not bend. Small compartment boxes or individual bags work well. Keep them away from soft plastic worms, which can damage painted finishes. The site’s storage guide has the full approach.