Cheap Panther Martin Alternatives

[Coreyh]

My kids and their friends that we bring fishing keep losing my Pather's on snags, and at $5/shot it's getting expensive. And stock on store shelves seems to be low everywhere I look.
Next week, we are heading out on a 10 day camping and fishing expedition- Is there a cheap alternative to a $5 spinner that works? I see 30 packs on Amazon for about $1/lure but I am skeptical on whether they work or not.

TIA

[Smoky buck]

Only cheaper alternative is buy the parts and make your own

I think I even have around 100-200 sonic blades in both gold and silver but no bodies but have not built any in a few years

[Bully Bee]

My kids and their friends that we bring fishing keep losing my Pather's on snags, and at $5/shot it's getting expensive. And stock on store shelves seems to be low everywhere I look.
Next week, we are heading out on a 10 day camping and fishing expedition- Is there a cheap alternative to a $5 spinner that works? I see 30 packs on Amazon for about $1/lure but I am skeptical on whether they work or not.

TIA

FWIW I have my stepson use spoons. Some of them are like 1.89 if you get the store brand from The Fishin Hole.

[Pikeonafly]

FWIW I have my stepson use spoons. Some of them are like 1.89 if you get the store brand from The Fishin Hole.

Those are the crappiest spoons u will ever buy. They rust faster than anything in my fishing box. Losing those would be even worse for the water.


Hit up aliexpress or wish if you want a bigger market on spoons, spinners, swimbaits. You’re locking yourself out by just using amazon. I know a guy who buys 50 crankbaits all the time from one of these site and never feels bad about losing them compared to losing a single rapala crank.

[AndrewM]

Those are the crappiest spoons u will ever buy. They rust faster than anything in my fishing box. Losing those would be even worse for the water.


Hit up aliexpress or wish if you want a bigger market on spoons, spinners, swimbaits. You’re locking yourself out by just using amazon. I know a guy who buys 50 crankbaits all the time from one of these site and never feels bad about losing them compared to losing a single rapala crank.

Rusting away is good for the water as that means it is steel rather than lead dissolving into it.
With that said, the dollar store sometimes has some cheap spinners.
Ebay sometimes you can buy bulk. Aliexpress as well. You will get what you pay for.

[Smoky buck]

Those are the crappiest spoons u will ever buy. They rust faster than anything in my fishing box. Losing those would be even worse for the water.


Hit up aliexpress or wish if you want a bigger market on spoons, spinners, swimbaits. You’re locking yourself out by just using amazon. I know a guy who buys 50 crankbaits all the time from one of these site and never feels bad about losing them compared to losing a single rapala crank.

Lots of Chinese junk crankbaits on the internet for sure and some won’t even wiggle but some do work. I would not feel bad loosing them either but I would never tie one on to start with lol

[Pikeonafly]

Lots of Chinese junk crankbaits on the internet for sure and some won’t even wiggle but some do work. I would not feel bad loosing them either but I would never tie one on to start with lol

True, there are quite a few junks and replicas out there but you cannot get those wide varieties of colors from stores. $10 for 50 cranks is worth it sometime.


As for those fishing hole lures, i bought quite a few of them and they went straight to the dump due to excessive rusting. Can’t have that in my boxes if its going to spread. They simply cannot match what len thompson and co quality have to offer.

[Jigsalot]

My kids and their friends that we bring fishing keep losing my Pather's on snags, and at $5/shot it's getting expensive. And stock on store shelves seems to be low everywhere I look.
Next week, we are heading out on a 10 day camping and fishing expedition- Is there a cheap alternative to a $5 spinner that works? I see 30 packs on Amazon for about $1/lure but I am skeptical on whether they work or not.

TIA

I have bought those from amazon for the nephews. They work just the same as the expensive mepps or martins. Can’t beat a buck a lure. Beware of Amazon right now. They are like 7 or 8 weeks delivery on some of their items. Have fun.

[Smoky buck]

True, there are quite a few junks and replicas out there but you cannot get those wide varieties of colors from stores. $10 for 50 cranks is worth it sometime.


As for those fishing hole lures, i bought quite a few of them and they went straight to the dump due to excessive rusting. Can’t have that in my boxes if its going to spread. They simply cannot match what len thompson and co quality have to offer.

I have not bought a crankbait in years and stick to the ones I build. Colours are only limited to my skill with an airbrush, I know the quality and if I don’t like the action I create a new design lol.

When it comes to buying cheap lures they are cheap for a reason. Good lures either cost you good money or time to build them

[C & C]

My kids and their friends that we bring fishing keep losing my Pather's on snags, and at $5/shot it's getting expensive. And stock on store shelves seems to be low everywhere I look.
Next week, we are heading out on a 10 day camping and fishing expedition- Is there a cheap alternative to a $5 spinner that works? I see 30 packs on Amazon for about $1/lure but I am skeptical on whether they work or not.

TIA

I use these exclusively now, I also get the spoon packs and anything else I can find. I also buy off wish and aliexpress if they are cheaper...little longer shipping though.

Never had a issue with them, all work just like the expensive store ones and when i lose one its no big deal. I am about to pull the trigger on one of those cheap clone reels to see how they work out.

[AndrewM]

I use these exclusively now, I also get the spoon packs and anything else I can find. I also buy off wish and aliexpress if they are cheaper...little longer shipping though.

Never had a issue with them, all work just like the expensive store ones and when i lose one its no big deal. I am about to pull the trigger on one of those cheap clone reels to see how they work out.

Clones of anything shouldn’t be allowed. Haven’t got a good quality clone anywhere yet just piles of junk. Don’t trust the amazon reviews as 95% of goods from China have piles of fake reviews.

[SamSteele]

Maybe try switching the trebles to singles instead? Less chance of snagging.

[ponokajoe]

Do a search on line for lure making supplies. There are several large companies in the US that have everything needed to make any number and type of spinner you can hope to use. Literally hundreds of choices for blades, bodies , wire , hooks skirts etc. If you make yourself a batch they should last you quite a while.

[Smoky buck]

Do a search on line for lure making supplies. There are several large companies in the US that have everything needed to make any number and type of spinner you can hope to use. Literally hundreds of choices for blades, bodies , wire , hooks skirts etc. If you make yourself a batch they should last you quite a while.

Luremaking.com in Ontario is a good Canadian option too

[Red Bullets]

Maybe try switching the trebles to singles instead? Less chance of snagging.

X2. In BC most of the Panther martins and mepps you buy have only single hooks.

And use a stronger line. Some Spyderwire type fishing line has a small diameter with high tensile breaking strength.

[Roadgear]

Mepps spinners work wonders for me!

[Windsweptcoast]

I have pretty much converted from panthers to Blue fox.

[Tungsten,]

I’d be changing fishing spots if there snagging all the time. Or someone gets a snorkel.

[Isopod]

I have no problem with the cheap Fishin Holes spoons... some of them are very effective at luring pike. They do rust quickly though, so just replace them, they are inexpensive.

As for spinners... it's Mepps or Panther Martin only for me. Never found a good knock-off. Well that's not entirely true, Vibrax spinners are up there with Mepps and PMs.

[Marty S]

Oh frigg... you want cheap... and still catch something...

How bout go dig some worms

Single hook and a bobber

Or pickerel rig and a weight

[Coreyh]

Thanks for all the replies, folks.
Typically, we fish small streams exclusively in ES3 where there are bait bans and snags are inevitable. I know I lost a lot of my Dads tackle when I was a kid, lol.
Building my own seems like a fun option and definitely something I will check out. I'm just not sure I can have something delivered before our trip. The cheapies from Amazon will be here tomorrow.
He tried out my fly rod last week while we were out and seemed to get a kick out using it but that'll be a whole other issue for another day.

Cheers

[goatskin]

I have found that the cheap imitation lures just don' have the action of the originals. What I found most cost effective was to switch to a braided type line which when matched, diameter wise, to mono casts very similar to mono but has a considerably higher strength. I find that I can break the smaller snags and or bend the hooks before actually losing my lure in most instances. Sure there is a higher upfront cost for the braided line but I can extend the lifespan of the braid by when it becomes worn and fuzzy, simply taking the line off of the reel and reversing it. You then have basically new line as it very rarely that you use the inside part of the spool when using spinners.
I like Fireline or Powerpro. One does have to be careful to pull inline with the rod if snagged or you can break lighter rods. Don't ask me how I know this