Mark Errington

Making a Custom Wedding Ring Fishing Lure

The Wedding Ring lure from Mack’s Lure is a classic and effective lure for several species, including kokanee and trout. Between the beads and spinner blades there is almost an endless combination of colors.

As fishermen we like having lots of choices in our tackle box. Unfortunately gearing up with a variety of colors can quickly eat through the budget. It is also good to rebuild the lures occasionally due to nicks and other wear on the leaders.

Lucky for us Wedding Ring style lures are trivial to build, and the component are much cheaper than the pre-built versions. You can easily reduce the cost per lure significantly.

Materials Needed
What you will need:

Leader material
Hook(s) Size 6 – Amazon and eBay
Beads or bead stacks – Amazon and eBay
Rondelle bead (the “wedding ring” bead) – Amazon and eBay
Spinner blade and clevis OR Smile blade – Amazon and eBay

For the leader I prefer to use fluorocarbon. I’ve found that you need to use at least 10 pound line to avoid line twist caused by friction of that blade spinning. If I’m making the lure for kokanee then I use 15 pound line so it transmits the action from the dodger better.

Step One

The first step is to cut a length of leader. I suggest making it about 1 foot longer than you want to fish it.

Next tie on the hook or hooks. This could be single hooks or treble hooks, or a combination. In the example below I used 3 single octopus hooks, tied on with an egg loop knot.

Tie the first hook onto the end of the line. Then slide the second hook down the line to the desired position and tie in in place. Then repeat for the 3rd hook.

Step Two

The next step is to slide on the beads. This is where you can express your creativity. You can do the typical bead stack with a rondelle in the middle. You can vary the color and sizes.

For rondelle beads I suggest buying them on Amazon or eBay. You can find some great deals that are cheaper than what you can find in tackle shops.

For other beads there are tons of options. Check out what is for sell on Amazon and eBay. You can use different sizes and colors – either loose or in the fused taped stacks.

Fisherman’s Shack is also a great place for buying lure components.

In the example below I went with florescent red bead stacks and a clear rondelle.

Step Three

The next step is to add the spinner blade. Personally I prefer colorado style spinner blades, but other styles – including the mylar smile blades – also work well. If using a metal spinner blade you will need a clevis to attach it to the line.

I often add a really small bead between the clevis and bead stack to serve as a bearing and minimize friction as it turns.

Like the beads, there is a great variety in spinner blade sizes and colors.

Here are some options:

Colorado Blades – Amazon and eBay
Indiana Blades – Amazon and eBay
Willow Blades – Amazon and eBay
Dakota Blades – eBay
Smile Blades – Amazon and eBay

For clevis you can go with quick change or regular. Some people like the quick change, but I’ve had issues with the blade coming out while fighting a big fish, so I rarely use them. If you use the regular style then the folded ones tend to cut into the leader less. You can buy whatever style you prefer on eBay or Amazon.

Here is my example with a colorado blade on a regular clevis. Notice the small bead between the clevis and the bead stack.

Step Four

The last step is to take your new lure out fishing. Before putting it behind the boat make sure the spinner is spinning properly. Then see if it catches some fish.

What I found is that over time certain color combinations tend to do better than others – depending on location and time of year. So make a note of your catches in your log, and eventually you’ll start to notice patterns too.

This may also give you some ideas of other combinations to try which might even work better.