I finally broke my last Terminator T1 titanium spinnerbait, and when I went to order replacements, I realized they no longer make the T1 titanium series. For those of you who have switched to other options, which spinnerbaits have held up well and maintained their alignment after repeated catches?

Dobyns Beast spinnerbait lasts forever.

Unfortunately you won't find a replacement for the original T1 Terminator. They don't exist. Unless you want to fork over 60 bucks on eBay.

The strike king tour grade ones aren't bad. I think they are 10 bucks.

Picasso would be my choice. They are not cheap anymore but are definitely high quality.

https://www.picassooutdoors.com/article_a/317.htm

33 minutes ago, NRJ1988 said:

Dobyns Beast spinnerbait lasts forever.

Just looked up the Dobyns Beast and found mostly out of stocks; appears it is discontinued or extremely popular.

Dobyns are a solid choice, Persuader spinnerbaits take more than their fair share of use and abuse as well.

Megastrike Roland Martin Big Bass. I've had the same one, same skirt for 6 or more years. It has a head that swivels 180 degrees so bass can't leverage it as well, a thicker wire so it doesn't break and a closed eye tie. It also comes in golden shiner pattern, which is a must for me. https://www.megastrike.com/bigbassspinnerbait?scrollToProduct=big-bass-spinnerbait-golden-shiner-br-br

I have never had a Dobyns break on me.

59 minutes ago, Swamp Girl said:

I have never had a Dobyns break on me.

Bring it here and put it to the ultimate test: the pack of northern pike teeth. It's an endless assault on my tackle.

3 hours ago, FishTank said:

Picasso would be my choice. They are not cheap anymore but are definitely high quality.

https://www.picassooutdoors.com/article_a/317.htm

Picasso's are quality baits. I know that KVD preferred Nichols. I never became a Terminator man, but they definitely have a following. The wire seemed a little stiff to me 💁

4 hours ago, Tackleholic said:

Just looked up the Dobyns Beast and found mostly out of stocks; appears it is discontinued or extremely popular.

The Ollie's near me has a big box full of them, at only $3.99 per. If you have an Ollie's near you it's worth checking.

9 minutes ago, NRJ1988 said:

The Ollie's near me has a big box full of them, at only $3.99 per. If you have an Ollie's near you it's worth checking.

^ this. I grabbed a few from Ollie’s a couple of months ago for around that same price. Haven’t caught much on them yet but so far so good.

Bass Pro Shops XPS Brawler ...

Good Fishing

Durable spinnerbaits are like durable swimbaits—they last forever.

Mostly because they get no bites.

The bass we are targeting with our spinnerbaits can & will eventually completely mangle the wire on any bait.

So I can purchase a bait that has a wire; I could tow my truck with, and it will last forever.

But after putting a few mutant and angry smallies in the net, you have to expect the bait is going to be toast.

Finally, IME, re-tuning or bending back a badly warped spinnerbait wire is a big fish loss just waiting to happen.

I can get away with it once, maybe twice, but repeated 'spinnerbait tuning' is something I no longer do.

Pretty sure you can guess why.

So in the end, I purchase baits that get bites for me. I have a few of each of the best color patterns and sizes.

When one gets wrecked, I cut it off and tie on a new one.

Big fish bite windows are rare & small; I am done squandering them in an attempt to save a few bucks.

When I figure the cost of owning, insuring & running my boat, motor & trailer, as well as the rig I tow it all with and the fuel for both, every bite is worth quite a bit more than the cost of a decent/quality spinnerbait.

YMMV

A-Jay

3 hours ago, A-Jay said:

Durable spinnerbaits are like durable swimbaits—they last forever.

Mostly because they get no bites.

The bass we are targeting with our spinnerbaits can & will eventually completely mangle the wire on any bait.

So I can purchase a bait that has a wire; I could tow my truck with, and it will last forever.

But after putting a few mutant and angry smallies in the net, you have to expect the bait is going to be toast.

Finally, IME, re-tuning or bending back a badly warped spinnerbait wire is a big fish loss just waiting to happen.

I can get away with it once, maybe twice, but repeated 'spinnerbait tuning' is something I no longer do.

Pretty sure you can guess why.

So in the end, I purchase baits that get bites for me. I have a few of each of the best color patterns and sizes.

When one gets wrecked, I cut it off and tie on a new one.

Big fish bite windows are rare & small; I am done squandering them in an attempt to save a few bucks.

When I figure the cost of owning, insuring & running my boat, motor & trailer, as well as the rig I tow it all with and the fuel for both, every bite is worth quite a bit more than the cost of a decent/quality spinnerbait.

YMMV

A-Jay

I am willing to spend money on quality spinnerbaits but I dont want a spinnerbait where after one fish it is toast. Which spinnerbait brands have you found to be the most successful at getting bites?

2 hours ago, SproDD79 said:

I am willing to spend money on quality spinnerbaits but I dont want a spinnerbait where after one fish it is toast. Which spinnerbait brands have you found to be the most successful at getting bites?

Picasso and Strike King Tour Grade.

2 hours ago, SproDD79 said:

I am willing to spend money on quality spinnerbaits but I dont want a spinnerbait where after one fish it is toast. Which spinnerbait brands have you found to be the most successful at getting bites?

I hear you loud and clear, and I am a member of that club as well.

The point of my previous response here, which I'm pretty sure I did a poor job of conveying, is that IME spinnerbaits have a life expectancy. Regardless of brand or price. And what's sort of frustrating, at least for me, is that the better a spinnerbait works, the shorter its life span. And by 'life span' I mean that moment when a fish crushes a spinnerbait and either on the hookset or shortly thereafter, I 'lose' the bass. After reeling in while using some colorful language, I get back half a bait, usually just a wire with a couple of pathetic blades hanging off it. I really prefer to avoid this scenario completely, which means I'm retiring baits that get bent up pretty good a few times but still "might' still fish OK.

The baits I fish are far from anything special or magical. Strike King Burners, Freedom Freaks, and the Megabass V9 I think it's called. I am also dealing with a fairly robust pike population, and as mentioned previously, they love fast & shiny and really do a number on any bait. Most of the time I'm using a trace of wire in front of my spinnerbaits just so that I can enact revenge on those toothy bahstards.

So, that's all I've got.

Good Luck.

A-Jay

Love it, @A-Jay . Maybe somewhere along the road of bass fishing we all get a better appreciation for opportunity cost, and what’s meaningful to us!

3 hours ago, A-Jay said:

Regardless of brand or price. And what's sort of frustrating, at least for me, is that the better a spinnerbait works, the shorter its life span. And by 'life span' I mean that moment when a fish crushes a spinnerbait and either on the hookset or shortly thereafter, I 'lose' the bass. After reeling in while using some colorful language, I get back half a bait, usually just a wire with a couple of pathetic blades hanging off it. I really prefer to avoid this scenario completely, which means I'm retiring baits that get bent up pretty good a few times but still "might' still fish OK.

That makes a lot of sense. You said it well, "the better a spinnerbait works, the shorter its lifespan." In my experience, the original Terminator T1 Spinnerbait spinnerbaits held up remarkably well and could handle plenty of fish before their performance started to decline. I was hoping there might be a worthy replacement that matched their effectiveness, but it doesn't seem like there's a clear answer. I'm going to let the Monkey order several of the spinnerbaits mentioned in this thread and put them through their paces to see which ones perform best. Thanks to everyone for the feedback and suggestions. I appreciate the help.

I don’t throw a ton of spinnerbaits, but when I do, I primarily use war eagle and haven’t had any issues with them.

So far my Sieberts spinnerbaits have been very durable, both the compact and full size. It will be a few months before I get to beat them up some more. The Dobyns Beast is an excellent bait as well. I wonder who came up with the name???

15 hours ago, SproDD79 said:

I am willing to spend money on quality spinnerbaits but I dont want a spinnerbait where after one fish it is toast

That's what was so special about the Terminator. It was durable and effective. Even after seasons of vicious strikes from northern pike. Most of the time I would have to replace the skirt several times before the spinnerbait itself broke or failed.

I know some anglers who use the cheapest versions they can find. That's usually the northland series for 3 bucks. They are toast after one fish. But they know and accept that.

Rapala bought Terminator at least 10-15 years ago. Terminator is still a thing, but they've long discontinued the original T1 version which was the gold standard.

I looked about a month ago and I still have 10 of them. 5 currently in the tackle rotation as usable and 5 more in the packaging. So I am good for a while.

Im really surprised no one has mentioned bassman spinnerbaits. These have been my go to's here lately, always have 1 tied on.

Compact 1/2oz is money dude

I’m more in the AJay camp that they are a disposable bait eventually. Same with buzzbaits. Knowing how to bend them back in shape after a fish is a skill you just need to learn. And if you are boat flipping fish on them (or snagging them in the net with a thrashing fish) they are going to get bent out. I’ve got a range of brands and they all work in the right place. Some are easier than others to keep running right. I primarily fish strike kings and war eagles, but have some sieberts, dirty jigs, Stanley vibrax, and even some I’ve made myself for a specific things. The dirty jigs have a lighter wire and awesome action for it, but do bend a little easier. The SKs and war eagles are a little heavier wire for the size. I made it through about 30 bass this year on a war eagle screaming eagle including a bunch of 3+ lb fish. One backcast crack on the boat and one cast that slammed a tree trunk I was trying to get next to were the kill shots on it. 30 good bass plus smoke feels about right for me.

Looking through my disaster area of a spinnerbait box, I found a couple others to add to the list of tough spinnerbaits.

Strike King Potbelly: Cheap, effective and absolute warriors. I’ve got a couple that look like victims of tragic farming accidents, but the wire is still straight and solid.

McCoy VTwin: Have several that have been drug through brush and rocks to the point that I rolled the hook point over, but no harm to the wire. Skirts aren’t as durable as some makes, but still a solid platform.