FE January Saltwater Lure of the Month: Hopkins Spoon

January 2011

Saltwater Lure of the Month

Hopkins Spoon

The Hopkins Spoon was first hammered out by hand from a knife handle in the 1940’s by Robert Hopkins, an avid saltwater fisherman with an itch for a better lure.  It was Hopkins’ aim to create a lure with two key characteristics. First, Hopkins wanted the lure to cast unusually well into the wind. He succeeded wildly in this.  Hopkins also needed to create a lure that would land a number of different saltwater fish.  Mission accomplished. Two lures the NO=EQL and the Shorty, and one lure manufacturing company followed on the coattails of the “Robert Hopkins Experiment”.

It’s true that Robert Hopkins’ original spoon was crafted from everyday cutlery.  However, today’s Hopkins’ Spoons have come a long way, undergoing a rather complicated manufacturing process.  First the spoon is forged from stainless steel. Next it’s plated with copper, then plated with copper, then plated with nickel, and finally the spoon is chrome-plated for the finest finish possible.  All of this hard work pays off the very second the Hopkins Spoon hits the water.  Whether cast, trolled, or jigged, the Hopkins Spoon emulates a wounded or sick minnow with an action that drives fish of nearly every species out of their heads.

Technique:

Cast the Hopkins Spoon and slowly retrieve allowing the lure to evoke its unmatched life-like minnow action.  The Hopkins Spoon is also deadly when jigged over areas holding bait or large fish.


To become a member of the Saltwater Lure of the Month Club, go to FishingEnthusiast.com!