Always wondered about this...I've never used a Pixee spoon. Why are they considered the go to spoon, and the Vibrax the go to spinner, for AK rivers? How do Pixees fish, compared to some of the more popular spoons in the NW, or even little Cleos?

They look somewhat generic to me...

I believe they are the most readily avaliable spinner out there. When you are fishing over 100x the fish you are down here it does not matter. my guess would be that about any spinner would do the trick.

Vibrax work fine here too

I think the Vibrax is a damn good spinner. It probably caught me more trout than any other lure when I was growing up. It still finds silvers for me.

Pixee spoons have never particularly impressed me. The good traits would be their heavy weight and, if you are looking to add some bright color, that plastic in the middle of the spoon.

I fish Pixies once and a while for Salmon. I've had good luck with them on Coho. The Gold or Copper with the Orange insert is what I like in the medium size. I started using it after watching a guy 1 day hook 3 or 4 fish with it.

As for the Viberex, when I 1st started that is the only spinner I used. As I learned more about things it is now my 2nd or 3rd choice. For me the problem is the original style does not get me down fast enough in deeper holes. I see they have come out with a new heavier version for deeper water. I do like some of the Viberex color combinations.

On the other hand like it was said above, it is a very common spinner, found in any tackle store. I would say for the average/beginner salmon fisherman it is probably the most popular spinner in WA as well.

Yep, I guess I was really thinking more about the Pixee...if I plan on getting a week of fishing in this summer in AK, would you recommend other spoons besides Pixees that you might have more faith with using back in the lower 48? I don't want to buck the local advice in AK, but people don't seem to use the Pixees a ton in the lower 48...just curious if they are kind of an inferior spoon.

Some color varieties of Pixees work great on coho, esp. the rattling Pixee, both in 1/2 and 7/8 oz. Same with the Vibrax spinners, certain colors seem to work better than others. One color combination that has worked well for me is the black blade/john deere green body in size 4 or 5, but I believe that color combination has been discontinued. Silver blade/blue body also works well.

Gold Little Cleo's work well on cohos too. Last year I watched a guy catch several coho on a 1/4 oz. gold little cleo; then he snagged up and lost it. He said that was his go to coho lure and he always caught fish with it.

ClearCreek

i still really like vibraxes for coho, with or without a squid on the hook. they're also a great trolling spinner for tidewater kings in size 5 and 6. just seems like they've about doubled in price in the last couple years, i used to buy a bunch every time gi joes had them on sale.

never had a whole lot of luck on pixee spoons down here though.

You can't go wrong with the RVFSHR spoon in Silver, Copper or 50/50. RVRFSHR is #1 with me. I did 1 trip to the coast last year and I went 6 out of 7 for Coho and the nephew went 3 for 7. All off RVRFSHR. It used to be Mortac.

If I were you I would bring both. Pixies & RVRFSR.

I think Pixies and Vibrax spinners are like Copper River Salmon.

Very astute marketing.

I use both in Alaska, but have done well with other spoons and spinners.

My favorite lure for Coho is a 1/4 oz. leadhead jig dressed with silver, blue and
green Flashabou. Which works in both fresh and salt water.

I'd leave the Pixies at home. Every other fisherman you see up there is going to be fishing one so why not give the fish something different. Little Cleo's or teardrop spoons would be a good alternative.

I've fished pixies for silvers in a a river/estuary system for 10 trips to Kodiak. They are definitely the go to lure. On one hot day in Sept. I caught 51 fresh coho in a day. Like the silver bodied 1/2 or 5/8th, (there are not two choices, I can't remember what they actually weigh, but they are kind of what I would call the medium size) either the red or orange middle sac. Don't know if the rattling ones work, but don't think they could hurt. We ALWAYS replace the treble with a single.

I can't say anything about the lower 48 cause I've never tried them here, but in my case, I'd always have a fair amount if fishing for Silvers in AK.

Last thing...I am talking only about fishing in rivers or mouths of rivers. I have no idea about how they would work in open Saltwater, but suspect I would do something else.

As Sebastes said, they to appear to be marketed well. Good Luck.

King

To me, Blue Fox respresents several things: wide distribution, consistant lures with good finishes, and lures that work well for salmon/steelhead in slow or shallow water. I think the distribution issue is probably the key for Alaska fishing, since people come from all over the world to fish there.

The Vibrax is my favorite coho lure period. I couldn't care less about the Pixie.

This one did the trick on the Bartlett River near the glacier bay lodge. Pink insert 7/8oz. Tossed to the far slot in the river it landed and in two cranks of the reel on the incoming tide those fish would munch it. And no they weren't flossed.

http://www.bluefox.com/images/spoons_images/pixee_spoons/pixee_spoons_nickel_001.jpg

Vibrax spinners, marketing hype, are pretty darn good spinners. A vibrax hoochie spinner is still my go-to salmon spinner after having used quite a few different designs, many in side-by-side comparisons. Number two would probably be the Mepps Aglia. I think vibrax work very well for salmon for a number of reasons that I won't elaborate on, but in a nutshell, they fish well in the type of water that salmon tend to like.

As for the pixee's, a more worthless "spoon" has never been invented. I have a hard time even calling them a spoon. Sure they catch fish, but really only in conditions where literally anything shiny would work just as well. They are quite popular up here for a couple of reasons, but mainly because they are highly effective tools for snagging. They are also fairly cheap, which helps as well.

Most folks fishing the pixee aren't fishing it as one would a real spoon, but rather doing the old sink and yank and/or dredging the bottom.

One of the less reputable guide services in my neighborhood actually took to tying a 3-4 foot leader onto the bottom end of a pixee to which they attach a bare hook or small piece of dark yarn. AKA, the ultimate flossing rig. From there they give their guests careful instructions about how to cast straight across or slightly upstream and keep tension on the line as the spoon drags across the bottom. Make sure to give it a good yank at the end of the "swing." Pretty funny really. I am usually too busy netting silvers that like to eat eggs to get too mad at them as they unhook belly snagged chum after tailhooked humpy.

In the spring I walk lots of the creek mouths/combat zones fishing for early rainbows. While the water is still low, I find pixees by the dozens in the gravel. They go straight into the garbage can.

As for the pixee's, a more worthless "spoon" has never been invented. I have a hard time even calling them a spoon. Sure they catch fish, but really only in conditions where literally anything shiny would work just as well.

My sentiments exactly. POS that will work in spite crappy design.

I prefer the Flash-Glo spinner over the Vibrax, especially in back eddies with little or no current where silvers tend to hold-they work better at a slow retrieve that seems to really work for silvers. Never really liked the Pixee, especially at the going price. Found that a 1/4 oz saltwater jig with a stout hook and an orange twister tail worked much better and was a much better deal pricewise.

I'll go along with GCG on the 1/4 oz. leadhead with an orange twister tail. I tend to fish flashabou jigs but twister tails or pink hoochies perform well also.

A couple of years ago I did an experiment fishing in a tidewater creek in Prince William Sound.

It was jammed with pinks. My friend who owns the lodge said they wouldn't bite.

I flipped a 1/4 ounce jig with a pink hoochie to the edge of a school and one fish after another separated from the school, picked up the jig and spit it out and I never even felt the fish but could see them take the jig and spit it out.

Had I wanted to set the hook when I saw them pick up the jig, I would have hooked one fish after the other.

Silvers are much more aggressive and slam jigs.

Alaska silvers are much more aggressive than our fish here in Washington and much more numerous.

Sometimes it doesn't matter what you throw at them, if there are hundreds of fish, almost any lure may catch them.

That doesn't mean that you should leave Pixies or Vibrax out of your tackle box, they can be very effective, but other lures may do the same.

I have had very good success with pixee's in the past on the Big C from the bank. They are heavy, and made more for deeper water, they don't work as well in shallow runs which is why I rarely use them in PS. They are heavy, you can cast them a mile, stop and go retrieve is deadly in the Columbia!

I can't be too harsh about the venerable Pixee... long considered precious metal in AK waters.

I caught my very first salmon on one.... as well as the next couple dozen.

Never had to resort to using one to snag a fish.... plenty of willful biters take them.... from pinks to silvers to chums to kings... and the odd sockeye dolly and rainbow thrown into the mix.