help with swim baits?

[wvbassangler]

swim baits just took of in 08 here in wv I'm sure some people have used them but not a lot some have still not got on board but that's good for me ha ha what swim bait's do you guys and gals use and what color I need some help just started using them 08 season I'm not a pro with them yet I was wondering what one would catch more keeper bass and remember there not a lot of big bass here a big bass is 7 lbs average is 2 or 3 thanks for any suggestions

[-Shawn-]

I would use a 5' or smaller bait. Colors are going to need to be coordinated with the primary forage in your local waters.

[wvbassangler]

thanks shawn I have been using the "woops"y shad 5" very few bites but if I get 6 fish in the hole I will throw it all day I will cull 2 or three most of the time it's a bigger bite a quess

[ZARASSPOOKY]

ElGrandes swimbaits are the best I have ever used. The colors are unique and with size their options, whats not to like.

[TightLinez]

ElGrandes swimbaits are the best I have ever used. The colors are unique and with size their options, whats not to like.

I'll second that! We flat out hammered the fish on Sugar Lake with the El Grande Lures 5" Swimbait. It's a great first swimbait because you simply can't fish it wrong. Give them a try on either a 3/4oz. 5/0 football head, or a 1/2oz.+ 5/0 or 6/0 swimbait hook. I'll be fishing mine with the new Owner Beast Swimbait Hooks! Just stick with it, and soon enough you'll be catching tons of bass.

A little tip: Try dipping part of the tail in chartreuse Spike-It. It was a major turn on for the bass and I won't leave home without it now.

[wvbassangler]

I'm going online now to buy thanks for the info you guy are great
PS how do rig up the football head to the swimm bait can you post a pic sounds good I didn't know you could do that thanks

[TightLinez]

Lemme snap some pics real quick. Be right back.......

[TightLinez]

Almost done......

[TightLinez]

OK here you go....

This first way is great if you want to fish deep and there is a lot of cover around. By "Texas rigging" the swimbait, the hook lays against the top of the bait, making it less likely to snag or collect weeds. One downfall to this rig is the nose will tear more often. Of course you can always fix it with Mend-It.




The next one is good for fishing deep around areas with little-no cover. You simply thread the bait on the hook and take the point out the back. It won't tear the head as easily and exposes more of the hook. However, this way does increase your chances of getting snagged.




Here is one rigged with a 6/0 swimbait hook. It is great for fishing shallower water up to 10ft., or if you want to fish it on the surface. The bait is virtually weedless and I hardly get snagged this way. The hitch-hiker will definitely make your bait last longer. Make sure the hook weight is 1/2oz.+, or else it may not swim right.




There is another way that has produced very well for me in all depths. I use a hook called a Stanley SwimMax- it is a lot like the frog hook they have, and the 6/0-7/0 3/8oz. one works best. The hook alone is too light to get the bait down deeper, but it will swim just fine if you want to fish the surface. What I did was, I pegged a 1/4oz. tungsten bullet weight to the nose of the bait. This gave it more weight so it could get down deeper, allowed it to swim through cover VERY easily, and one other thing. When I fished it on the bottom like a jig, the bullet weight would tap the rocks and it worked great- especially in murkier water. I caught the majority of my bass at Sugar on this rig.
I don't have pictures because I gave those hooks to someone to try, but here is the result.......
I fished this bait until an eye fell out, its head ripped off, and it was torn to shreds. Yet, it still swam perfectly and still caught fish! If something works, stick with it.

[wvbassangler]

thanks for the pics I have learned so much my first day at this site thanks thanks thanks that will work well for me this year