The Online Source for Washington Fishing Information

Best Swimbait

If you only could choose two swimbaits to have in your tackle box for Washington lakes, what would they be including size and color?

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Joel Alinen on December 9, 2013 at 10:15pm

For smallies I like the Hudd 68... For green I like the Hudd 68...for squaw I like the Hudd 68...trout I like the Hudd 68;-)

Permalink Reply by Ronald Hobbs, Jr. on December 10, 2013 at 9:20pm

Well now you are getting a little more detailed about what you were asking about it super tough to classify swim baits as 1 bait. But if you are looking for that one big bite from a largemouth there are definitely some baits I would say you would need and I don't think it's much different than Cali. Hudd. 68 and 8" Hudd should be awesome, I would take an ROF 5 in both or maybe a 0 with couple nails in the 8", think slow with these baits especially the 8". It's funny though I have caught my largest Swim bait fish a 9.7 on a Castaic platinum in the 6" version and straightened a snap on another I like to think was bigger, I have also caught 8 pound fish on the original Castaic skipping under docks. It never seems that these two baits get nothing but poor reviews I also caught another fish close to 9 on a Castaic catch 22 in 6". These baits don't look super natural at all and they are not super subtle swimmers like the hudd. But they have still worked for me. Like what has been said before be prepared for tons of follows. I am not a magician with a Swim bait but I have caught fare shares of fish on different swimmers, if you asked for the best tourney time swim baits for largemouth In washington I would give you a different list and different ways of fishing them. There are quite of few swimmers out there that catch tourney winning fish without turning off the 3# biters.

Jeff Fancher said:

It's just that I've never thrown one before and thought I would try it out this year. Just hearing some of the stories, I think it would be nice to catch some giant largemouth. For me, the big largemouth are the hardest fish to trick into biting. By the way, I expected you to write a haiku. What's up with that?

Ronald Hobbs, Jr. said:

Funny question I think...do you really need them? And to which genre of swim baits are you talking? Big baits? Some many variables..... There are 2 soft body that stand out in my mind for smallmouth, hard to beat a rocks top shelf or swim babe's tiny e in water shallower than 8 feet, water deeper than that I prefer a Sniper Lure Swim bait which is just like the TW swimmer in size and shape. I like the revenge Swim bait heads. For hard swim baits for smallmouth I have done really well on either light trout or white 6" triple trout.

Permalink Reply by Jeff Fancher on December 10, 2013 at 9:34pm

Thanks

Permalink Reply by Kevin Simpson on December 27, 2013 at 2:12pm

For the KGM TW Swimmer 475, what size swimbait head would you recommend? I was looking at the Revenge Swimbait Hedz on the Tackle Warehouse site and would welcome your recommendations or other brand and size opinions. Thanks.

Permalink Reply by Tag Watson on December 27, 2013 at 10:00pm

Hi Kevin,

Depending on the depth and retrieve speed, the 1/2 oz., 3/4 oz. and 1 oz. Revenge Hedz are the three sizes I use most frequently. Dirty Jigs, Blade Runner and Kalins make some nice heads as well. As long as the head has a stout, quality, properly sized hook and promotes a nice swimming action, it will work well. Limit Out Marine is right near you and often has a nice selection of swimbait heads available, including the Revenge Hedz. Good luck!

Kevin Simpson said:

For the KGM TW Swimmer 475, what size swimbait head would you recommend? I was looking at the Revenge Swimbait Hedz on the Tackle Warehouse site and would welcome your recommendations or other brand and size opinions. Thanks.

Permalink Reply by Ryan Perrey on December 30, 2013 at 9:26pm

Only 2 for big largies?? I really think the new 8'' Savage gear 3D line thru trout will be killer here based off my results this year w/ a similar hard bodied swimbait. Summer time the 9'' MS Slammer can be hard to put down. I love, love the Hudd's as about everyone has already mentioned. The Hiroshima Customs glide is the real deal. If your serious about it and stick to it, you'll naturally want to expand your arsenal for different times of year, different patterns, specific lakes ect.

Permalink Reply by Ronald Hobbs, Jr. on January 1, 2014 at 6:24am

hey Ryan, the savage line thru is reminiscent of the Castaic catch 22 except the hook is on top. The catch 22 had the mesh running thru the bait as well to help with durability. I caught some fish with them as well, does this new savage gear bait have the same swimming action as the older catch 22 since it has almost the same exact design?
Ryan Perrey said:

Only 2 for big largies?? I really think the new 8'' Savage gear 3D line thru trout will be killer here based off my results this year w/ a similar hard bodied swimbait. Summer time the 9'' MS Slammer can be hard to put down. I love, love the Hudd's as about everyone has already mentioned. The Hiroshima Customs glide is the real deal. If your serious about it and stick to it, you'll naturally want to expand your arsenal for different times of year, different patterns, specific lakes ect.

Permalink Reply by Tory Weigel on January 1, 2014 at 9:25am

Ron here is a video of the 3d trout. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8hsk5RWoVUM

Ronald Hobbs, Jr. said:

hey Ryan, the savage line thru is reminiscent of the Castaic catch 22 except the hook is on top. The catch 22 had the mesh running thru the bait as well to help with durability. I caught some fish with them as well, does this new savage gear bait have the same swimming action as the older catch 22 since it has almost the same exact design?
Ryan Perrey said:
Only 2 for big largies?? I really think the new 8'' Savage gear 3D line thru trout will be killer here based off my results this year w/ a similar hard bodied swimbait. Summer time the 9'' MS Slammer can be hard to put down. I love, love the Hudd's as about everyone has already mentioned. The Hiroshima Customs glide is the real deal. If your serious about it and stick to it, you'll naturally want to expand your arsenal for different times of year, different patterns, specific lakes ect.

Permalink Reply by Ryan Higgins on January 6, 2014 at 2:03pm

Hey Tag, how are you fishing the Kong? I have a 6" Perch SS I picked up on Ebay a few years back and have yet to wet it. I plan on throwing a few more big baits this spring and summer for Bass, throw plenty for Musky.

Tag Watson said:

Hey Jeff,

The River2Sea Kong is pictured above. Great lures but they are tough to find. They are discontinued but can be purchased on eBay or on swimbait forum classifieds.

Permalink Reply by Tag Watson on January 6, 2014 at 5:25pm

Hey Ryan,

There are a number of different retrieves for jointed swimbaits and it seems like you have to experiment to determine the best speed(s) and cadence(s) each time you're on the water. This particular evening I was fishing a half to a full cast off of deeper weed edges where I'd located perch and smallmouth. I was letting the bait sink down near the bottom and I was ripping it aggressively to trigger reaction strikes.

Permalink Reply by P.J. Koshi on January 6, 2014 at 10:44pm

I'm a fan of the Hudd 68 and the Keitech Fat Swing series. These are the two kinds of swimbaits I have used the most thus the success and confidence. I think if you throw it with devotion in appropriate situations all of the baits mentioned can be very successful in this state on both species.

Permalink Reply by T Dot on January 8, 2014 at 2:11pm