Swimbaits - Large And Small...

[Choporoz]

I think its time to deconfuse the term swimbaits.  Unfortunately, I don't have a way to do it yet.  I am open to suggestions. 

 

I feel we need to find a new name for 'smaller' paddle tail, fish-like, plastic baits.  I'd rename the big ones, but since there's already technique-specific rods named for them, I think we should target the littler guys. 

 

Maybe I'm alone in this, but it is annoying, if not downright confusing when a thread looking for advice about using a swimbait contains replies that would apply to an eight inch BBZ, as well as answers to how to fish a 3 1/2 inch Keitech Swing Impact.   I think we're doing our community a disservice.   The next guy that goes out and buys an 8' H rod to throw a 2 1/2" Storm Wild-Eye isn't going to be too happy when he comes back here after trying to throw it.

 

So....How do we get the small plastic fish-like baits out from under the term Swimbaits?

 

I know we can do this....just look at Rage Rig....And Poodle Tail.

[Ozark_Basser]

I always call the smaller ones hollow bodies or paddle tails and the bigger ones are called swimbaits.

[everythingthatswims]

this^

[Senko lover]

Worms........but not quite worms..........like they have this little tail thing. 

[bigturtle]

lol

[Brnnoser6983]

I think its time to deconfuse the term swimbaits. Unfortunately, I don't have a way to do it yet. I am open to suggestions.

Soft plastic swims and hard body swims this is how I define them.

[Big C]

This is what I call them.

 

Swimbait=under 6"

 

Big Swim=over 6"

[Weld's Largemouth]

I call them all swimbaits. If someone lacks the ability to actually do some research before they buy a technique specific rod, then it is their loss and fault.

[Big C]

I call them all swimbaits. If someone lacks the ability to actually do some research before they buy a technique specific rod, then it is their loss and fault.

 

I used a swimbait the other day fishing.

 

What was it you ask?

 

A swimbait of course, do the research.

[primetime]

soft Paddle tails like the Keitech are actually considered boot tailed grubs and classified in the sassy shad arena, the OEM's in China call all JDM soft baits Grubs and it get's me confused all the  time..Also, Craws are shrimp or prawn, squid scent is popular to cover up the smell some OEM's use for plastic which is usually a super soft PVC and silicone mix....

 

A big soft swimbait is considered a Hollow body or Hammer Tail where they measure the length of the body and then the tail to determine the total length of bait. For example, the Storm Interchangeable swim baits that come with internal jig heads and 3 baits usually, if they say 6" your tape measure will show 5" long, but the extra inch is in the tail. A 6" Yum Money Minnow hollow belly is 5" long, Tail is 1" long, and same with most, I learned this the hard way selling online without a tape measure but I had it explained to me...Some companies are odd, MR. Twister measures a sassy shad including the standard ball jighead so a 3" is 2.75", and they make grubs smaller as well.

 

Big Swimbaits for me and I am in Florida are anything over 5" in the Hollow belly arena, a 6" Money Minnow or 6.5" is a big bait that pushes a ton of water, heck, a 4.8" sizmic shad is Gigantic compared to other 4.8 Ringed Keitech style paddle grubs.

 

Small & average is the 3.5" smaller Skinny Dipper style, Little EZ, The Locket version which is now in a lot of brands, but my favorite is the BPS swim sally & or Charlies zipper Dipper which feel the same, both super soft and buoyant and priced right. Those are small and cheap and for Hardbaits, 4" is a good size like a Spro BBZ but a Big Hard Segmented swimbait is 5" and up.....

 

Lately I have been fishing the Egret Baits Kick A Mullet which is a wake/Glide 5", heayy duty for saltwater, believe Stanley is behind them, but I like them better than the S Waver and Savage Glides, and it is heavy, 4x strong trebles, and you rarely get smaller fish..Baits like the Smaller Magic shads from Sebile, Voodoo Mullett you see at Dicks which is Egret and same as Bass Pro as well, is smaller since they are lighter and thinner....

 

anything over 125MM is big for me, 168mm is Huge and for lunker hunting is how I see it...125mm depends on shape, but the Bigger and thicker swimbaits are huge like the S Waver etc...However I throw the 7" Jointed Red Fin all the time and Rapala F-18 which is thin but really long, same with 7" Senko or 12" worm, but a worm Fat max thickness in 14" is Striped Bass fishing bait or a Gulp Eel on the bottom while fishing hoping a monster inhales it....Maybe I am weak, but the 4" BBZ Wake is a bigger bait for me, I put it in big lure box, not with longer Red Fins, Pencil Poppers etc...

[SirSnookalot]

I call them all swimbaits. If someone lacks the ability to actually do some research before they buy a technique specific rod, then it is their loss and fault.

I agree and see no confusion.

I know what the lure weighs and the rod I need to handle it.  Actually I catch more fish over 20# using a jerk shad on a jig head or 1/2 oz. Storm wild eyed shad.  I call them swimbaits, don't know why I need a different name.

[gobig]

Not calling a kitech or similar bait a swimbait is the equivalent to saying a tacoma is not a pick up because it does not have an 8' bed and can't haul 17,000 pounds. The guy that buys a tacoma to haul his 30' toy hauler is probably going to be disappointed also. 

[einscodek]

What would you call a keitech then? and would the 6" fat not be a swimbait?

There are alot of lures which could be categorized as what some people call swimbaits

A rose by any other name would smell as sweet

[gulfcaptain]

I'm confused.....I thought swimbaits were swimbaits?  Now you want to define  them so it's easier to figure out?  Sorry, going to agree with just calling them all swimbaits.  I'm sure most can figure it out without having to define it. 

[RoLo]

In the early going, a swimbait was a hard-bodied, segmented, fish-shaped plug.

At that time, Larry Dahlberg defined a 'swimbait' as a lure with two independent actions.

I suppose Larry was referring to the lateral body waggle plus the independent tail kick.

On a low note, hard-bodied swimbaits that originated in California were not weedless (Hud made one).

Enter the 'soft' swimbait:

Today the market is flooded with soft-plastic, "weedless" swimbaits, every lure company markets them.

Most soft swimbaits have two things in common: a fish-shaped body and a paddletail lobe.

Based on the new definition, you might say that the Mister Twister Sassy Shad was the first swimbait  

 

Roger

[ib_of_the_damned]

I'm confused.....I thought swimbaits were swimbaits?  Now you want to define  them so it's easier to figure out?  Sorry, going to agree with just calling them all swimbaits.  I'm sure most can figure it out without having to define it. 

Word.

 

Just an example: Crankbaits - Deep Divers, Squarebills, Shallow Divers, Wakebaits. Aren't these all classified as Crankbaits?

[TBO]

for me the term swim bait means hard bodied multi jointed bait with trebble hooks. the others i refer to as plastics   but yes i agree it is confusing.

 

[SirSnookalot]

Only confusing to the ones that make it that way.  Use a rod that handles the lure of choice, I find nothing to be confused about.

[WRB]

The term swimbait was used to describe big lures that swam slowly in a natural swimming motion without adding any action. The original wooden Huddleston Castaic trout and AC plug were the first lures called swimbaits out west.

The first soft body boot tail lures were Sassy Shads for fresh water. Kelp Kritter and Worm King anchovies for salt water that date back into the 70's.

Basstrix came out with the first hollowbody paddle tail soft swimbait that started that classification. 316 Mission fish was a early entry in weedless molded in jig head swinbaits.

Back in the 30's jointed or hinged wooden lures called plugs were popular like jointed Pikie minnow and Wiggle fish, a similar lure with a metal hinged tail was thought to be used for the Perry bass in '32.

Today swimbaits are any slower moving lure that includes the big and small hard bodies, the big and small soft bodies, wake baits, slow, medium, fast sinkers. The term is meaningless today.

Tom

[Nap8tak]

https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=define+swimbait&tts=0

 

Next topic please. LOL.