Swimbait Rods

[jrk]

Hello all.  
Interested in getting input on swimbait rod recommendations for my son’s Christmas gift, and I know diddly about what’s good and bad out there, although I’ve looked pretty hard across internet. 
First bait would most likely be a slow sinking or floating Deps Bullshooter 160, which I believe is just shy of 4oz.  It’d be nice to have ability to thrown above this for some of the Huddlestons in medium size. I know all about rod weight ranges from my saltwater throwing, where some rods do better on low side of spec where others do better on high side of spec. 
I’ve no idea of what to expect budget wise, but making an assumption that 300 would cover a pretty nice rod. I see Dobyns a lot, see some good reviews on iRod builds, assuming Loomis does some, maybe St Croix’s Musky stuff. 
Forgot to mention neither my son or I are fans of the micro-ish guides out there...as we mostly throw braid to leader, so this suggests a desired requirement.

Sincerely appreciate any input you can share on helping with this decision.

[MN Fisher]

300 would cover a rod and reel if you went with the Diawa DXSB Swimbait Rod at $110. the H/F model covers 2oz-8oz so puts that 4oz lure just under the mid-mark.

 

For upper end, a Dobyns Champion has a few models that puts that 4oz right about in the middle of their range for about $260.

[Tizi]

I went through the same process recently.  Ended up with Daiwa Lexa 300 Winn reel and Daiwa DX 8' Heavy swimbait rod.  I hope to test it out this weekend on my home lake.  I got them during BF sales: $129.99 for the Lexa and $87.99 for the DX.

[jrk]

Thank you Tizi.  What’s weight range on that rod?

Thank you MN!  Sincerely appreciate the help from all. 

[Hammer 4]

If your looking for a light weight rod, have a look at the Irod Genesis II rods. I have the jr. swimbait rod, and a 6'9" mh, these are some of the nicest light weight rods I have. I also have a few Diawa Tatula rods which are also light, but the Irods are even lighter. If I decide to get back into tossing 8" and bigger baits, the Irod will be my choice..Plus they have a great warranty..

[WRB]

Welcome to the BR site.

I like to ask a few questions it makes easier to offer a recommendation.

Is your son a young adult that can handle long 8' rods casting heavy lures?

Have you selected a reel?

The Deps lure you referenced isn't currently a production that is easy to purchase about the $110+ price point, only consider the slow sinking models.

Treble hook hard body jointed swimbait lures are usually fished differently then soft swimbaits like Huddleston Deluxe 68 or 8" top hook lures. I personally don't have any on the water time with Deps 160 Bullshooter, lots of time with Black Dog wooden Shell Cracker slow sink, very similar lure. The slow sink gills are fished slowly and feel light casting and swimming, the soft body Hudds feel heavy casting with little water resistance retreiving slowly. The big difference is you use the rod for more imparting action with a hard body and less foe soft bodies. The hook set for heavy top hooks requires more solid sets then a treble hook lure. What this comes down to is rod power and rod action. You need more power with a 4 oz Hudd then a 4 oz hard body, both should moderate/fast action for easier casting.

We have a compromise if using 1 rod to do everything, I always recommend going up in power with swimbait rods. Ball park is adding the rods lure weights and diving by 2 for nominal. Personally I use XH or 7 power 8' rods rated 3 oz to 10 oz for 8" Hudds that weigh 4 1/2 oz because they require more power. The XH rod works good the  6 oz to 7 oz glide baits. For hard body gills and Triple Trouts that weigh 3 1/2-4 oz  I prefer Heavy or 6 power 8' rods rate 1 oz to 6 oz and use this rod for wake baits and glides between 1 1/2 to 3 1/2 oz. 

Tom

[Tizi]

1 hour ago, jrk said:

Thank you Tizi.  What’s weight range on that rod?

Thank you MN!  Sincerely appreciate the help from all. 

Its the same rod MN Fisher quoted.  The heavy version is rated 2 to 8 ounces.

[BoatSquirrel]

5 hours ago, Hammer 4 said:

If your looking for a light weight rod, have a look at the Irod Genesis II rods. I have the jr. swimbait rod

Me as well, and it is a joy to fish.  I keep a 6" bullshad on it which it casts easily with a Tatula 200.  I have not thrown anything in the 4oz range on it but think that would be towards that rod's limit.  Maybe the next size up, the 7'9' Large Swimbait would handle that Bullshooter better.  Good luck with that purchase!

[FishTank]

Another one to look at is the Okuma TCS 7'11'' XH.  I have been eyeing this rod for a while.  The price of a swimbait reel and the price of rod doesn't bother me.  Its the price of the baits....  It can costs a lot to play. 

[diehardbassfishing]

St. Croix Premier (Musky) series will cover higher lure weight ranges.

 

https://stcroixrods.com/collections/freshwater/products/premier-musky

 

2-Piece rods in the series too.

 

Karl

 

(I'll never forget 1st time throwing a 2 oz swimbait - took a few casts to go from a lob to full cast using a 3/4 to 3 oz rated rod. Then trusted everything and loaded that rod up! It's kind of a slow motion thing - heavy is slow and hard on the rod. Different...)

[WRB]

On 12/5/2019 at 7:06 PM, diehardbassfishing said:

St. Croix Premier (Musky) series will cover higher lure weight ranges.

 

https://stcroixrods.com/collections/freshwater/products/premier-musky

 

2-Piece rods in the series too.

 

Karl

 

(I'll never forget 1st time throwing a 2 oz swimbait - took a few casts to go from a lob to full cast using a 3/4 to 3 oz rated rod. Then trusted everything and loaded that rod up! It's kind of a slow motion thing - heavy is slow and hard on the rod. Different...)

Have you ever fished with this rod using bass swimbaits?

My 1st experience with swimbaits dates back into the 80's and the only rod I had for 12" Worm King dinosaur soft swimbaits of that era was my musky rod. The problem with musky rods isn't the lure weight, it's the upper 1/3rd of the rod designed to get hook sets with big 30 lb to 50 lb toothy fish...way too heavy construction and stiff powerful to cast with for hours using swimbaits.

My first swimbait rod was a G. Loomis SB rod. It's also heavy and too stiff construction compared to today's rods built with a lighter tip and moderate fast action. Today's Swimbait rods are 1/2 the rod weight of musky rods with the correct power to action for bass swimsuits.

A gift IMO should be something the son wants and I would ask him! I am not a fan of Daiwa Swimbait rods or Okuma Swimbait rods fished with both several times using 8" Hudds, OK for treble hook lures. Dobyns and IROD are both good off the shelf brands. Dobyns DC806 HSB would be my choice with Shimano Tranx 300 reel.

Tom

[diehardbassfishing]

Only started to learn casting with it.

It's a very stiff rod - for sure...

 

Have a good point - likely not the best for bass overall.

 

A toy for me - it's too much like work to cast!

 

Just hope to have an outing or two to get a good (bass) catch.

 

We'll see!

 

Karl

 

[Havock]

Out of curiosity, are there any 2 piece poles ya'll would recommend? Wouldn't be able to store or transport an 8' foot rod reliably.

[NorcalBassin]

2 hours ago, Havock said:

Out of curiosity, are there any 2 piece poles ya'll would recommend? Wouldn't be able to store or transport an 8' foot rod reliably.

I do not have one but I watched a video where the handle on the longer IRod Genesis II swimbait rods were removable to make it easier to travel with.

 

@jrk Another really good option for that sized bait would be a Dobyns 806. The Fury can be had with a Cardiff reel for well under $300, or the Champion XP by itself goes for $259 (should be able to find all of these on sale though). Whichever way you decide to go, major props on the Christmas present.

[frogflogger]

15 hours ago, FishTank said:

Another one to look at is the Okuma TCS 7'11'' XH.  I have been eyeing this rod for a while.  The price of a swimbait reel and the price of rod doesn't bother me.  Its the price of the baits....  It can costs a lot to play. 

I have these in h and xh all I need for my swimbaits - for the s wavers and others of that ilk I use a Rick Clunn crankbait rod that was cheap enough and maligned by many but it will send an s waver a mile without helicoptering.

[Drew03cmc]

@jrk I have a Temple Fork GTS Swimbait rod I'd part with. Rated 1 to 6oz, 7'11". It's a really nice casting rod, but for the baits I throw I can use a heavy cranking rod as they're all sub-2oz and this is just taking up space. 

[GrumpyOlPhartte]

@Havock:  Regarding two-piece big bait rods, you might want to check the Okuma Nomad Rods.  Tackle Tour calls them an “Editor’s Choice”. I personally am a bit of an Okuma enthusiast, but if you’re looking to spend in the $120.00 range, this might be worth a look.

[txchaser]

11 hours ago, GrumpyOlPhartte said:

@Havock:  Regarding two-piece big bait rods, you might want to check the Okuma Nomad Rods.  Tackle Tour calls them an “Editor’s Choice”. I personally am a bit of an Okuma enthusiast, but if you’re looking to spend in the $120.00 range, this might be worth a look.

I have one of these Okuma Nomads in the 1-4oz version. They seem pretty well made.

[VolFan]

I have a couple of the Nomads - you would want the XH if you're going 4+ ounces or up. The Heavy would handle 4 ounces and down. Great rods and really convenient - I take mine to FL a couple times a year, and use them quite a bit in my kayaks.