Swimbaits vs SwimJigs: When to use each one, the retrieval, tips and tricks, all provided Jeremy of @Fishing the LoneStar. Spring presents a great opportunity to catch some MONSTERBASS and these two techniques can help get it done!

Click here to check out Jeremy's Channel Here.

Click here to subscribe to our channel for Pro tips and Bait breakdowns on a monthly basis.

If you’re interested in taking your tackle selection to the next level, our team hand selects perfect tackle & gear based on where you love to fish the most.

Join today and save $10 off your first box. 
Use code SAVE10 at checkout.  JOIN NOW

#swimjig #swimbait #MONSTERBASS #fishingthelonestar #springbassfishing

Video transcript:

Jeremy:
Oh, oh, my gosh. That's a good fish.

Jeremy:
That's a good fish.

Jeremy:
Holy crap.

Jeremy:
Hung up.

Jeremy:
Oh, my gosh. Oh, come off. Come off that tree.

Jeremy:
[inaudible 00:00:14]?

Jeremy:
What's going on, guys? My name is Jeremy with Fishing the LoneStar. Welcome back to the MONSTERBASS channel. Today we're talking swim jig versus swimbait... When you should throw each one, how, some of the techniques, the retrieval, the gear, and really, what the differences are between the two. So let's dive in, talk about swimbaits versus swim jigs.

Jeremy:
First of all, if you have not yet subscribed to the MONSTERBASS channel, make sure you do that now because there's lots of great content coming your way, tips, tricks, on-the- water footage, some great catches. So make sure you subscribe right here to the MONSTERBASS channel.

Jeremy:
And if you have not yet as well, hop over to my channel, there'll be a link below, Fishing the LoneStar. I try to highlight a couple of things there and that's gear and tackle reviews, fishing tips and tricks as well, and weekly updates from Texas or the South Region about what's working and what I've been doing to catch fish. So make sure you hop over to Fishing the LoneStar and give me a follow or a subscribe.

Jeremy:
All right, let's dive in. I'm going to start by talking about a little bit of what I used to do. All right, so in the past, I almost exclusively threw a swimbait instead of a swim jig. And quite honestly, I never really saw the need to throw anything other than an EWG hook on a swimbait. I didn't really understand why I probably should throw a swim jig in certain scenarios versus a swimbait. So we're going to talk about that today.

Jeremy:
I'm going to start with the swim jig and what I've learned about this particular lure. First of all, that's something along the lines of what I normally throw. That's the X-Zone Slammer, a 4" version on the back of a swim jig.

Jeremy:
What I've learned about the swim jig is it really excels in shallower water... probably 5' or shallower. So normally I'm throwing this one jig in 5' or shallower water, versus a swimbait, I'm throwing probably 5' and deeper. The reason why is because your smaller bait fish will oftentimes get up shallow and Florida-strain bass, if you're after large mouth, which is predominantly what most species of large-mouth bass are, they're Florida strain, like to get up shallow... Large-mouth bass in general, like to be shallow, like to get up there and sun, chase bait fish, the spawn is coming if it's not already here and they like to bed there as well. So getting up shallow with a swim jig is really helpful.

Jeremy:
Now the swim jig itself, because you have the weed guard, really, really does well around lots of laydowns, timber, grass. You can pretty much bring this thing through anything just like you can a jig. So it makes it extremely versatile. So I do like to throw it up shallow and around a lot of cover structure, et cetera.

Jeremy:
Now, one thing I also really like to do with this one jig is during my retrieval, I will shake or pump the rod quite a bit. Some people will call it the Alabama Shake. The reason why is because every time you do, it causes that skirt to flare up in the water. So you want to look for a swim jig that will flare up in the water as you pump it or shake it. That's what I like to do. And that retrieval, I find that it gives me a lot of good and bigger fish when I'm using a swim jig with that type of retrieval.

Jeremy:
Now let's talk about the swimbait for a minute. One of my favorite to use is, again, the X-Zone Slammer. But in this particular case is the 5½" Mega Slammer. I normally put that on a 5/0 to 6/0 EWG hook, depending upon the manufacturer. Sometimes a 5/0 and a 6/0 are the same size from different manufacturers. But I will obviously [inaudible 00:04:04] that. So I'll take that swimbait, pull it forward a little bit, bury the hook tip so that I have a nice, clean, buried hook.

Jeremy:
I like to slow roll my swimbaits. So literally I'll cast out, let that swimbait get a little bit deeper in the water column, almost to the bottom and just a slow, steady retrieve. So it's a slow retrieve. The beautiful thing about this particular swimbait is there's a big body roll and a big tail wag from that paddletail on the end. So you don't have to reel it fast to get action. You can reel it pretty slow.

Jeremy:
Here's a couple of other things to think about. This past weekend I was on the water. There was a really high sun later in the day. So high sun, no clouds, fish don't have eyelids. They're not looking up, they're likely looking down. So I put up the swim jig that I was using early in the morning up shallow when the sun was behind some clouds and fish were looking up. And instead went to the swimbaits down bottom, deeper, heavier hook, slow roll on the bottom and was way more productive with the swimbait in the afternoon and the swim jig in the morning. So two different lures similar because they both have a swimming style, right? But completely excelled in different times of the day. So just some things to think about as you're choosing between which of those two to throw.

Jeremy:
A couple of things I will also point out is the equipment I'm using. I'm using 20 pound fluorocarbon for both of them, mainly because a lot of the fisheries I'm fishing in have more timber than they do lily pads. If I was fishing around more lily pads, I'd probably throw braid with both of these to cut through those pads. But you don't want to throw braid around timber because it will dig into the wood. You'd rather have fluorocarbon for that. So I throw 20 pound fluorocarbon on both of those, just because you have usually pretty thick gauge hooks that you're trying to set. So you need stronger line.

Jeremy:
On my bigger swimbaits like this, I'm throwing a 7'6" extra heavy rod on the Lew's Super Duty. Now you can throw a heavy rod, extra heavy rod, depends on, again, on the rod manufacturer. That's just what I use. Then on the swim jig, because I'm shaking this a lot to get that skirt to flare up, I want a light rod and a light real. So for me, I use a Lew's HyperMag. This particular rod is four ounces. The reel is less than six ounces. So combined, this setup is 10 ounces.

Jeremy:
Now that's just me because I use a swim jig a lot. So I have a dedicated swim jig set up. But you really just need a medium/ heavy to a heavy rod on a swim jig. You'll get by just fine with either of those. This is just my preference of a setup. But again, I'm throwing 20 pound fluorocarbon on this as well because I'm throwing it up shallow and around a lot of wood and timber. If I was throwing it in lily pads, I'd probably go, again, with braid.

Jeremy:
So that's a little bit of difference between the two. Both are highly effective. I recommend you definitely throw both. Don't be like me previously and just get stuck on a swimbait. Try both the swim jig and the swimbait. But think about if fish are looking up and they're in shallower water, go with a swim jig. If fish are a little bit deeper or there's a high sky, and they're maybe looking down, go with a bigger swimbait on bottom. I think you'll find you'll have a lot of success with both of those two applications.

Jeremy:
All right, guys, that's going to be a wrap on our conversation today about swimbaits versus swim jigs. If you've got questions, drop them below. I'd love to answer them, because these are two techniques that I feel very passionate about. I use them a ton and catch a ton, a ton of fish. So drop your comments below. Maybe you should subscribe right here to the MONSTERBASS channel for more great videos and fishing content coming your way.

Jeremy:
Also, if you're not already, make sure you subscribe to the MONSTERBASS Bag. I personally am in the South Region, so I get the Regional Pro Box for the South. Love the baits that I get every month. Make sure you check them out. Make sure you subscribe to MONSTERBASS, The Better Bag and get out and go catch a monster bass of your own.