So this year I am gearing up to become better at fishing other baits such as jigs and frogs which also have the reputation for being "big bass baits" (although I question some of the procedure that led up to this).

I know some of you fish swimbaits all the time, every time. Others have them as a part of their arsenal and use them when they feel the time is right. I love throwing swimbaits and can spend all day chucking them if I have to but I don't necessarily know that they are the way to go ALL the time hence becoming more rounded.

When you're out on the lake, and you are chucking swimbaits around - when do you decide that its time to put this thing down and switch to a jig/spinnerbait/etc? To expand on this or to ask another way, what factors make you pick up another bait instead of a swimbait to make your next cast with? (keeping in mind that I am still after the big fish here hence the posting in the "trophy" forum).

thx!

I put the swimbait rod down when I bend over to grab another rod with a swimbait tied on.

I swear I saw Mark catch drop shot fish once. He tried to make me promise I would never reveal this secret but its true.

uhh.... That was a bad dream Rob. Wake up!

Ixnay on the dropshotay

Say it aint true Mark!!!and to think you USED to be my hero :+

www.mattlures.com

haha no power/bubba shot?

Sorry I provided absolutely ZERO useful information. This subject really doesn't apply to me. Hopefully some others will give you some useful information.

Aright, if we have to be serious...

I posted on this topic recently here. In regards to 'the real secrets of tournament swimbait fishing'. The real secret being knowing when to put it down.

And all I can say is that if I did know when to put it down, I'd do a lot better in tournaments. Because many days when it was 'live and die by the swimbait' I died. And I continue to eat it on a regular basis :)

To improve in the future all I can think to do is practice practice practice and pay attention to everything. It really comes down to understanding the lake you are fishing, during the time of year you are fishing it, during the condition at hand. Then knowing how to respond.

Learning this on small lakes is not too hard. I think you can become proficient in evaluating conditions in 3-5 years. Learning this on bigger lakes can be harder. Learning this on the Delta, I'd say 6-10 years.

Its impossible to be formulaic about this across all lakes. Just impossible! Some lakes bite on sun, some on clouds, some on wind, some on rain. Some lakes are great in July, some are great in January. People who give you blanket advice on when to throw swimbaits (or not throw swimbaits) are not thinking clearly or are basing their advice on only a few locations.

If you fish all over the state, like I have, you realize there are no overarching formulas. Let's see: Shasta, Clear Lake, Delta, Chabot, San Pablo, Coyote, Del Valle, Contra Loma, San Justo, Los Banos, Shadow Cliffs, Spring Lake, Pardee, Melones, McClure, San Pablo, Santa Margarita, Cachuma, Mission Viejo, Perris, Diamond Valley, Casitas, Castaic, Castaic Lagoon, Poway, Dixon, San Vicente, Lower Otay. I've been to each. There's no 100% answer!

To answer the question about when to put it down, you'd have to learn each. Fish in all seasons, in all weather conditions. Fish at night if you can. Just learn it from the bottom up. Then you'll start to know when to put it down. I know pretty well on the small lakes that I fish often like less than 1000 acres. But on the big tournament venue lakes ... still a long way to go.

Swimbait fishing is my favorite way to fish. Primarily because they produce big bass, but also because of the incredible strikes, visual and non visual, and because it is still a relatively new technique for me. After 35 years of fishing spinnerbaits, worms, spooks, rip baits, etc. it only makes sense that I like bass fishing with new lures/techniques when I hear of them. A few years ago, okay 8 or 9 years ago, I added drop shotting and swimbait fishing to my arsenal. 90% of the time I throw lures proven for big bass. The other 10% of the time I throw something that I think will get some strikes and therefore may be just the ticket for that particular time.

Every fishing day I have at least two types of swimbaits tied on when I head out. I always have a jig and a spinnerbait on also. The rest of my rods change depending on the lake/season.

If I can get the swimbait bite going, or if I feel I am about to get it going, I'll keep fishing it. If not, I'll try my jig and spinnerbait in and around cover, points, etc. I may even decide a senko or dropshot would actually give me the best shot at a hawg at that time, depending on the feedback I am getting from the fish, weather conditions, etc. But I NEVER give up on the swimbait, I always pick it up from time to time during the day.

Looking back on the last 10 years of my fishing this has worked okay for me. I'm not in Cali now but even when I was I caught a good number of hawgs on techniques besides swimbaits. I believe there are times when other techniques/lures give you the best chance of catching a big 'un.

Ken makes a great point about 'putting out the feelers' regularly during the day. Pick it up, make some casts, look for feedback from the fish. That's a huge part of the learning process.

For you guys that don't know Ken, he used to catch some giant fish in the Bay Area a few years back. Glad to see you posting here :)

practice practice practice... that i can do!

If you want to read an interesting book that talks about practice, read Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell. The gist of it is that he looks at people who were at the top of their field, from Bill Gates to the Beatles, and he evaluates why they got there.

Common perception is that these people are just geniuses and become very successful as a result. Reality is that they practiced practiced practiced to get to where they were. Its interesting stuff.

Nice to be here, Rob!