Fri, Jun 9th, 2023 - 8:53am
April 26, 2021 - 9:50am | By James McCarty
The Flag Outdoors Expert Steve Carney has your weekly Outdoors Angle right here!
I love swimbaits! This is a relatively new lure choice which hasn't been around very long but is beginning to take hold because they are so darn effective all season long.
A swimbait is an artificial lure that looks like a shiner minnow and is made from plastic or other derivatives from fish products. They are amazing in the water and look exactly like a live minnow. They can be pitched out and swam back or even hopped back to the boat. The biggest key to swimbait success is matching the jig head/hook with the swimbait. My favorite swimbaits are 3 and 4 inches long which require completely different jig heads. With swimbaits, you want the hook to be over-sized and well in the rear of the bait. Always stick with a tiny jig head in the 1/16th .oz size or 1/8th if windy. The idea is to present a swimbait that sinks slowly and by using a light jig head, this allows the bait to swim naturally and unimpeded.
As a guide, I use this bait religiously throughout the season and catch a variety of species from crappies to walleyes. Northern pike really love swimbaits as well.
There is a learning curve on swimbaits so it requires time on the water and you will get it eventually. The more time you put into the learning process the more effective you will become.
Steve Carney is The Flag WZFG Outdoors expert. He can be heard every Thursday morning at 8:05 on AM 1100 WZFG. Check out his weekly podcast on am1100theflag.com and hear his Outdoors Angle reports every Friday on AM 1100 WZFG. You can also visit stevecarneyoutdoors.com for more information.
