Primus

I would like to use this as a punching rod as the 7'3" length would fit well in my rod locker and I see that it's rated for up to 2 oz. Any thoughts on this rod or any other reccomendations would be appreciated. Thanks.

Nice review, thanks for posting.

I have 2 of the Brian's Bees, very happy with it. I tend to do better with these baits when the water has a little color to it. I've never tried the Lucky Craft version.

I'm a big fan of both sizes of the Zell Pop, one of the best poppers out there.

I personally consider baits like the Skinny Dipper swimming grubs and with the exception of Bluegill baits the baits should be 6" plus to be considered a true swimbait in my opinion, I don't expect everyone to agree with this. If you are just starting the 6" BBZ series is a great bait to test the waters as it is modestly priced for swimbait and can be thrown without having to buy specialty gear. If you really want to get into fishing the bigger baits I would strongley reccomend you get the right rod/ reel combo as most of these baits are 2 oz plus and there are many must have baits that weigh 5 oz or more. I presently have 4 swimbait combos with different rods for certain appliations all with the 301 size Curado reel. There are lot of great baits available, here are a few of my favorites... 6" River to Sea Bottom Walker- inexpensive , weighs app 2 oz. This bait sinks like a rock, I like using this for slow rolling in deep water. I like the large jighook on this bait and it sets a little farther back for solid hook-ups. This bait is great bargain and a great way to get started. 8" Hudd- I'm started fishing this late last summer, wish I got around to this sooner. First 5 minutes stuck a nice 5-1/2 lber and added many more nice fish since then. I'm still new to this bait but I would start with the slow sinking ROF 5 for shallow water and the fast sinking ROF 12 for deeper water. These baits weigh app 5 oz, need a beefy rod to throw this. 7" Rago BVD- I like using this slow falling bait in shallow water, the Hitch color has done well for me. Realprey Alewife- I like the medium falling bait which stil sinks pretty slowly. This bait is made out of high grade silicone, works great at slow speeds and is very durable. The rest are hardbaits.... 9" Slammer- not the prettiest bait but it sure gets bit. Think of this as large floating jointed Rapala. I like to twitch this bait or slow wake it, somtimes a combination of both. 316 Wake Jr.- Another great surface bait, pricey, hard to get but worth it if your willing to drop the coin. 8" Floating & Slow sink BBZ- Heavy bait, need big boy gear for these baits. Readily available and reasonably priced. 8" & 10" Triple Trout- wide S motion, works good in the summer. First time I swam this bait I thought it looked ridiculous until the bass told me otherwise. Matt Lures Slow Sink HardBluegill- Awesome bait that gets a lot of bites. The older version was prone to chipping. Matt has come out with a new version that apparantly has addressed this issue. Weighs app 2 ozs. Must have bait in my opinion. Good luck.

Swimbait style - 3:16 Wake Jr and 9" MS Slammer Poppers - Excalibur Zell Pop & Yellow Magic for waking erratic retrieves Heddon ( old Excalibur ) - slow retrieve with that bloop sound Walikng - R.I. Vixen - really ticks them off original Zara Spook - early moring quiet retrieve over calm water Lucky Craft Gunfish - walks and pops, does everything well. Can fish it slow & subtle or fast & erratic. Awesome bait

I'm sorry I didn't see this sooner regarding the Bandit, it will hit app 16' depending on line size and cast length. I would consider it a deep diver but it will not run as deep as 6XD and the Spro. I've done well with the Chrome Bluegill color, it's a very productive bait for that depth range plus they are in the 5$ range so it does not hurt real bad if you lose one on occasion.

Most of my deep cranking is done with 6XD & the Spro Little John DD. I've also done well with the Bandit 700 series. I sometimes will turn to the Jackall Muscle Deep 15 plus when I want a smaller profile.

Since I started it here are mine... 8" Hudd / 7" Rago BVD - Excellent soft swimbaits Triple Trout- responsible for one of my best stringers of the year 3:16 Wake Jr- topwater action swimbait style Little John DD - I love this deep diver, cast like a rocket so you can cover water Xcite Maximus on a 1/2 Mag Titleshot 8/0 - power shaky style, great summer bait

All time favorite is the Zoom Super Fluke . 2011 started fishing the Caffiene Shad and I'm very impressed with the action.

I spent a lot of time with swimbaits, these are a few baits that Ihad fun with.... 3:16 Wake Jr. Matt Lures Hard Bluegill 8" R.O.F. 12 Huddleston

Bass Junkie is right, different actions. I've had more success with the RC wake. That said I know the Roumba has quite a following.

basslover12345 the baits look good, I'm sure you'll catch 'em.

Pro swimbaits makes a very good paddletail, swims well at slow speeds and gets bit.

Same here, good guy to deal with. I had him make his 10" Anaconda worm in a Smoke Purple color which is the same mold as the Xcite Maximus to use a power shakey worm. I also had a few other baits made in the Smoke Purple color. Very pleased with his quality and service.

I won't have a chance to throw this until next year so I will be relying on all you guys that live down South to fill me in by next spring That said I started throwing the 8" Hudd this summer which weighs about 5 oz and with the right rod it's not too taxing. A good swimbait rod should be able to handle the Alabama rig without wearing you out.

I've done business with Dichoso baits, he'll pour any color and has that same skinny dipper mold.

Ordered from Bass Tackle Depot Stocked up on 8" Hudds, ordered 14 in different ROF's & colors 1 Sebile Flatt Shad- wanted a back-up Amber Fashion color 1 Heddon Magnum Zara Spook 6 packs of 1/2 oz Magnum 8/0 Title Shot jigheads Paycheck Baits The One topwater lure Ima Big Stick and a couple of football jigs.

For 6'-9' of water I would also reccomend the Aruka Shad, Yozuri or Evergreen Buzzer Beater. The 5/8 oz baits stay down a little better than 1/2 oz Rattletraps, Red Eye Shads & Cordell Spots. Of course you could always go to the 3/4 oz baits for a bigger profile.

I fish a lot of clear water and as Senko 77 mentioned PB&J is a good color. If there are a lot of weeds and especially if it's low light conditions I sometimes fish Black Blue or similiar shades. Under most conditions the Brown & Green shades do very well. My wildcard card color is a Smoke Purple Chompers Spider Grub on a football jig. There are times fish will prefer a bulkier jig but under most circumstances I like to thin out the skirt and use a smaller trailer threaded on the hook. I usually choose a craw profile in cooler water and an action trailer in warmer water such as a Paca Craw/ Chigger Craw/ Rage Craw depending on what your preferemce is.

I use a Palomer and never had a problem but as already mentioned tie it slowly and make sure it's lubricated.

Good stuff, appreciate the detailed analysis.

Sorry I can't be of more help, I have a couple and caught a couple of fish on it this spring but to be honest I didn't throw it much as I stuck with my bread & butter jerkbaits. Your post reminds that I should give it a good look this fall. I can't recall the details as to the action of the bait.

Good post.

If all else fails thread a 3" Yum Dinger or Senko on a 1/16 oz Gopher tackle mushroomhead and fish will bite as the bait descends into a slow death spiral. I typically use this on those clear sky/ clear water/ no wind summer days. I also like a smallie beaver behind a 1/16 oz mushroomhead, this will glide more than the stickworm combo. Last but not least is a Zoom Centipede rigged sideways on a 2/0 Owner offset hook tail weighted with a 1/16 oz lunker city nail weight inserted inside.