Lefty76

I am looking for a soft body swimbait that works for a very slow retrieve on the bottom. Any recommendations? Regards,

One thing I noticed is that as far as new reels on the market very few have a 5:1 gear ratio.

They were stocked legally in the pond 3 yrs ago. The bass are eating them. Just trying to learn more about them. I would imagine bass fisherman in California understand the habits of trout stocked in lakes.

Curious to know the heaviest swimbait you would throw with this Curado model. Thanks

3 years ago my dad put tilapia in a 12 acre tank b/c the aquatic vegetation made it un-fishable except in the very middle by boat. Present day you can fish it from the bank and the bass are eating the tilapia. Vegetation is still there. Caught a 3lb bass with a tilapia down in its mouth. I am trying to gain some knowledge on the behavior of tilapia as a big bass forage. They seem to like the summer heat more than bass do. Do they go deep in the winter? Also, would Channel Cats eat Tilapia as well? Location: Central Texas Thanks

Have you used these before?

Does anyone know what the weight of the Keitech Fat Swing 6.8" and 7.8" sizes are? I ask because I need to make sue I have a rod that can handle the weight of the lure + the hook. Thanks

Everyone, I appreciate the info. The Slammer is the way to go then.

Tom, Any idea on how to make a 5500C3 cast further? It does have a non-disengaging level wind. Thanks

Delaware Valley Tackle, Thanks for the response. While I think I could change the spool bearings, the level wind is another matter. Is there anyway to make it dis-engaging?

The more I have watched repair videos on Youtube the more I believe I could swap out the bearing myself. Of course I could be wrong.

Tom, I really appreciate your knowledge on these topics. I finally received back my reels and have a 2nd 5500C3 on the way.

So I just picked up my bait-caster reels from re-furbishment this afternoon. One is a Curado B5:1 and the other is a Garcia 5500C3. (Both reels were in storage for over 12 years). The Garcia saw much more use back in the day & apparently no parts had to changed. It just needed to cleaned and re-greased. The Curado needed a new drag washer and 3 new bearings. Go figure. The lead repairman told me that the old Garcia 5500's built in Sweden are superior to the new ones. He also said that the older Curados are great reels. Questions: I would like to update the spool bearings in the Garcia for longer casts. To be used as the "heavy swimbait" reel. Any recommendations? What is the heaviest rated mono you would use on the Curado?

Jon, Thanks for stating the original intention of the AC Plug.

http://www.acplugs.com/ Check out the website.

Tom, Thanks for the info!

I have read online that the mass produced AC Plugs made by Fred Arbogast and other manufacturers did not move as good as those built by Allen Cole and that is why he is back building them himself. You can buy them directly from their website. They seem to be very popular except for large mouth bass. A lot has changed since the mid 90's with swimbaits. Their lure kit packages are affordable compared to other hard swimbaits. Apparently Mike Shaw has always built his own lures and therefore having complete control over QA/QC. If you were gonna use a swimbait at a depth of 10 -12 ft what swimbait would you use?

I see that you can buy AC Plugs directly from ACPluglure.

Once I have my bait-casters back from refurbishment, I will be purchasing some swimbait rods and they will be my first. I seriously doubt that I will fish a lure heavier than 6 oz. The biggest lure I currently use is a 9-1/2" AC Plug which weighs 3-1/2 ounces. Currently throwing it on a spinning rod rated up to 3 ounces. I may purchase 12 inch AC Plug in the future.

If you have a swimbait rod that has a rated lure range of 1oz - 6oz, would you throw a 6 oz swimbait on that rod? Or would you jump up to a rod that has a lure range of 3oz -10oz? Thanks

Have any of you used the AC Plugs and the MS Slammer and do you prefer one over the other? If so, why? I have never used an MS Slammer, but I see recent reviews of them on youtube and I do not see any reviews of the AC Plugs. The lure is made by Mike Shaw and it has been around for over 20 years as well. Also, these lures given their size are not as heavy as some newer swimbaits are. Note: I am only fishing for largemouth bass.

Thanks for all the responses. Based on what I see posted, it comes down to line capacity which to me means braid vs mono. I have recently fished for white bass with a fishing guide who has all his bait-cast reel fitted with braid. I had no issue casting braid. I actually think I could cast further. I know I can with a spinning reel. With regards to swimbait fishing, braid versus mono seems to be a hot button issue. What I could do is attach a short mono leader to the lure. My concern would be that leader knot drifting through the guides could potentially increasing backlashes. Do any of you use mono on one reel and braid on another?

Compared to 20 years ago: Specific rods geared for big heavy swimbaits are now readily available. Braided line has come along way. (I now have it on my spinning reels). With regards to bait-cast reels, at what point should you go 200 to 300 reel based on lure weight? This is assuming you plan to use to braid. I am more concerned on what fatigue the big heavy swimbaits can put on the gears of a 200 series bait-cast. This of course would depend on frequency of use. While not all bait-casters are built the same, I would think a Calcutta 200 could handle up to 6oz lure. With the correct rod of course. And the use of braid if you choose.

Tom, I plan to use some old Arbogast AC Plugs and hope to acquire some MS Slammers. As far as swimbaits go, I think these swimbait models weigh around 4 oz max. Correct if I am wrong but isn't 4 ounces light in the hard swimbait world? I see that AC Plugs are still being sold. Between the AC Pug & the MS Slammer series, which do you prefer? Otherwise I plan to use soft paddle tail swimbaits that are much lighter. I can use my spinning tackle for those. I fish in the family farm ponds that are full of dead mesquite trees and are a bit murky. Because of that I like to use braid. At least on my spinning tackle. Though I may put mono on the 5500c3.

With regards to swimbaits, at what lure weight is it necessary to switch from a 200 series to a 300 series baitcast? Regards,