im curious as to hear what all of you use for swimbait. what line, reel, rod stiffness?    

 

im currently shopping for a swimbait setup.  im confused as im unsure if i should get a fast or slow reel.   ill be using multi jointed 6" 1 1/2 oz swimbaits  and i also have a few that are 9" 6 oz swimbaits.  should that be two seperate rods?   what lines?   

 

                     thanks for reading

My setup is a shimano curado 301 spooled with 30lb p-line sitting on a LDC XH rod. I can easily throw baits 3.5-7.5oz

For 6" swimbaits I use a heavy Carrot Stix rod with an Abu Garcia Ambassador reel spooled with 25lb. Suffix Seige. 

 

And, yes 6" swimbaits and 9" swimbaits should probably be thrown on two seperate combos.  But depending on the rod/reel/line you might get away with it.

I use a cabelas pro guide 7 foot heavy and a old shimano bantum

Cabella's guide series(? I think) MH 1-3oz baits, Diawa Lexa 300pwrl takes up 23ipt, 20lb Yo-Zuri hybrid line. Most swimbait presentations are on a slow retrieve, that's why I got the low ipt reel. It also doubles as my umbrella rig rod

It doesn't matter how long they are. It's the weight that you should be looking at. To answer your question a 1.5oz and a 6oz 'should' be thrown on 2 different setups. The rod for lighter baits will be overloaded, and the rod for heavier baits will not load enough. Also if it's a treble hook bait, or a single hook bait. That 'should' be 2 different rods. A lot of us can't afford 2 setups, or aren't that serious with swimbait fishing yet. I fall into the second category. I use an Okuma Guide Select 7'11 H for baits up to 4oz. Paired with a Shimano Cardiff 301 and #20 Cxx line.

My main swimbait set up for baits from say 6" hudds at the low end to the 10" dead twitch is a Cardiff 300(40lb braid with 25lb mono topshot) or a Lexa 300(65lb braid 25lb mono topshot) depending on my mood and BPS 7'6"MH IM-6 Graphite Series Musky Rod.  But I prefer to thow the smaller 68's and 6" Huds, 8" Triple Trouts, and 168 S-Weavers on a Smoke 150 6:1 with 40lb braid and a 20lb FC or mono topshot on a 7'6" MH BPS Bionic Blade (2012 model).  Weedless 68's go on the bigger set up so I can get a better hookset though.

I use a Diawa luna with 20# CXX and a LDC heavy for my heaviest stuff like a 250 or hudd. For baits with a jig hook lik a 68 I use a Lews HM85 swimbait road and for trebles like swaver 200 I use a LDC medium heavy.

I use a Diawa luna with 20# CXX and a LDC heavy for my heaviest stuff like a 250 or hudd. For baits with a jig hook lik a 68 I use a Lews HM85 swimbait road and for trebles like swaver 200 I use a LDC medium heavy.

what he said.  Difference should be depending on weight and if it is a single tophook type bait or multiple trebles...

what he said.  Difference should be depending on weight and if it is a single tophook type bait or multiple trebles...

It really makes a big difference with the rod you use on long casts fishing deeper depending on the bait. It really helps having that stiffer rod to drive a single hook home. With treble baits I like a slower action since you dont need to reel down and swing as hard as possible. I need to get a little stiffer rod for my biggest stuff since to me LDC's leave me wanting more power to drive a hook home at the end of a cast.but I make it work.

Those two types of swimbaits should be thrown on two different setups, like was previously stated.

 

The two setups that I use are:

 

6-7" swimbaits and 2.5oz or less - iRod Genesis 7'5" Fred's Magic Stick with a Orra Winch reel 5:4:1

 

8"+ swimbaits and 6oz. or less - Mattlures Swimbait Rod 7'11" H Telescopic Handle with a Lexa 300 5:1:1