it seems to me that you would want a moderate action rod when throwing swimbaits because of the treble hooks but looking at all of the rods on the market most appear to come fast action? can any one shine some light or give some in site on why it is you would want a fast action rod over a moderate?

Big swimbaits 8" to 12" long weighing 4 oz to 10 oz and you need a long rod to launch a heavy lure easily. IF the long 7'10" to 8' rod only flexes up at the last 2' or a fast action, casting these heavy lures becomes very difficult. So you want a moderate action swimbait rod that flexes about 1/2 the rod length during an average cast and still have enough power to get good hook sets.

The problem of fast or moderate action becomes the definition as it applies to swimbait rods, there isn't any standards.

Tom

 

contrary to what Tom has said , i prefer fast action swimbait rods and have no problem casting big baits , it all comes down to personal preference . i get very long casts with my rod , but it being 9 ft. , it does aid in casting 8 - 12 oz. baits . i prefer a fast action rod with a strong backbone for good hooksets on long casts . i also prefer fast action rods with strong backbone because i feel that while making hundreds of casts through the day , it's much less taxing on you . as a moderate action rod flexes more towards your wrists causing a lot of  stress and fatigue on them as i first started throwing swimbaits on a moderate fast rod but soon learned that i did not like it and will now only use a fast action rod ..

my opinion , from my experience , the longer the cast , the fast action rod is so much better on hook sets where as short line casts ( short flipping and punching ) i want a more of a moderate action rod to aid in line shock from hook sets with only 15 - 25 ft. of line out .

as far as treble hooks compared to swimbait jig hooks (top hook ) , a hook is a hook is a hook . same hook sets , i don't treat them any different ....

i prefer a mod-fast action, I love my Phenix m1 swimbait rod it's 8' heavy and it's a mod-fast bend. I even prefer this action for top hook swimbaits. Because I believe you need a bit of cushion for the bass to not throw those big baits on a slack line when it head shakes.

20 hours ago, Dan_the_fisher said:

i prefer a mod-fast action, I love my Phenix m1 swimbait rod it's 8' heavy and it's a mod-fast bend. I even prefer this action for top hook swimbaits. Because I believe you need a bit of cushion for the bass to not throw those big baits on a slack line when it head shakes.

I finally got to put my hands on a  Phenix M1. They are sweet!

11 minutes ago, stkbassn said:

I finally got to put my hands on a  Phenix M1. They are sweet!

I've had mine for about 6 months now and I love it, definately an amazing rod for the money. Has great feel and sensitivity 

The M1 is my favorite rod, and the blank I'd pick if I ever get a custom rod made.  Those blanks are also pretty indestructable.

Plus you can get a m1 and a Cardiff 300a and have a amazing setup under $300