I'm new to bigger swimbaits.  Never really through any bait over 1.5oz. 

 

I bought a Phenix 7'3" XHF up to 3oz to throw my swimbaits. But it seemed too stiff and probably too short.

 

So I ended up buy a Phenix X-15 Composite CB805 up to 4oz. And it seems to load better. I'll get it a try tomorrow. The guy at my local tackle shop suggested it. 

 

Did I do ok on the new rod?

You did OK. Only by using it will you be able to tell the sweet spot on bait weight - my guess would be 2-2.5 oz.

 

My experience, though not with that rod, is that you'll probably wanna stay @ 3oz or less.  For some reason, swimbait rods always feel overrated.  Maybe you can lob out a S-waver 200, maybe not.  There's a molix 178mm that I've heard real nice things about and it's 2.75oz

 

scott

19 minutes ago, Big Swimbait said:

You did OK. Only by using it will you be able to tell the sweet spot on bait weight - my guess would be 2-2.5 oz.

 

I don't plan on throwing huge swimbaits. 3oz or so. I don't want to buy that expensive of baits, like 6,7oz baits. 

That rod should do great for hard swimbaits/glide baits with treble hooks. If you get into throwing soft swimbaits with jig hooks like the Huddleston baits you will likely want a faster action rod. I fish all of my big glide baits on a Leviathan Omega swimbait rod that has a nice parabolic action to it, and it's an amazing rod. All of my soft swimbaits with jig hooks get thrown on an Okuma Guide Select swimbait rod that has a much faster action to help drive home those big jig hooks. 

3 hours ago, walleyecrazy said:

That rod should do great for hard swimbaits/glide baits with teble hooks. If you get into throuwing soft swimbaits with jig hooks like the Huddleston baits you will likely want a faster action rod. I fish all of my big glide baits on a Leviathan Omega swimbait rod that has a nice parabolic action to it, and it's an amazing rod. All of my soft swimbaits with jig hooks get thrown on an Okuma Guide Select swimbait rod that has a much faster action to help drive home those big jig hooks. 

That's good to know. This is what I was looking for in a rod, that parabolic action.  I'll also check out that other Okuma rod. Thanks

I've got the X-14T, the X-13, and the X-12. I throw some relatively smaller swimbaits with the X-14T that is rated up to 3.0 ounces. But, I haven't put hands on an X-15, and Phenix's ratings on the Composite X series are kinda weird IMHO.

 

If I do pick up a swimbait rod for the heavier swimbaits in the future, the X-15 is one I'll look at before deciding.

 

I originally picked a Phenix Black Diamond PSW 869 H wrapped deckhand style with a Tranx 400A for the heavier swimbaits. In hindsight, it was nice for 3 to 6 ounce swimbaits, and I never worried about overwhelming it when casting it. But it was a beast to chunk and wind with for extended amounts of time. Fantastic pieces of kit, but that combo would be better suited for slinging the iron off of a local cattle boat in the ocean.

 

With that experience under my belt, I think the X-15 would probably be about as heavy duty as I am willing to get at this stage in life. Chunking monster swimbaits isn't likely to be my jam going forward.

1 hour ago, Big Hands said:

I've got the X-14T, the X-13, and the X-12. I throw some relatively smaller swimbaits with the X-14T that is rated up to 3.0 ounces. But, I haven't put hands on an X-15, and Phenix's ratings on the Composite X series are kinda weird IMHO.

 

If I do pick up a swimbait rod for the heavier swimbaits in the future, the X-15 is one I'll look at before deciding.

 

I originally picked a Phenix Black Diamond PSW 869 H wrapped deckhand style with a Tranx 400A for the heavier swimbaits. In hindsight, it was nice for 3 to 6 ounce swimbaits, and I never worried about overwhelming it when casting it. But it was a beast to chunk and wind with for extended amounts of time. Fantastic pieces of kit, but that combo would be better suited for slinging the iron off of a local cattle boat in the ocean.

 

With that experience under my belt, I think the X-15 would probably be about as heavy duty as I am willing to get at this stage in life. Chunking monster swimbaits isn't likely to be my jam going forward.

Yes, this rod should do it for me. I don't plan on throwing big swimbaits. 3 or 4oz should be max for me. 

My advice for swimbait rod is add the recommended lure weights by the mfr and divide by 2 = the heaviest swimbait you plan to use. If the rating is 1 oz to 4 oz = 5 oz /2 = 2 1/2 max lure weight, 3 oz is pushing it.

Tom

2 hours ago, WRB said:

My advice for swimbait rod is add the recommended lure weights by the mfr and divide by 2 = the heaviest swimbait you plan to use. If the rating is 1 oz to 4 oz = 5 oz /2 = 2 1/2 max lure weight, 3 oz is pushing it.

Tom

This holds true for every swimbait rod I've owned, no matter the brand, if it their TOL, or mid priced rod.

10 hours ago, Hammer 4 said:

This holds true for every swimbait rod I've owned, no matter the brand, if it their TOL, or mid priced rod.

 

That's one of the good things with the Leviathan Omega rods. If they say their rod will throw a wieght range, it will actually throw that weight range. They are the only company I have found to date that is actually accurate with their ratings. 

If you like Phenix I would recommend the Recon Elite 796. It's absolutely perfect for anything up to about 4oz. It has a really soft upper section and a massive backbone. Look up the review on TT on it.  Even though it's labeled as a flipping/punch rod they agree it works better for big baits. It's what I use and I couldn't be happier with it.