Ash showl Posted January 11 Report Share Posted January 11 New here, and very new to swimbait fishing. I recently got a great deal on a MH LDC workshop earlier this year and am looking to start really diving into swimbait fishing. my PB is 8lb 04oz on a jig back in 2015. I mainly fish on the bank. Any tips and advise would be truly appreciated. Fishing out of Northern California. Main lake is Coyote, or Chesbro… but closest lake is Lake Chabot. I’ve never had the best luck there though. I’ve bought two baits so far… baitsanity explorer Gil floating and the 6inch Magdraft, but haven’t been out bass fishing as of yet. Happy new years everyone, hope this year is the year of pbs. Jim137a 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whammy Posted January 11 Report Share Posted January 11 Go deep, stay late AnthonyCatlow and Ash showl 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ricardo Posted January 11 Report Share Posted January 11 I fish chabot sometimes too, pretty sure I’ve skunked the last 10 times there. I definitely get trout to follow my baits in but never bass:) bummer cause there’s definitely giants in there. Ash showl 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ash showl Posted January 11 Author Report Share Posted January 11 50 minutes ago, ricardo said: I fish chabot sometimes too, pretty sure I’ve skunked the last 10 times there. I definitely get trout to follow my baits in but never bass:) bummer cause there’s definitely giants in there. Yeah I hear there’s giants there but I’ve never caught one over 2 pounds there. My pb was at San Pablo reservoir… was going after crappie and got bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ash showl Posted January 11 Author Report Share Posted January 11 1 hour ago, Whammy said: Go deep, stay late What bait would you recommend, are the two above good enough to cover all the water columns? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5-20 Posted January 11 Report Share Posted January 11 Throw a big plastic trout and swim it back slowly. Ash showl 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ash showl Posted January 12 Author Report Share Posted January 12 20 hours ago, 5-20 said: Throw a big plastic trout and swim it back slowly. So I drag it on the floor? Going out tomorrow with magdraft. Rain finally died down Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5-20 Posted January 12 Report Share Posted January 12 34 minutes ago, Ash showl said: So I drag it on the floor? Going out tomorrow with magdraft. Rain finally died down Good luck. I don't fish the mag draft much but you would want to swim it above the bottom at a speed that makes it kick nicely and look like an easy meal. Always good to use the search function to read up on new baits and the best ways to fish them. Ash showl 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maiti Posted January 12 Report Share Posted January 12 Pink glide bait. One that costs a lot, and hasn't been through any R&D. Jokes aside, the unglamorous and old-fashioned way (but one that still works) is to get a few 8" ROF 5 hudds, and fish them slow on the bottom. I said ROF5 because it seems you're fishing from the bank, which btw is I do a whole lot too. I personally prefer 8" weedlesses, but they can be finicky, and correct me if I'm wrong but it seems you're sort of new to this. Anyway, to keep it real simple, identify some points, ridges, creek channels, humps and flats you can reach, cast that hudd, let it sink, and reel it in as slow as you can. A 5 minute retrieve is on the faster side of things here. If the hudd comes with a top hook, cut it off, and rig it Butch Brown style with a size 2 non-inline hook (not 2/0, and the hook needs to be non-inline to sit correctly on the bait). You will lose a few baits fishing from the shore. If an 8" hudd is too heavy for your rod, get a 7.5" nates, or a 6.5" DC swimbaits, or an 8" yunique, all of which I'm pretty sure are lighter. Make sure it's a wedgetail bait. It could take you one hour, or one day, or one month to catch a new PB, and there are other ways to catch big fish at certain times, but this is the most sure way I know of, until spawn. Just make sure you're fishing the correct style of bait in the correct way at the good locations. Good luck! Ash showl, NorthernBass4L and Loudsplashbassn_ 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stkbass Posted January 12 Report Share Posted January 12 Throw that magdraft mid-column on that medium speed .. they still eat faster moving baits in winter. Good luck! Ash showl 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ash showl Posted January 18 Author Report Share Posted January 18 On 1/11/2024 at 7:45 PM, maiti said: Pink glide bait. One that costs a lot, and hasn't been through any R&D. Jokes aside, the unglamorous and old-fashioned way (but one that still works) is to get a few 8" ROF 5 hudds, and fish them slow on the bottom. I said ROF5 because it seems you're fishing from the bank, which btw is I do a whole lot too. I personally prefer 8" weedlesses, but they can be finicky, and correct me if I'm wrong but it seems you're sort of new to this. Anyway, to keep it real simple, identify some points, ridges, creek channels, humps and flats you can reach, cast that hudd, let it sink, and reel it in as slow as you can. A 5 minute retrieve is on the faster side of things here. If the hudd comes with a top hook, cut it off, and rig it Butch Brown style with a size 2 non-inline hook (not 2/0, and the hook needs to be non-inline to sit correctly on the bait). You will lose a few baits fishing from the shore. If an 8" hudd is too heavy for your rod, get a 7.5" nates, or a 6.5" DC swimbaits, or an 8" yunique, all of which I'm pretty sure are lighter. Make sure it's a wedgetail bait. It could take you one hour, or one day, or one month to catch a new PB, and there are other ways to catch big fish at certain times, but this is the most sure way I know of, until spawn. Just make sure you're fishing the correct style of bait in the correct way at the good locations. Good luck! Man thank you. This is great. Yes, I’m new to larger swim bait fishing. I’ve fished keitechs a bunch but none in the ounce range. I’ll definitely going to get a hud now that you’ve broken it down in such detail. would you recommend the albino or the trout? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ash showl Posted January 18 Author Report Share Posted January 18 On 1/12/2024 at 12:40 AM, stkbass said: Throw that magdraft mid-column on that medium speed .. they still eat faster moving baits in winter. Good luck! Thanks, I’ve been out once this year to clear lake just strictly throwing the magdraft and trying to learn its tendency and how to swim it. Didn’t get a single bite, I think my reel is just too fast… using a shimano dc 201dc. I may end up selling it to get a tranx or wait until the scorpion md come out Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BASS_SWINGER Posted January 18 Report Share Posted January 18 Crawdads Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maiti Posted January 18 Report Share Posted January 18 5 hours ago, Ash showl said: Man thank you. This is great. Yes, I’m new to larger swim bait fishing. I’ve fished keitechs a bunch but none in the ounce range. I’ll definitely going to get a hud now that you’ve broken it down in such detail. would you recommend the albino or the trout? No problems at all. Whatever color gives you more confidence. If you have trouts, then trout is a good starting point. If not, maybe some sort of baitfish color that you like. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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