"How I got my 1st swimbait fish" What's yours?

[natalex85]

I was a tournament fisherman in high school and early college (back in the mid 90s).  I didn't have a lot of time to fish because I had a long training period for my current profession that absorbed most of my time.  My wife and I bought a house a block from a small city park while we were training.  There is a pond there that is about 1.5 acres.  I had seen some small bass in it and tried to catch them with little success.  Gin clear water and the bottom covered in grass that came almost to the surface.

 

I don't remember where I got the baits but in 2007 I ended up with a R2Sea wooden minnow and wooden slither.  Again I fished almost zero at the time.  I took the lures down to the pond to throw them and see what they did.  I had a decade old 4600 C abu round reel and a decade old BPS bionic blade telescoping flipping stick.  I tossed that wooden minnow out and didn't like the way it looked in the water.   I tied on the slither and tossed it out.  Keep in mind this is in Birmingham, Al.  There are NO trout outside a dinner plate or aquarium in Bham.  The slither is an 8 inch, 3 piece, silver sided with black dots trout imitator.  I'm easing it along trying to figure out the bait.  Frankly I'm unimpressed with it.  Then a big bass eased up behind it and checked it out.  I froze, I hit it a lick, the lure danced and she nailed it.  I had not caught many big fish in my life. My largemouth PB was 6.5 lbs.  This fish was at least that big I thought at the time.  I set the hook, she screamed off, and launched herself into the sky.  She crashed to the surface with my lure hanging on but she lifted off again and came unbuttoned.  I reeled that ridiculous looking hunk of painted wood in and stared at it.  I bought my first 316 fs shads about 1 month later.  It has progressed slowly, again due to my schedule, but my swimbait collection and fish catches have been increasing.  I fished with Matt Allen last April and he taught me so much.  Since then I have gotten much more serious.

Edited February 18, 2017 by natalex85

[Tony91723]

Damn natalex85, those are some beasts.

[natalex85]

Damn natalex85, those are some beasts.

It was a good day. 

[swole_t]

I was a tournament fisherman in high school and early college (back in the mid 90s). I didn't have a lot of time to fish because I had a long training period for my current profession that absorbed most of my time. My wife and I bought a house a block from a small city park while we were training. There is a pond there that is about 1.5 acres. I had seen some small bass in it and tried to catch them with little success. Gin clear water and the bottom covered in grass that came almost to the surface.

 

I don't remember where I got the baits but in 2007 I ended up with a R2Sea wooden minnow and wooden slither. Again I fished almost zero at the time. I took the lures down to the pond to throw them and see what they did. I had a decade old 4600 C abu round reel and a decade old BPS bionic blade telescoping flipping stick. I tossed that wooden minnow out and didn't like the way it looked in the water. I tied on the slither and tossed it out. Keep in mind this is in Birmingham, Al. There are NO trout outside a dinner plate or aquarium in Bham. The slither is an 8 inch, 3 piece, silver sided with black dots trout imitator. I'm easing it along trying to figure out the bait. Frankly I'm unimpressed with it. Then a big bass eased up behind it and checked it out. I froze, I hit it a lick, the lure danced and she nailed it. I had not caught many big fish in my life. My largemouth PB was 6.5 lbs. This fish was at least that big I thought at the time. I set the hook, she screamed off, and launched herself into the sky. She crashed to the surface with my lure hanging on but she lifted off again and came unbuttoned. I reeled that ridiculous looking hunk of painted wood in and stared at it. I bought my first 316 fs shads about 1 month later. It has progressed slowly, again due to my schedule, but my swimbait collection and fish catches have been increasing. I fished with Matt Allen last April and he taught me so much. Since then I have gotten much more serious.

Great story, huge fish bro

[IROD]

I had caught a couple small fish on hudds in local ponds but never really had much confidence in swimbaits yet. Last summer I made a trip back home to Washington and fished a lake that holds some absolute giants (for the area). It's a rather small lake, only 29 acres. I only brought along swimbaits and had a Wake Jr. tied on. This lake is absolutely stuffed with docks and has lots of vegetation so I started casting parallel to the docks and fishing the lanes in the vegetation created by boats going in and out from the docks. I think it was about the 12th dock I fished and still no bites, I wasn't really surprised. I decided to change it up from a straight retrieve to burn and pause for 30 seconds or so. I made a long cast into about 8 inches of water and started working the wake bait back, short burning, pause, twitch, short burn, pause, twitch. It came up to the end of the dock and I just let it sit. About a minute after it was sitting right next to the dock, probably touching it and a fish swirled on it, I reeled down on it and the battle started. I was in a float tube kicking to try to pull the fish away from the dock as it began to tow me. Finally I got it up and realized it was a brute. I didn't have a scale on me but it measure 23 1/4 inches. Luckily the guy who owned the dock was there to take a picture. I'm guessing it was mid 7s. Its my profile picture. The next day I came back, started skipping an 8 inch savage gear under the docks and got CRUSHED way in the back of the dock system. I had the fish within a couple feet and my line snapped. I'm guessing it would have been my first DD as it seemed to almost dwarf the fish the previous day.

[fishinpunk]

I think it was back in 06 before I knew swimbaiting was a thing. I was muskie fishing a highly pressured metro lake with a good buddy( a good stick as well). After fishing for 5-6 hours with multiple follows, but no hook ups I was digging deep into the box and grabbed a Dunwright pike. It's a 6" rubber/ lipped bait with really good action but on the small side for muskies. Anyway, couldn't have been much more than 5 casts and I hooked up with a 46" muskie. It took up to about a year and a half ago before I started throwing them for bass, a lot was due to pursuing muskies instead.

[brgbassmaster]

First day out with a "real" swim bait was a 7 in slammer. I went out by myself in my kayak that I brought all the way back to Michigan from Arizona with me. I didn't want to get laughed at all day lol. So it was a sprinkle overcast day which screams topwater. 5 casts in or so off an island point this bass cones up inches from front of yak. But misses bait by a few inches to the right. I about fell in. This thing was a monster. I know there are big fish in there that's why I chose it as the practice Lake. So now I'm pumped. Had another 3 giant blow ups but didn't connect. So I'm like dude I need to get out there on another overcast day. Well about a week later I got that day. I caught one just over 6 off a point then 1 hr later catch a 6 56 in way back of a cove off boat dock. 2 over 6lbrs in an hr span. None of my buddies have caught a 6 in their lifetime in Mi. And I caught 2. Sent them pics and they were skeptical. Until we went out and I had a 3lbr blast my slamer. Now buddy is all into it lol.

[Paulkumacarter]

First post about my first swim bait fish
My first swim bait fish came on a trip to Japan almost 8 years ago.
I was working with Gan Craft on a saltwater project and while I was over their visiting I was taken for a guided trip by the owner of Gan Craft Mr Takanori Hiraiwa and Geki Yoshida at a local water way called Lake Gogowa. I had never thrown a swim bait before and the only bass I had caught was the day before on a whacky rigged worm (Bass was only 10cm).

We worked our way around the lake but after heavy rain most of the lake was like coffee so the only fish we could find were on spinner baits. Mr Hiraiwa suggested that we head to a river mouth where snow melt water comes into the lake in the hope of finding some clean water. Upon arrival the w found the water was crystal and we could easily see Bass free swimming all over the place. We put the electric motor down and started casting. First 20 or so minutes found lots of interest with plenty of fish following the Jointed Claw 178 but nothing to get excited about. As I was casting across the current we saw a massive bust up of Ayu and 2 Bass rounding them up. A quick retrieve and a cast at the bust up saw my lure get smashed after 2 cranks. 

The Bass came in at 55cm and was as fat as a kid that loved cake.
I have caught plenty of fish over the years but this one was one that I will never forget and in great company as well.
I have returned twice a year for the last 8 years now and have added to that fish but nothing will compare to the first one with Mr Hiraiwa - high 5's all round that day. To top it off we spent 20 minutes laughing at Geki who was trying to pull up the trolling motor that we knew was broken. An animated little Japanese fella trying to use brute against something that needed some fineness kept me laughing hard enough that a bit of pee almost came out.
 

[lux036]

Seeing all these fish makes me wanna move to the warmer states to chase these hawgs. lol

[Zigtherat]

Great stories!

 

My first swimbait bass was on the good ol' MS Slammer 7" in baby bass color. Early spring in a little pond. Fish weighed exactly 4 lbs even. I was so pumped! Even better was that 2 casts later got another one that went 3 lbs 7 oz. I know those fish aren't all that big but for me that jump started my confidence in throwing the big baits. Now it's an addiction!

[Rod Wynn]

Circa 1996 

Caught on a Wormking Dinosaur at Lake Casitas

Yeah, I'm old!

[Dink whisperer]

I've caught them for years on the smaller swimbaits like big EZs and Mann's hard-nose. But my first one on a "real" swimbait came right before Xmas last yr. Killed them on traps and cranks one day then the very next day i couldn't get bit to save my life! So having given up i decide to tie on a savage gear line through shad I've had in my box for a while. More or less just to see the action and play with it. So i pitch it to a weed line with mixed in pads. I reel for about 4 seconds trying to bring it closer to the surface so i can see the action. Then i just see a white flash roll sideways and a huge splash. Scared the crap out of me actually, lol. I didn't even set the hook just kinda reeled fast and managed to land a nice 4.5lb LM. ....... True story ✋

[lux036]

Great stories/memories.

[Wes Peart]

My first "real" swimbait fish was a 9.5lb largemouth on an MS Slammer. I'd caught a couple dink bass (including a flounder...) on a S-Waver 168 prior to that but that is more of a normal sized bait that any bass can hit in the right mood.

 

This particular bass was at a private farm pond where the biggest verified catch by the owner was 16lb. Released to swim another day. Pitched it out right at dawn, 10+lber blasted it. Jumped half way out of the water and with a head shake threw the Slammer a good 5 feet. Fish gone. I was rolling around on the ground freaking out. A minute or two later I fire a cast in the exact same spot. Slurp, 9.52lb, post egg lay, largemouth. Biggest I've ever caught.

 

Funnily enough, I was back at the aforementioned farm pond last Sunday with my cousin and his friend. They got there 30 minutes before I did and were already fishing in a john boat. My cousin's fishing partner caught a 10-11lb fish on a Spook right before I got there. I threw some big baits for a while and was feeling more of a numbers mood so I tied on a Smithwick Rattling Rogue and proceeded to catch 50-60 bass in 5 hours. At one point I caught 11 fish on 11 consecutive casts. Nothing over 3lb. Towards the end of the trip I see a bathtub sized swirl next to the weedline and a 2lb bass jumps completely out of the water and beaches itself on top of thick weeds to get away from whatever was chasing it. Hmmm. Fire my Rattlin Rogue over there and felt like I hooked a log. Then the log started moving. I got the fish right up to the boat almost close enough to lip, it was in the 13-15lb range. Looked like one of those California bass. Significantly longer and waaaay fatter than my 9.5. It dove under the boat and I had the drag set too tight.. Hooks pulled out. It's a 2 hour drive out there but I think I'll be making the trip more often, there's no doubt in my mind there are multiple teen fish swimming around in there.

Edited March 7, 2017 by Wes P

[FayarCustoms]

Same as most off y'all, didn't really know what I was doing, second cast with a s waver on a flipped rod and I stuck a six pounder, the lightbulb kind of went off at that point and here we are