Swimbaiting basics

In recent years there has been much hype over swimbaits, and while this tournament-winning technique has been enjoyed in places like America and Europe for many years it has only recently made its way to our shores. Better late than never!

Australian anglers have discovered the potential these large, life-like lures have on some of our big angry predators in both fresh and saltwater.

Species such as barramundi, Murray cod, mulloway, flathead and mangrove jack are known to respond to swimbaiting techniques when the conditions are right, and fishing in this way often allows anglers to select out the bigger fish from the pack. The adage ‘big lure big fish’ is certainly true sometimes.

It goes without saying that throwing larger lures like swimbaits requires specialist tackle. Rods will need to be stiff enough to allow a long cast with a heavy weight, and reels will require larger gears to handle the extra strain put through them.

The Storm Arashi Swimbait Rod and the Shimano Jewel 7ft11 Swimbait are two very affordable rods specifically designed to handle larger lures. Pairing these with a Shimano Tranx A baitcast reel will ensure you get the most out of your swimbait experience.

As for swimbaits themselves, there is now a whole range of fantastic options to over predators living in fresh and saltwater. Many of these are imported from overseas, such as the Bone Lure Focus 41G Swimbait and Westin Percy the Perch 20cm Inline Sinking Hardbody Lure, but work very well on Australian species. There are also swimbaits that are either made in Australia, or have been made with Australian species in mind, like the Zerek Lure Affinity Swimbait and Zerek Like Mullet.

Different swimbaits require different retrieves to get the desired action from them, with some requiring dabs of the rod tip, while others need sweeps of the rod to get them to come to life, but some only needs to be wound slowly to kick into a life-like and irresistible ‘swimming’ action, which is where simbaits get their name.

If you’re looking to expand your horizons and target bigger fish, make sure you delve into the world of swimbaiting. Fishing in this way will allow you access to certain fish that you just wouldn’t be drawing interest from otherwise, and it will also give you an extra tool to use out on the water when trying to figure out what the fish want!