There are many swimbait rigging methods, but bladed swimbait hooks are trending as an excellent choice anytime you want a forage-imitating profile and action around cover too heavy to fish with an exposed jig head. Major League Fishing pro Jacob Wheeler shows us his favorite weedless swimbait rigging method when fishing around grass and wood. He also provides several tips to trigger more bites and increase hooking percentages.
TACKLE USED
- PLASTIC – Storm Largo Shad, 4-inch
- HOOK – VMC HD Bladed Swimbait Hook, 5/0 1/4-ounce
- ROD – Duckett J. Wheeler Series Casting Rod, 7’3″ Med Hvy
- REEL – Duckett Jacob Wheeler JWC 100 Paradigm Casting Reel, 7.5:1
- LINE – Sufix Advance Fluorocarbon, 14- to 17-pound
Wheeler views bladed weedless swimbait fishing as the perfect hybrid of ChatterBaits and spinnerbaits. You get flash and vibration with enhanced weedless performance around cover. He demonstrates how to rig the swimbait to improve hookups. The rod setup is essential, too, as penetrating a big hook through the plastic and into the mouth requires a lot of power.
And like most bass fishing tactics, some variation in retrieve can be an excellent trigger. Wheeler explains why you should experiment with periodically killing the bait and letting it fall to the bottom.
