Boundary Waters Quetico Forum :: Fishing Forum :: Swimbaits
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mastertangler |
I figure she was following the Sebille because everything happened simultaneously. It wasn't like I was reeling a small pike in and suddenly it got bigger. The loomis Muskie rod bent double and I retrieved the rod from it holder and felt up and immediately recognized the weight of a big fish. I didn't even try and reel the fish in as I usually do but rather decided to fight this one from shore. A small patch of reeds was not so far off so I put the rod back in the rod holder and eased into shore where I got out. I reeled the heavy fish somewhat slowly expecting a big run as pike only go berserk when they realize they are in trouble. The fish stayed heavy until just before the bank and when I slid the 24" pike onto the bank I remember muttering, "wow, they can really fool you". Then about 2 seconds later I said, "there's no way that's the same fish" (after a few weeks in the bush you start talking to yourself :-) That's when I actually started looking at the fish. At first I tried to convince myself they were line marks but they are to perfectly spaced and slightly curved. When it all really sank in I was incredulous. I promptly put a 12" Shadzilla on ( yes I portaged a lure which weighed a pound) and trolled it around but no dice. My Mommy always told me that there wasn't any monsters but she was wrong. |
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TheBrownLeader |
HighnDry: "Storm wildeye swimbaits work well in the 4 - 5 inch size. Bluegill, shad and perch are popular. I haven't fished them frequently but others swear by them." I second, on Storm Baits. Have had very good luck with their walleye bait, for...Walleye. They don't discriminate between species. |
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Wally13 |
Heck, you can upsize to 5 and 6 inch Swimbaits on 3/4 oz. saltwater bullet head jigs when big females can be found at 25-35 feet |
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mgraber |
mastertangler: "Try the search function on this site. There has been some threads on swimbaits. It is no secret that I am a huge fan of big swimbaits for pike and bigger lures in general. I would like very much to put a pike of over 50" and 30lbs in the boat. I believe I had one on in WCPP........or it had me "on" LOL as it stayed clamped onto a 24" pike for quite some time and only relinquished its grip as we got near shore. I believe it was following a Sebille Magic Swimmer hard body in the large size when a smaller pike jumped on it. Immediately the bigger pike nailed the smaller. When I retrieved the rod from its holder and lifted up I was like "wow, big fish" but when I got to shore and began easing Mr Big in it suddenly got lighter, and substantially smaller. The widest bite marks I have ever seen, I will post the picture. Suddenly an 8" swimbait did not seem like a big lure at all ;-) |
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Atb |
mastertangler: " I can barely imagine the size of Mr Bigs head, awesome story. |
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manmountain8 |
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manmountain8 |
Savage 3D Burbot 10" Savage Herring Swim and Jerk 7.5" Savage Line thru trout 6" Savage Real Eel 8" Savage 3D Bluegill 5" and 6" Savage Line thru Gizzard Shad 7" Savage Hybrid Pike 6.75" Savage Shine Glide 5.25" Savage Glide Swimmer 6.5 LiveTarget Sunfish Swimbait 5" LiveTarget Perch Swimbait 4.5" and 5.5" LiveTarget Blueback Herring Swimbait 5.5" LiveTarget Threadfin Shad Swimbait 3.5" and 4.5" LiveTarget Shiner Swimbait 4" and 5" LiveTarget Sucker Swimbait 5.5" |
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manmountain8 |
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mgraber |
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HighnDry |
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manmountain8 |
mgraber: "I will certainly vouch for the Live Target yellow perch 6 1/4" jerk bait. " Cool, I'm getting the 5.5" so I can keep it under 2 oz's but it should be pretty similar. |
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manmountain8 |
HighnDry: "Storm wildeye swimbaits work well in the 4 - 5 inch size. Bluegill, shad and perch are popular. I haven't fished them frequently but others swear by them." Yeah, I was thinking of getting some of the smaller sizes for walleye. I like the small Northland ones too. |
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HighnDry |
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mastertangler |
If you are interested in smaller swimbaits the Shadzillas come in a smaller size as well. The Shadzillas are a full 6oz lure. The long 60lb Fluorocarbon leaders I was advocating earlier is the ticket to toss or troll these around with along with the 50 or 65lb test. Once they hit there is little doubt you will catch them. Plus the heavy braid behaves nicely on a larger bait caster such as a Revo but a Curado will still work well. A word of warning which I never fail to pass along.........the Shadzilla hooks are 8/0 and razor sharp. Watch yourself. I go to shore, get out, use a Boga Grip and Shimano 8" pliers. In the deep woods there is no one to hear you scream so be careful. The Savage Gear Herrring are nice baits but they are thin with dense rubber and sink rather quickly. Perfect for fishing in current IMO. Their downside is the tail is thin and can be bitten off rather easily. But a nice lure. Its needs a snap of some sort BTW. I used a perfection loop knot but if tied directly it doesn't "roll" and often goes through the water sideways a bit. I have also tossed the Savage Gear Hybrid pike with mediocre results. The Shadzillas pretty much blew them out of the water. The Burbot looks very interesting to me. Again I like the long heavy fluorocarbon leader for such work. Having said that however, I prefer a titanium leader for fishing smaller lures and think the presentation is better. Use the search function and check out using the Knot2Kinky titanium leader. You build it yourself and add the various preferred components. I detest cheap steel leaders which are pre made. You can buy premade titanium leaders of quality which will set you back around $10. Well worth it IMO. But the advantage of the Knot2kinky is you are able to choose the thickness of the material. The lighter lb tests are of sufficient thinness to fool even walleye. |