Fishing with swimbaits is not a one-size-fits-all premise in bass fishing. It’s not a one-design premise either. In fact, much like crankbait anglers, most good swimbait anglers prefer a system of specific swimbaits to meet their bass fishing needs.
“Fishing pressure, water clarity and water temperature influence which swimbait I throw,” said Tennessee pro Michael Neal. “In heavy pressure, I want something that doesn’t have an over-exaggerated action. You also don’t want a lot of action in clear water.
“In the cleaner water, you want smaller swimbaits, but in dirty water, I tend to go bigger and one with a little more action to create a disturbance. As far as temperature, the baitfish tend to be smaller in the winter, so I usually throw smaller baits and more subtle in colder water and bigger baits in warmer water.”
