Hard Swimbait patterns

[dano626]

Just starting to get into some bigger swimbaits and glide baits. What are you throwing at our local lakes and/or what pattern do you think would work best?

[DarkShadow]

I think it depends on the forage. If I go to my local pond, I'd be throwing a bluegill pattern. If I go to bigger lakes that stock trout, I'll be throwing a trout pattern.

We don't really have any type of big shad (like gizzard shad) so I usually won't throw a shad pattern too often.

Don't overlook the bass pattern as well, since a bass will eat anything that isn't big enough to eat it first.

As far as the specific baits, I really like the Slide Swimmer by Deps. They also make a cool bluegill swim bait that has gotten lots of attention. I throw the Tiny Bullshooter any chance I get at my local pond.

[camobass]

Night time pattern

[Dannicus]

I mean since you asked lol

BFS...BFS...BFS.

[dano626]

I mean since you asked lol
Screenshot_20250523-042609.Chrome.png
BFS...BFS...BFS.

I've already bought a few lures you suggested! I do fish bfs most of the time.....

[robert_smith]

I found a tiny klash 6.6” it has different modes to fish mines in b mode glide I’ve thrown it few times still waiting I’m a plastic fisherman though so tough for me to give it the commitment needed it’s cool looks good imma throw at cap this weekend if I get there pop the glide cherry for me

[DarkShadow]

I mean since you asked lol
Screenshot_20250523-042609.Chrome.png
BFS...BFS...BFS.

I just picked up the threadfin pattern myself. I'm psyched to see what Eurotackle is all about considering they made a big push to the BFS side and their offerings look good.

But, your picture and recommendation does bring up an interesting point.

Every time someone mentions "swimbaits" and "bass," they assume we're going to be talking about Roman Mades, or your other 'large' swimbaits, but forget that hard swimbaits come in all shapes and sizes.

Since the late 80s when I first started bass fishing, it was in small city ponds, where forage is small, and pressure is huge. And scaling down was the name of the game. BFS has always been around, especially in California, we just didn't have a name for it back then. We just called it 'finesse fishing with a spinning rod.' When I first got access to a Calcutta TE50, I sourced a shallow spool for it in Japan, and began throwing 6 pound test on it.

BUT, now that I have access to individuals with bass boats, I feel that learning finesse fishing and relying on it pigeon holed me, as I refused to break out of that shell where I was constantly downsizing. The past 10 years, I've been using larger baits, and more power fishing techniques, and have seen that to be a good bass fisherman, you have to be able to do a lot of things.

Havasu is a great example. Last month, we caught fish flipping in the tules with 65# straight braid, caught fish drop shotting tiny worms on 5# test off points, and caught fish down at the FFS, focusing on the active fish that were on the man made structures. (We even got fish on the Tiny Klash.) That's why it continues to be my favorite fishery, as there are so many ways to attack the fish.

To steer the thread back on track, the Tiny Klash is another bait that I throw, because the smaller size gets me more bites. If you're looking for a specific color, you may have to do a bit of searching.

[StinkyPinky23]

Eurotackle stuff is legit. Baits I’ve used have run true with some good hooks for being so small. These are on the Z-cranker