Swimbaits for Pike

[Jds63]

Was wondering what swimbait lure setup you guys use for big pike. I have lots of spoons , cranks and spinner baits. What I don’t have much of are large swimbaits in my tacklebox. I also prefer casting as opposed to trolling.

What do you recommend for swimbait brands and hooks ?

 I went to Sail but didn't see much.

[msp]

Plenty of options. the new Berkley powerbait swimbaits in the larger size work pretty good. Also the BPS swimbaits are good. Pike are not to picky when it comes to swimbaits. Its mostly a reaction strike. either they will hit it or they wont.

I also like the Shadzilla.

These can be rigged on a weighted Owner Beast swimbait hook if you want weedless. or a half oz. heavy duty shank swimbait jig head.

Pretty easy to fish. just cast and wind

[msp]

This is the shadzilla with an owner beast hook 6/0 weighted hook with stinger

[Reef Runner]

I've been using 5-6 inch shad style swim baits past year with success. Berkley Powerbait Flatback Shad or a YUM Money Minnow.

If I want to twitch the bait higher up in the water column and let it flutter I'll rig it on straight worm Wide-gap 5/0.  Get it down farther with a 3/8 ounce jog head up to 1 or 2 ounces if you want to get it down to the bottom.

Make sure your hooks are heavy gage. I've had bad luck with the prepacked swim bait rigs, straightened hooks and what not.

You'll also want to tie on a quality leader for the toothy critters.

 

Reef

 

[adempsey]

If you're interested in articulated swimbaits as well, the Savage Gear 4play line is awesome.  The hard lures and the soft lures. The hard versions come in three models - lipless and two lipped for different depths.  The line-thru trout is pretty wicked too, but I'd probably only be casting the smaller sizes (goes from 6" up to 16"). I also have some Westin "Mike the Pike" that are very popular in Europe, but haven't had the chance to use them too much. There are a lot of 5"-6" paddletail swimbaits (both hollow belly and solid) that all work well.  Take your pick. As mentioned, the Shadzilla Jr (7") and Shadzilla (9.5") are a nice choice when you want something bigger.  Personally, I only have the Jr.'s which I use for pike fishing.  I really like the Svartzonker line of swimbaits, but you can't beat the price of the Shadzilla's.   Two rigged Jr.s for ~$20 is pretty decent IMO.

Savage Gear Hard 4-Play

Savage Gear Soft 4-Play

Savage Gear Line-Thru Trout

Westin Mike the Pike

Edited May 17, 2018 by adempsey

[Jds63]

Thanks a lot guys , some great info ...

I definitely did not see those at Sail, the Savage Gear soft and hard baits did you buy them online ? 

[Chuck Enwinde]

JB's Fishing Depot usually has a pretty good selection of bigger swim baits.  If I remember right, Adam ordered some of his from the UK and got a much better price.   

[BillM]

I use Trokar TK170s for most of my swimbaits.   As far as the baits themselves, there are a lot of choices.   I like the Berkley  Hollow Bellies for early season shallow water fishing.    

[PUMP KNOWS]

Lots of options and they all work from cheap BPS swimbaits to expensive ones like from Westin Mike the Pike.

I've been playing around with a few different types and made vids for them.  You can watch them here...

 

[adempsey]

On 5/17/2018 at 10:06 PM, Jds63 said:

Thanks a lot guys , some great info ...

I definitely did not see those at Sail, the Savage Gear soft and hard baits did you buy them online ? 

I did see the Savage Gear 4Play Hard Baits at Sail a few years ago (the last time I was there).  It's funny, because I actually had some in my basket and I ended up putting them back.  As Brad mentioned, I ordered most of the Savage Gear stuff from the UK.  The exchange rate was good at the time and the shipping is very cheap since they use standard post. Others I ordered through eBay from UK sellers that had an eBay store. Harris Sportsmail had the best prices at the time and they have regular sales on. My local shop sells them for $40 (although, I think they are all on clearance now for $25 or something)...which is crazy, since I paid something like $15-$20.

The Live Target swimbaits look great. I haven't tried them yet, maybe in a couple of weeks.

[OhioFisherman]

My experience with swimbaits is very limited, but something like this should work.

http://www.lurepartsonline.com/Online-Store/Bass-Jig-Trailers/Super-Shad-4-6.html

bass and small pike seemed to like the smaller ones.

[PUMP KNOWS]

18 hours ago, darkwater said:

live target has some great swim baits

Last week this 37incher smashed the Livetarget Gizzard Shad Swimbait

 

[Jds63]

thanks Adam, will look online

hey Pump , i like those single hook swim baits , that’s what i’m looking for ... great picture