Have Swimbaits, Will Travel
I’ve started exploring swimbait culture this year, and I’ve found the hard core crew to be both exceptionally dedicated to their craft and remarkably welcoming, albeit a bit odd. I guess that extreme devotion plays tricks on the brain at times.
Nevertheless, anyone who is willing to get on a waiting list for a hundred dollar bait, and then spend long periods of time flinging it fruitlessly while searching for jumbos deserves an 80/20 mix of respect and pity.
While there’s a healthy overlap between swimbait slingers and urban anglers who fish close to home, eventually some of the big bait posse wants to branch out in a way that requires air travel. Maybe they’re headed to one of the big bass factories of Mexico, or perhaps to Lake Biwa in Japan, or maybe to Brazil to try for peacocks. No matter where they’re going, swimbaits require special gear. When it comes to truly big baits, you can’t depend on most lodge/outfitter sticks, nor are they likely to provide the lures themselves. That means you have to come up with strategies to get your stuff to where the bass live.
Full-sized rod tubes are an increasingly difficult proposition, and when you’re talking about rods 8 feet or longer, the odds get slimmer, so you need to find alternatives. That may mean three- or four-piece sticks. You might turn to the Asian market for some options, but there several highly-respected ones more readily available domestically.
I’ve already written about my F5 Departure Series Travel Rod, which I’ve loved in its limited usage, but there are other multi-piece swimbait travel rod choices out there as well.
Of course you’ll be slinging baits that weigh no less than an ounce, and possibly as much as 8 to 10 ounces, and winching on big fish, so shoddily constructed tools need not apply. Here are some options:
LDC makes a highly-customized swimbait travel rod that appears to be the unicorn of the fishing world – hard to find, but respected by everyone who comments on web forums like Swimbait Underground. I can find evidence of it on their Facebook page, but not on actual website, where all three listed rods are sold out. It might pay to ask, and to get on their radar asap, because apparently there’s a waiting list.
Arizona’s MOAM is a completely custom business, and one that like LDC seems universally respected in the swimbait community. They make three different three-piece models, all 8’ long – one rated for lures from 1-4 ounces, another for 2-6 ounces, and a third for 3-8 ounces. They’re not inexpensive, starting at $405, but with the infinite level of performance-based and cosmetic features offered, you can be sure you have a one-of-a-kind monster-whipping stick.
Okuma is a well-known brand around the world, with a wide range of price points and (for the U.S. market) a relatively extensive line of travel rods. These include 11 models of the Nomad Xpress lineup, which are reasonably-priced at $100-120 apiece. Four of the four-piercers are 7’11”, either Heavy or Extra-Heavy actions, rated for lures that weigh 1-4 or 2-8 ounces.
The Wild Side rods come from JDM manufacturer Legit Design, but they’ve recently found widespread distribution through Chicago’s Arundel Tackle. I’ve been fishing with one of their five-piece spinning rods for a few months now, and so far I’ve been very impressed with the build quality. The lineup also includes a five-piece “Big Bait Special Casting Rod.” It’s 6’8”, which means it’s shorter than the swimbait rods listed above by over a foot, but that could have its own advantages – like ripping choppers and other big baits for peacock bass in the Amazon.
Another “shorter” (6’9”) four-piece rod on offer, designed “for the most brutal fishing you can get all over the world,” comes from Cast Division. It’s on the lighter end of the swimbait spectrum, able to handle lures up to about 3 ounces. They’re not inexpensive, although they do offer free shipping worldwide — and check out this “torture test,” which should make you pretty confident that it can handle some heavy-duty stress.
Ironman’s rods, which we’ve already mentioned on HPFC, include a 7’6” model which is rated for lures up to almost 5 ounces. It can also be reconfigured to a 6’10” version — but either way the longest section is 22”. They’re available in the U.S. through Cudakilla in Texas for $249.
As we’ve noted before, the Japanese Fishman brand has a rapid following, and their Comodo 8.3XXXXH can handle lures from 6 to 24 ounces. If you have lures much heavier than that, you’re going to need to check another bag. This three-piece model retails for over $500.
If you are interested in building your own swimbait rod, or having someone produce a custom stick, I’ve seen Batson’s 8’0” Saltwater RX7 blank (Model SW967F) suggested on several boards. Its two pieces, so not a true “travel” rod, but might fit the bill for some circumstances – such as if you’re taking a full-length rod tube but can’t extend it past 7 feet.
All of you traveling swimbaiters might also want to invest in Working Class Zero’s “Travel Ready Big Bass Board,” a roll-up measuring mechanism to help you document your trophy fish up to 34 inches.
There’s even a Bull Shad version for you brand loyalists.
