Swimbait Fishing
A deep part of Californias fishing community and culture, the swimbait is an essential part of the Cali Anglers arsenal. It isn’t unusual to come across a group of anglers that have the down low on a new swimbait that’s producing the hot bite! It seems nowadays everyone knows someone who’s pouring homemade plastic swimbaits in their garage that’s the next best thing!
I have to admit there is a great sense of camaraderie and pride when you and your friends spend a Friday night pouring swimbaits and knocking back a few cold ones while making your own swimbaits. The best part is the next day fishing your homemade bait and it actually produces, be it spotted bay bass or calicos it’s a great feeling!
Local Pros-
But lets be honest, they’re a lot of work and if your molds aren’t right or the mixtures don’t set it can be a big pain in the rear. I’ve learned over the years something’s are better left to the pros. And by pros that doesn’t necessarily mean large companies. There are quite a few small operations in California that are making some bitchin’ baits. These guys have mastered the craft and truly have a passion for what they do. At the end of this article we will leave a list of a few of our favorite local swimbait and tube baits.
Swimbait Options
Big Hammer Swimbait
Even if you are new to fishing odds are you’ve heard of Big Hammer Swimbait, they have been producing high quality swimbaits since 1993 and are one of the leading manufacturers in the industry. They have a great product that has caught us many fish in the past, including our personal best 25lb lingcod! We recommend them for rock fishing to bass fishing, even tuna fishing if the bite is on!
Rating: 95/100
Budget: $ $
Keitech Swimbait
Originally a product and company that was started in Japan back in 1996. Keitech quickly grew to an international brand all the while producing some solid swimbaits that catch fish! What we really like about Keitech is the no-lead tungsten design and biodegradable plastics that limit our environmental footprint. Especially when rock fishing I have snagged so many swimbaits and lost for them to the ocean.
As fisherman we are obsessed with the ocean and our passion is tied to the ocean. This product allows us to slay on the water all the while doing its part to preserve the ocean. That is a plus in our book. A great swimbait that works just as well as the Big Hammer brand, we highly recommend them to anyone looking to get into swimbait fishing.
Rating: 95.5/100
Budget: $
The Tube Bait A Blast From The Past!
California ocean anglers are seeing an old bait making a comeback and name for itself in the local bite! We are seeing a couple new companies popping up and producing what used to be a really popular plastic bait back in the 80’s. Typically used to target largemouth bass, trout and crappie. Micro versions still are in use today, especially for freshwater anglers.
The Tube Bait
Back and here to stay, many self-renowned “tube heads” have been fishing these baits with a massive amount of success. There have been a lot of anglers catching giant white seabass, yellowtail and chunky calico bass too! The tube bait has been a big hit in the California bite and anglers cant get enough of them.
Literally it’s been catching everything from inshore species to big game fish at the islands. We had to try them out ourselves and yes we are now on the tube train…yup we went there. These baits have been hard to come by and we only got a chance to fish two different companies. Fortunately for us they happen to be the two bigger producers of tube baits in California (for now).
HookUp Baits is a local company out of San Diego that has quickly made a name for itself in a very short amount of time. Only a few years old HUB is a staple tube bait in So Cal and their product speaks for itself. They have a variety of colors and patterns with sizes ranging from 1/32 to 4 oz.
We tried them out in the bay and had endless bites with the local spotted bay bass. We also tried them out at Catalina Island and we where on fire. Two yellowtail in the 15 lb range and a countless amount of bass and white fish. A solid bait that works really well, our only con is that they are a little on the expensive side.
Rating: 96/100
Budget: $ $ $
Basstrix has been producing great baits out of Southern California since 1996 and is well know in the industry. Basstrix used to be all the craze in the early 2000’s, especially in the freshwater bass seen.
So Cals very own Bruce Porter is the genius behind the designs. Bass Trix Tube Bait II is the name of the new tube bait series they have created. This new bait is boosting Basstrix back into the limelight and for good reason. Basstrix Tube Bait is killing it here in So Cal and we had to give them a try.
A Ghost On A Tube Bait?
We were one of the fortunate ones to get our hands on the Red Crab color; we pitched that tube bait all day at Anacapa Island and as a result we landed a ton of fish. Shocked when we hooked into our very first white seabass on the red crab tube bait! Because of that we had to make this our new favorite plastic in the tackle box!
If you know anything about white seabass you know that they are very hard to find yet alone catch and land. Anglers have nicknamed them “ghosts” for a good reason. We also caught chunky calico bass and even rockfish and sandbass on the tube bait. Highly recommend them to anyone looking to try a new bait out on the water.
Rating: 97.5/100
Budget: $ $
-Support Your Local Swimbait & Tube Bait Companies –
Snap Down Swimbaits – Ventura, CA
Ultra Light Heavy Weights – Southern California
You can purchase most of these baits at your local tackle shops. The tube baits from Basstrix and HookUp Baits are tough to find but a little leg work and I’m sure you can find them.
