Soft Swimbait Lures

Soft Swimbait lures are cover contact lures known for natural looking bait fish lure action and its rigging versatility with a jig head or a single hook. 

Anatomy: Soft swimbait lures are soft bait lures which feature a soft plastic, with a single hook (often weighted) or jig head [Figure 1] sometimes with a trailer hook typically referred to as a stinger hook.  

Variants & Other Names: Less common jig heads for soft swimbaits include:

  • Underspin Jig Head: 
  • Scrounger Jig Head:
  • Propeller Jig Head:
  • Swivel Jig Head:
  • Line-Through Swimbait: 
  • Molded/Pre-Rigged Swimbait: [Figure 2]

Lure Action. Natural looking bait fish swimming motion. 

Search Bait: Less common, and generally with a larger soft plastic.    

Pros’ Choice: Common.

Figure 1: Soft Swimbait with swim jig head
When to Fish Soft Swimbait

Soft Swimbaits are cover contact lures typically selected when:   

  • Targeted Depth is:
    • Shallow: Common and all sizes, but some suggest if you are using a large sized swimbait are more common shallow.
    • Deep(Offshore): Less common, typically with a jig head opposed to weighted hooks, for example with a hollow belly with 1/2 to 1 oz jig head with a high gauge hook. Also, some suggest using smaller soft swimbaits when deep as the profile will enable faster fall rate and easier to keep in the strike zone.
  • Fishing Speed is:
  • Lure Visibility is:
    • High Lure Visibility: Common as it is a natural presentation. Some anglers go to great lengths to ensure natural color, profile and lure action. Some like some chop on the water.
    • Low Lure Visibility: Less common and when a visibility is low some suggest a larger profile and with an underspin blade jig head  or a scrounger jig head.
  • Targeting Cover: Some suggest all lures are good near cover where soft swimbait lures are good when contacting:
    • Grass: Common, especially with a soft swimbait weighted hook rigged weedless. For light grass some suggest the traditional pointed swimbait jig head.
    • Rock: Less common, and some suggest the use of a jig head that can absorb the rock contact including some suggesting a football jig head. Some anglers will slow-roll retrieve or in some cases the drag retrieve of the jig head over rock.
    • Wood: Less common, using swimbait weighted hook rigged weedless.
    • Dock: Common to skip cast small soft swimbaits under docks. Some suggest a weighted hook with screw-lock is better then a jig head for skipping due the location of the weight.
    • Off Cover: Common, especially with the jig head as the hook is exposed making for better landing of bass.
  • Soft Bottom vs Hard Bottom: Not a major consideration albeit it is possible to hop retrieve on soft bottom but not to drag retrieve. 
Figure 1: Megabass Dark Sleeper Swimbait - Molded/Pre-Rigged
Manufacturer's Details
Specific Soft Swimbait Lure Selection

Selecting the soft swimbait lure type, as a soft bait lure type,  there are the following key decisions:

  • Soft Plastics: 
    • Common:
      • Swimbait Soft Plastics: Soft plastics designed for soft swimbaits including:
        • Body Types: Hollow Body, Solid Body, Line Through, Split Body, Full Body.
        • Tail Types: Paddle Tail and Wedge Tail. 
        • Molded/Pre-Rigged: Top Hook Exposed, Hidden Top Hook, Treble Belly Bottom Hook, Top Singer Hook. 
        • Swimbait Soft Plastic Placement: Some suggest the hook size should be large enough to get to the end of the soft plastic where the tail starts to maximize hook sets and lure action.
        • Swimbait Soft Plastic with Hook Channel: Some suggest using swimbaits soft plastics  that have a channel to accept the hook. This helps the lure to go weedless and helps ensure the plastic does not interfere with the hook set. If the swimbait soft plastics don’t have a channel some suggest using a knife to cut one.
        • Line-Through (In-Line) Treble Hook Swimbait: Not common, also full body, but swimbaits that are purchased or created with a tube through them to pass the fishing line through prior to tying on a treble hook with one barb secured to the swimbait soft plastic belly. Line-Through soft swimbait lures allow the hook to separate from the lure during the hook set to increase landing a bass. Line-Through Soft Swimbait have weights embedded in them and you can purchase by weight, come with weights to add, or described as slow sink classification. Also not common, but a line can be pushed through a soft swimbait with a toothpick to create a line-through swimbait.
    • Less Common:
  • Size:
    • Small: 2″ to 3″ Some suggest in the spring.
    • Common: 2.75″ to 4.75″
    • Large: 6″ to 14″ Some suggest in the fall.
  • Lure Color: As lure color selection is mostly tied to the lure visibility download the Acute Lure Color Breakdown™ Infographic.
Download the Acute Lure Color Breakdown™ Infographic
Rigging Decisions

As a soft bait lure type, the common rigging considerations includes:

  • Hook(s): Either a Jig Head or a hook, often a weighted hook:
    • Swimbait Jig Heads:
      • Jig Head Shapes:
        • Swimbait Heads: Pointed headed jig heads some suggest for grass cover or for open water.
          • Weed Guard: Swimbait heads are available with weed guards or use a hook.
        • Propeller: Small propeller between the head and the soft swimbait that some suggest is good in slightly stained water due to the vibration, or sunny day to get a flash, or just to show something different.
        • Underspin: Jig head with a blade underneath to create some flash on a sunny day or to create vibration when choosing to use a swimbait in low lure visibility scenarios.
        • Scrounger Jig Heads: A plastic lip on a swim jig head, small is more common, that will create water displacement and vibrations. More common in cold water as it is small and fished slower with a steady retrieve.
        • Common Non-Swimbait Heads used for Swimbaits
          • Ball Head: Some suggest ball jig head as it provides the maximum action and is also good around rock and other hard cover.
          • Football Head: Some suggest football head jig if there is intentional bouncing off rock and other hard cover or even just hard bottom.
      • Eye Line Tie: 90 degrees is better through any cover. 30 degrees results in more body roll, more action but more snags in cover and thus most use in open water.
    • Swimbait Single Hooks: Hooks for soft swimbait hooks must be large enough to get to the end of the body just where the tail starts to maximize hook sets and lure action.
      • Shape:
        • Wide Gap and Extra Wide Gap Hooks: Common used weighted or unweighted EWG hooks with screw lock or some other kind of keeper.
        • Straight Shank and Straight Shank with Weight: Less common and used to be inserted into a hollow belly swimbait.

          Size: Choose hook size such that the hook comes out at the end of the body and beginning of the tail.

      • Size: Some suggest using the largest size hook that won’t inhibit the tail action such that the hook gets in the bass’s mouth if they are approaching from behind. They suggest at the back of the body and some soft swimbaits have a grove so at the furthest end of the grove.

          • Less than 2.5″ to 3″: 1/0 – 2/0 (1/8oz is common)
          • 3″ to 4″ Swimbait: 2/0 – 3/0 (1/8oz is common)
          • 4″ to 5″ Swimbait: 4/0 to 5/0 (3/16oz is common)
          • 5″ to 6″ Swimbait: 6/0 to 7/0
          • 6.5″ to 7.5″ Swimbait: 8/0 Some suggest using a weighted hook instead of a jig head on larger sizes.
          • 8″Swimbait and greater. 10/0 Some suggest using a weighted hook instead of a jig head on larger sizes.

          • Rule of Thumb: Some match the number inches with the hook size, for example, 3 inch plastic go with a 3/0 hook. As soft swimbaits are typically not specific inch sizes, round down, for example a 3.8″ soft swimbait consider a 3/0.

          • Underweighted Hooks: Generally EWG Hooks with weights on the shank.

          • Front Weighted Hooks: Generally used to go inside hollow belly soft swimbait.

  • Weight:
    • Molded/Rigged Swimbait: The weight includes the plastic and the hook. The weight will impact casting distance and gear used but may not be an indicator if they can be fished deep (offshore).
      • Fall Rates: Some Molded/Rigged Swimbaits have sink classifications as “Sink” or “Sinking” or “Slow Sink” as the lure’s weight is not a good indicator. Some Molded/Rigged Swimbaits the fall rate can be a purchase option for example Huddleston Deluxe comes in 4 fall depths.
      • Add Weight: Some molded/rigged swimbait it is expected that you will add the desired weight and in some cases it is just what some anglers do.
      • Lure Weight:
        • Light: 1/4 to 3/8 oz
        • Common: 3/8 to 3/4 oz
        • Heavy: 3/4 to 1oz, 2oz, 2.5 oz. There are lures that go 4 to 6 oz.
    • Unrigged Swimbait: Unrigged swimbaits weights commonly refer to the weight of the hook, whether it is a Jig Head or a Weighted Hook. The actual weight of the plastic isn’t generally referred to after the Swimbait has been rigged.
      • Jig Head:
        • Light: 1/8, 3/16 oz
        • Common: 1/4, 3/8, 1/2 oz
        • Heavy: 3/4 and larger oz
      • Weighted Hooks:
        • Light: Unweighted, 1/8 oz
        • Common: 3/16, 1/4, 1/2 oz
        • Heavy: 3/4, 1 oz and larger
Download Rod Infographic
Swim Jig Presentations

Presentations for swim jig lures are commonly considered a horizontal presentation and a tight line presentation with the following considerations:

Additional Considerations
  • Add-On Weight: Not common as either the hook has the correct weight or the jig head has the correct weight albeit a pegged small bullet weight can be used to add weight. Also, some add weights inside swimbaits, or example a nail weight.
  • Add-on Blade: Underspin jig heads offer blades that create flash which some suggest when sunny or when vibration will help in low lure visibility scenarios. There are also blades that can be added either screwed into the plastic or added to the hook. Also, it is possible to add a chatterbait style blade (bladed jig) in front of a swimbait jig head.
  • Trailer Hook: Common, typically called a Stinger Hook when applied to swimbaits, are a consideration for all soft swimbaits and even more common for the larger molded/pre-rigged soft swimbaits where some place the treble stinger hook on top (fishing very close to bottom) or below the lure when fishing above the bass.
  • Seasons: Common summer and some suggest smaller soft plastics and common in the fall with larger soft plastics. 
  • Sight Fishing: Less common, albeit a smaller soft plastic can be moved slowly and paused near bass.
  • Suspended Bass: Common, as control the depth of the retrieve.
  • Follow Up Bait: Less common, as it can be fished reasonably slow for a horizontal bait.
  • Knot: Some suggest a loop knot, also known as a non-slip loop knot, as the loop allows for maximum lure action.
  • Starter Swimbaits: Some suggest a molded/rigged swimbaits for those learning soft swimbaits as the hook is preassembled leaving size, color and weight as the primary considerations.
  • Swimbait Coneheads: A cone-based pegging system used for soft swimbaits when using a hook to help get the lure through the grass and protect the soft bait from disconnecting from the hook.
  • Glue to Jig Head: Some suggest gluing the soft swimbait to the jig head and even 1/4 in down the jig collar. Some rig their baits the night prior or up to 1/2 hour before use to maximize glue adhesion.
  • Trim when using Jig Head: Some suggest trimming the soft plastic swimbait so it fits flush to the jig head.
  • Swivel Jig Head: Not common, but some suggest trying a paddletail swimbait with a swivel jig head to maximize the swim action.
  • Large Swimbaits: Larger swimbaits have less action as larger fish tend to have less action.
  • Damaged Swimbaits Soft Plastics as Soft Plastic Trailers: Some suggest that when the head of the soft swimbait becomes damaged save it and use the plastic as a soft plastic trailer.
  • Upsize Screw Spring: Some suggest using a larger screw/spring style soft swimbait fastener on a weedless hook.
  • Exposed Hook if Possible: Some suggest to use exposed hook whenever possible to maximize landing a bass.
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