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The right rod is critically important for swimbait fishing.  So let's consider what the rod does and then discuss rod selection for various lure types.  Keep in mind that I don't even consider using anything under 7'6" in length and prefer 8' rods.  Throw your conventional ideas about bass rods out the window when you go shopping for a swimbait rod, and if you haven't thrown a big rod before, buy something bigger than feels comfortable to you.  You're going to be much happier growing into a heavy rod than finding out a few months later the rod you got is too wimpy.

So first of all the rod casts your bait.  This is moderately important for swimbait fishing.  The ability to make long casts is never a bad thing. 

Second of all the rod affects the action of your bait during the retrieve.  A soft rod allows a lure to swim more freely, especially on lures with bills.  A stiff rod deadens the action.

Third, the rod affects your ability to set the hook.  A stiff rod moves the bait faster on the hookset while a soft rod generates less force on the lure.

Fourth, the rod controls the fish during the fight.  Some rods have a uniformly stiff taper that puts a lot of pressure on during the fight.  Other rods are uniformly soft which can be good when the rod is loaded up because it acts as a shock absorber.  Other rods have a hybrid action with a stiff butt section and a soft tip section.  This combination gives you muscle when the rod is fully loaded but give to help avoid pulling the hooks.

Of the four things above, the two most important to me are getting the fish hooked and keeping it hooked.  I'll give up casting distance and to a large extent lure action if I can just get the fish on and keep them on.  With this in mind I have two basic strategies with rods.

For hardbaits I prefer soft rods or hybrid rods with soft tip sections.  Think about it logically ... with super sharp hooks, do you really need to set the hook very hard when those super sharp hooks are being pressed up against a hard lure by the fishes jaws?  The answer is no.  Most of the time you can wind hard and sweep back and that is all you need to do.  So the deal with hardbaits is not hooking the fish, its keeping the fish on the hook long enough to land it.  And much like fishing crankbaits, I always prefer a soft action for keeping a bass on the hooks. 

For softbaits, the game is different.  The biggest problem with softbaits is to get the fish hooked.  Just imagine if your buddy was sitting at one end of the room with a rubber trout in one hand and a hard wood trout in the other hand.  On the count of three, he throws both of those baits across the room at you.  If you have to choose which one to dodge, which one do you dodge?  I'm going to dodge the hardbait because it's going to stick to me almost every time.  Unless the rubber bait hits just right, it's probably going to bounce off.  That in a nutshell is exactly what happens when you get bumped or hit on a rubber bait in a way where the fish doesn't swallow the lure whole. 

If you're fishing a soft rod on a rubber bait, fish can come up and grab the bait and release it so fast that you won't have time to do anything.  And the bigger the bass, the more pressure they can exert when they clamp on to your bait!  If you've never had a huge fish clamp on to your bait and release it without even feeling the hook after you give a huge hookset, it will make your sick to your stomach.  The best medicine for that sick stomach is a really stiff rod because the fish can't move your rod tip as much and as long as you are ready, you'll be much more likely to get a hook in the fish. 

Once you hook the fish on rubber, that's the scary part.  My strategy is to reel them in as fast as possible because stiff rods are bad for fighting fish and may tear the hook out.  But in the long run, I think the stiff rod is better because I can hook and land more that way vs. missing them altogether on a soft rod.   

For complete rod reviews on a number of popular swimbait rods, take some time to read my rod revies here. I discuss the action of each of the rods so that you can decide for yourself which one you think is going to work best for your style of fishing.

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