If you’re a fan of fishing a swim jig around heavy cover on heavy gear, boy do I have a fun one to share with you today. The Nomad Design Badlands Swim Jig is one of the best swim jigs I’ve ever come across.
This thing is built for hauling big fish through rough terrain. It’s got all the characteristics that a good swim jig must have, as well as a couple cool new features that give this bait a good chance at chasing down the top contender on my Best Swim Jigs of All-Time list. This one is that good.
First Impressions
I was simply looking for new baits to test out and came across the Badlands Swim Jig from Nomad Design. Now, I rarely fool with testing swim jigs because there’s one that is near and dear to me that I traditionally believed no other could compare to: the Dirty Jigs No-Jack Swim Jig. But upon close inspection of the Badlands Swim Jig, it looked like it had a heckuva hook in it. So I ordered one.
When it came in the mail, I took the bait out and rolled it around in my hand to take a closer look. It did indeed have a 4/0 meat hook on it, which is the most important thing to me when it comes to a swim jig. I also noticed a couple things about this one though that I hadn’t seen on many, if any, swim jigs.
For starters, the Shimma Shad color I went with had blue and gold tensile in the skirt to add flash. Second, the weight of the bait was stamped underneath the head. I thought both of these were nice touches.
I took the Badlands out onto the lake and caught a few fish on it right away. The bait came through the dead water willow grass I was fishing with ease. I obviously wasn’t surprised by that, since this bait is designed to come through vegetation, but was glad to see it performed as it should.
I was also able to skip it under docks and bushes really well, which, I thought, was a little odd. Most swim jigs don’t make good skipping jigs, but the head on this one is a little wider and flatter on the bottom, and I assume that’s what made the difference.
Weed Guard
I found that the weed guard is pretty soft on this one, too, which I like. A soft weed guard is easier to set the hook through than a super stiff one, but it does still need to be thick enough to ensure the hook isn’t catching cover and debris constantly. I found that this jig had just the right balance.
Stamped Size
I mentioned the fact that Nomad Design stamped the size underneath the head of this one, and I’m mentioning it again, because I like it a lot. I store my jigs in a box and discard the original packaging as soon as I get them, then get pretty aggravated with myself a year down the road when I run out of my favorite jig and can’t remember if it was a 3/8 or 1/2 ounce — inevitably, I order the wrong one half the time. Not going to happen with this one. Once you wear one out, just roll it over and you’ll know exactly what size you need to reorder.
Double Barbed Bait Keeper
The trailer keeper on this one is pretty intense. Nomad went with a double-barbed keeper with barbs going out to each side, as opposed to the standard single barb pointed toward the back. Was this necessary? Maybe not. Is it effective? Absolutely. You may have a fish bite the legs off your trailer, but you’re not going to have one pull the bait all the way off.
Hand-Tied Skirt
People get pretty hyped up about hand-tied skirts opposed to skirts that are secured using rubber collars. So, I thought I’d point out that this one does have a hand-tied skirt. I’m a little indifferent personally, since most of the rubber (or at least rubber-like) collars hang in there pretty good these days. But if you have had some jig collars decay and fall apart on you, then you probably have been left with a bad taste in your mouth for them. As for these hand-tied skirts, they are definitely not falling off.
Final Evaluation
Between the beefy hook, fancy skirt, stamped weight, perfect weed guard, and ideal head design, the Badlands Swim Jig has a whole lot to offer. I’ve compared this jig a time or two in this piece to my all-time favorite swim jig, the Dirty Jigs No-Jack Swim Jig.
I would put this one right up there with the No-Jack in every aspect, with the exception of time-proven productivity. I’ve caught dozens of big ones on the No-Jack, so until I can put a few months in with the Badlands jig and stick several big ones, I can’t quite put it on the same pedestal. But, just having it in the same conversation as the No-Jack should let you know what I think of this one.
Available in 10 colors from their website (5 on TackleWarehouse), the Nomad Design Badlands Swim Jig comes in two sizes: 3/8 and 1/2 ounce.
Priced at $5.99, it’s a great deal, in my opinion. With the quality of the hook and the fact that the skirt is hand-tied, you know you’re getting a bait in the Badlands Swim Jig that will last for a long time. I’m excited to put more time in with it, and pick up a few additional colors soon.
