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Paddle Tail Swimbaits | Underwater View

Paddle tail swimbaits are a soft plastic staple for bass and all other predator fish species the world over. The reason? they do a phenomenal job of imitating baitfish. This gives them universal appeal with the ability to trigger negative and pressured fish to aggressively feeding ones.

Not all paddle tail swimbaits are made the same. The X Zone Swammer (shown here) has a pronounced tail thump and full body wag whereas some have a more subtle tail action without the body wag and roll. There is no “best action,” rather, “best actions” for certain situations. For example, the action on this particular bait can be muted by rigging on a heavier jighead with a longer shank hook. This helps the swimbait stay down, a plus when fishing deeper water areas. It’s tough to deny the seductiveness of the full body action as seen in this video however!

Paddle tail swimbaits can be rigged in a multitude of ways. The first set of shots show it rigged on a Trokar Swim Blade extra wide gap swimbait hook. This rigging style is popular for shallow water cover applications and for big fish. Jighead rigging may be the most popular and versatile overall, as these baits can be mated with a huge variety of jigs designed to present baits differently. They also pair well as trailers on skirted bass jigs, bladed jigs, swinging jig and spinnerbaits.

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