Bob Downey's Small Swimbait Setup (Rod/Reel/Line)

Mon, August 1, 2022

Bassmaster Elite Series angler, Bob Downey, is here to give us his setup for fishing a smal soft bodied swimbait. Bob's rod of choice is the St. Croix Legend Elite in a 7'6" Medium-Light power, Extra-Fast action, with a Daiwa Tatula LT spinning reel. A long rod with an extra-fast tip allows you to get maximum casting distance to cover more water and increase your odds of catching fish, and the medium-light action is perfect for landing hard-pulling smallmouth. When it comes to line for small swimbait fishing, Bob prefers using 8lb Sufix 131 braided line with a 6 to 8lb fluorocarbon leader. When using moving baits, such as a small swimbait, Bob also prefers to use a low-vis green braided line, since you aren't watching you line for bites as much and it reduces the chance of wary smallmouth seeing your line in gin-clear water conditions.

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