Big Hammer 9" Sledge Swimbaits

Over the past couple years a new style of fishing plastics for BIG Calico Bass has emerged. There are some variations to the game, but usually guys are fishing BIG slugs on or very near the surface of the kelp paddies and stringers and swimming the slug over the top, dropping down in the holes, and sliding through the kelp to hook the big bass that lurk there as the apex predators. And, often folks are rewarded with a very nice white seabass. That’s not uncommon at all. This past year we’ve seen folks doing a couple other interesting things to further refine this productive technique. For one, many anglers are rigging up “kelp-cutter” rigs. These are basically smaller reels loaded with Spectra, often 65#, topped off with a VERY SHORT leader at times 3 feet. The Spectra is used to help saw off the kelp as the lure becomes snagged, or once you’ve got a hookup to help slice through the kelp so the fish can be brought back in. (Some of the white seabass guys are doing the same, for exactly