“ the best place to throw the bug is around cover like rocks and brush on banks that slope at about 45 degrees or less .”
border . About the only place I don ’ t throw it is around mucky bottoms with no cover , but there usually aren ’ t any bass in those places anyway .
highlights
I won a couple tournaments almost immediately after I gave the swing head a try . The bass had never seen anything
ILLUSTRATION BY MICHAEL HOEWELER like it , and they ’ d never heard anything like it , either – banging around in the rocks .
I ’ ve won tournaments on the HardHead and Biffle Bug in Oklahoma , Tennessee , Wisconsin , on rivers and on lakes . I haven ’ t found a body of water where it won ’ t work .
when
I have the most success with the HardHead and Biffle Bug in the spring through the fall . For it to work , all you really need is bass that are holding shallow enough that you can reach them , and it ’ s best if they ’ re around some kind of cover , like rocks or brush … but grass can be great , too . Some of the biggest bass I ’ ve ever caught Buggin ’ came from grass cover in Florida .
Ultimately , the swing head jig is a year-round bait . You just have to adjust for cover and conditions like water color and temperature .
where
The best place to throw the swing head is around cover like rocks and brush on banks that slope at about 45 degrees or less . If it ’ s any steeper , it ’ s harder to maintain bottom contact , especially if you ’ re just getting started .
In grass – especially grass that ’ s not extremely thick or matted – the Bug is a very different look for bass . It comes through vegetation well , but when it gets hung up a little and pulls free , it ’ s like fishing a lipless crankbait . The bait pops out and the bass grab it .
tackle
When I ’ m Buggin ’, I consider my tackle to be part of a system that ’ s all working together to get me more bites and put more fish in the boat . I ’ ve refined my gear to the point that I very rarely adjust any part of it , no matter where I ’ m fishing .
It starts with 20-pound-test Sunline Shooter . It ’ s a fluorocarbon line that really holds up in rock , brush , and other cover , plus it casts well , so I can cover a lot of water .
My rod is a heavy casting model – a 7-foot , 6-inch Quantum Smoke S3 . It ’ s a flipping rod . I ’ m better able to feel that HardHead bouncing through the cover on a heavy rod , and it gives me the power I need to make a good hookset .
The reel is a Quantum Smoke S3 with a 7.3:1 gear ratio . It casts well , and the speed is just right for finding the pace to keep the bait in contact with the bottom .
lures
As I said , about 80 percent of my overall fishing is done with a Gene Larew Biffle HardHead and Larew Biffle Bug . Even though the HardHead comes in five sizes , about 75 percent of my Buggin ’ is with the 7 / 16-ounce model . It has a 4 / 0 hook that ’ s a perfect fit for my 4.25-inch Biffle Bug .
When I ’ m not using the 7 / 16-ounce HardHead , I ’ m usually throwing the 11 / 16-ounce version . It makes more racket bouncing through cover than lighter models , and sometimes that ’ s what the bass want . I ’ ll use a lighter HardHead in really shallow water or in grass cover .
DECEMBER-JANUARY 2022 | MAJORLEAGUEFISHING . COM 51