An ultra-realistic bluegill imitating swimbait for bass fishing at a very reasonable price.
Two Sizes
The Savage Gear 3D Bluegill is a soft bodied swimbait around a hard inner frame. The panfish imitating swimbait comes in multiple sizes — 4-inch, 5-inch and 6-inch. The 5-inch weighs 2 ounces and the 4-inch weighs 3/4-ounce.
The 4-inch is easily fished on conventional baitcasting gear and the 5 and 6 inch will require a little more backbone on a small to medium-power swimbait rod.
Top Hook Varies
The 4-inch comes with a jig hook molded in the top of the swimbait with an alternate belly treble hook. The larger models have treble hooks on the top and the bottom.
I have fished the 4 inch a bunch and the top hook is good on better sized fish. I have missed smaller fish when I took the belly treble hook off to fish around cover, but those have all been smaller bass. The hook is a little forward and angled down, which I think makes a smaller target for the smaller mouths of non-keeper bass.
But all of the bigger fish over 4 pounds I’ve caught on it are hooked way back in the hard part of the upper jaw. They inhale that 4-inch option. Even buzzing it under the surface.
Look better in the water
I will admit that I’ve probably thrown the least sexy version of the Savage Gear 3D Bluegill the most. I don’t know why other than I liked that it was a little brighter in some of the dark water I first fished them. I got a bunch of fish on it that first day and have just stuck with that color
But the colors are impressive on this bluegill. The Photo Crappie, Photo Dark Gill and Photo Light Gill are three of my favorites, but I’ve done most of my damage with the original Light Gill.
It’s amazing how good they look, but they look even better in the water I think.
Reinforced hinges
They have a double-hinge construction that is reinforced to resist tearing. These bluegill swimbaits swim well at a medium to fast retrieve. I’ve fished the 4-inch a lot just under the surface on a fast retrieve as a wakebait to catch most of my fish around bank grass.
They 4-inch bait, however, does not swim well at a slow speed. If you slow down too much, the tail will quit kicking, and it will roll up on its side. So if you are wanting to fish it ultra slow, this will not be a good setup for you.
But I love how it fishes at speed. When you get it up to a certain speed, it vibrates more than a lipless crankbait. You can really feel and see what the bait is doing. That has been how I fish swimbaits anymore. I’m waking the bait for a reaction and to cover water and draw fish.
Colors are Outstanding
Another look at the colors from outside the water shows the intricate detailing from fins to photo realism. The paint jobs held up well to a lot of fish and fishing.
Holds up well to several fish
You can see on this one swimbait that I have been fishing that it only shows slight signs of wear around the hook, the eye and one fin started to tear finally but it hasn’t affected the swim at all.
Some anglers have mentioned the eyes come off. But I’m a few dozen fish into this one 4-inch bait, and it still has both eyes. So I don’t know if heat or other things might affect that, or if it was just that the earlier models had eye problems and these more recent versions do not.
Easy to throw on Heavy Power Rod
I’ve been throwing it on a 7-foot, 3-inch heavy-power rod most of the time. The same rod I would throw a football jig on offshore. The baits cast well. They will occasionally flail in the wind if you are trying to roll cast it around cover. But I’ve been able to slide it under and around docks and overhanging trees without much issue.
4-inch Gets Swallowed
The 4-inch has been my favorite. I got some big follows on the bigger sizes and a few decent fish on the 5-inch. But I have caught so many on the 4-inch fishing it in the same water I would fish a ChatterBait or spinnerbait.
I’ve been taking the bottom treble hook off a lot. I will leave it on if I plan to just wake it under the surface around open water targets. But if I think I’m going to be around a lot of hangy cover, I will pull that bottom hook off.
Worth the price
The 4-inch is $9.99 which I thought was a pretty fair price for an ultra-realistic look around bluegill beds and shade where bluegills are congregating. The 5-inch retails for $14.99 and is quite a bit larger.
You can find them at TackleWarehouse.com and Walmart.com as well as other retailers that carry Savage Gear Swimbaits.
