Should You Use A Swivel When Fishing With Lures?

When fishing with lures, using a swivel will often reduce the flexibility of your lure. Increased weight and hardware that a swivel brings to your lure might make it run unexpectedly, appear less natural to fish, and decrease your chances of success. As a result, it is usually better to hook your line straight to the lure’s eye to have greater activity, more bites, and a better chance of landing your fish. 

So, should you use a swivel when fishing with lures? You can use a swivel when fishing with lures if you know how to figure out what kind of swivel you need for your fishing gearo0. 

What Is A Swivel?

Swivels are little pill-shaped metal items that use tiny hooks or loops to link two sections of your fishing line. The loops are linked to the metal’s center part.

This means that the loops can rotate 360 degrees in response to the weight of anything attached to the circle. Because the two circles are not joined, they can rotate independently of one another.

What Does A Swivel Do?

The fishing line will normally twist when two opposing pressures are applied to the two ends of the line, such as when a fish tries to escape as you are reeling it in. If your line twists, it will ultimately fray, but it will be much more difficult to reel in for a temporary period, and it may cause additional wear and strain on your reel.

Swivels are fantastic tools for any angler since they protect your other gear from unneeded wear and strain. Also, they are a great way to add more lures, sinkers, or bobbers to your fishing line. Swivels are fantastic tools for any angler since they protect your other gear from unneeded wear and strain.

Should You Use A Swivel When Fishing With Lures?

Disadvantages Of Using A Swivel

Using swivels might have a negative impact on your fishing lures, especially with small or light lures. Here are a few of the key reasons why I don’t suggest using a swivel while lure fishing.

  • Extra hardware is added to your lure, so it becomes a less natural and pleasing appearance.
  • It has a proclivity to accumulate more weeds and grass.
  • Risks of losing more fish get higher.
  • Swivels can damage rod guides.
  • Weight is added to the front of the lure.
  • More lures will be run wrongly.
  • It creates a possible weak point in your fishing arrangement.

Advantages Of Using A Swivel

The two reasons why some fishermen use a swivel are: first, it makes changing lures simpler because you don’t have to re-tie every time; and second, it may also aid in the prevention of line twists, which are never enjoyable.

Swivels are effective when fishing with spoons, crankbaits, or other lures that generate line twisting:

  • Changing lures is a breeze with it.
  • Reducing the twisting of lines
  • Stop sliding

When And Where Not To Use A Swivel?

When Not To Use A Swivel?

I wouldn’t suggest using a swivel on any fishing lure. There are a few exceptions if you’re fishing with a crankbait or a spoon. Even so, I’d rather attach my line straight to the eye of whatever bait I’m throwing.

You might be able to get away with it with certain lures, but I wouldn’t advocate using a swivel with the following baits:

  • Spinners
  • Certain crankbaits
  • Spinnerbaits
  • Topwater lure
  • Jigs
  • Texas Rig

When To Use A Swivel?

The usage of other types of swivels is unnecessary. A snap swivel can aid with line twisting and make changing lures a breeze:

  • Using spinning tackle
  • The currents are strong
  • Using spinning tackle

If you do decide to use a swivel for lure fishing, make sure it’s the rounded kind rather than the ones with a corner. 

Types Of Swivels

Barrel Swivel

Swivels with barrels are the cheapest, lightest, and most traditional swivel designs on the market. Also, they are large, strong, and perform a great job of protecting the fishing line from twisting. 

The problem with barrel swivels is that when the twisting pressures on each of the loops are getting stronger, the internal anchors cannot spin rapidly enough due to friction between the anchor and the barrel’s interior.

Crane Swivel

The crane swivel and the barrel swivel are extremely similar in design. The main difference is that the wire that runs through the middle of the swivel terminates inside the swivel rather than on the other end. It costs more than the barrel swivel but is more durable and works better under strain.

When crane swivels are used with a fish that is larger than they are rated for, they might still break. This implies that ball-bearing swivels may be a preferable option for some types of fishing.

Rolling Swivel

Roller swivels are comparable to crane swivels but are smaller and have more rotational capabilities. Many people prefer rolling swivels to ball-bearing swivels because they are less expensive. If you want to be stealthy and invisible, I recommend the stainless steel Dr. Fish roller swivel.

Conclusion

After you’ve learned everything necessary about using a swivel when fishing with lures, you can choose the best one for your fishing requirements. Choose a swivel that is rated for the weight of the targeted fish you want to capture, and don’t be afraid to go for a showy alternative if you believe the fish would like it.

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