Swimbait Flathead

By Michael Wright

The last few years has seen a massive interest in casting big glide baits and swimbaits for flathead. At ICAST 2021 ZMan released a new swimbait to the market called the HerculeZ Swimbait. The HerculeZ was initially available in two sizes, a 5” built on a 5/8oz zinc weight with a 7/0 hook and a smaller 4” version built on a 3/8oz weight with a 5/0 hook. Newer additions include a 3" model, which is dynamite for flathead and mangrove jack, and 6" that is perfect for barramundi, jewfish and other larger predators.

The hook is a brutal Mustad black nickel, chemically sharpened hook, built for strong fish, with other features including realistic 3D eyes, a big under hooked paddle tail and a mullet profile that screams flatty slayer. The price is good and the 10X Tough ElaZtech construction will last multiple fish.

When searching out flathead with the ZMan HerculeZ the flats are my go-to option as these hold good numbers of flathead. The weight of the HerculeZ allows for long casts and this makes this 10X Tough pre-rigged swimbait a great searching bait, being able to cover a lot of fish holding real estate in a short period of time. Long casts are crucial on the flats and so is keeping the noise down. Big flathead can be quite spooky, so you don’t want to blow any chance by being too rowdy… stealth is the key to success.

My ideal flat must have broken, sporadic clumps of weed beds, with sandy or gravel patches in between. Yabby holes, good tidal flow and at low tide small flowing drains into the main channel, all make for happy hunting grounds for flathead. Clumps of ribbon weed provide shelter from predators for prawns, small shrimp and all types of baitfish, all of which are on the flathead menu. Big flathead make the perfect ambush predator, concealing themselves in the sand and mud, with their markings taking on the look of the surrounding environment they dwell in. They are the S.A.S of the estuary. When Fishing with the HerculeZ, I prefer a water depth of one to three feet as this allows the lure to contact the bottom, puffing up plumes of mud and attracting the attention of the flatty.

Ok! Let’s move onto my three retrieve styles and gear when using the ZMan HerculeZ Swimbaits.

Hop and Drop

This is a very basic technique that is better when the depth of water is three feet and deeper. It consists of casting out the swimbait, contacting the bottom, reeling in the slack, lifting the rod tip from a position of 8 o’clock to 11 o’clock and then dropping the rod tip back down, as you wind in the slack line. Repeating this action all the way back to boat, kayak or shore, should see you hooked up. However, be mindful not to use a fast lift or more of a whip style as this more times than not will foul the tail of the swimbait around the hook point.

Burn and Kill

This retrieve technique is a bit more active than the previous and it’s used to resemble a fleeing or wounded baitfish. Throw a long cast, then wait until the lure hits the bottom. Allow the lure to rest for a couple of seconds, before commencing the retrieve. The retrieve is executed by cranking the reel handle 2-3 times, fast! Then, stop suddenly, which will make the HerculeZ lift off the bottom, swimming flat out like a panicked or injured bait fish, before stalling and dropping to the bottom. The dropping action is when flathead will generally hit the plastic. Repeat this process until the line is completely reeled in.

Slow Roll

Repetitive, but very effective, this retrieve allows the lure to do all the work. Cast out and let the lure hit the bottom, then it’s a slow wind all the way back to the rod tip. The secret to this retrieve is all in the speed. Go too slow and you’ll have the lure dragging on the bottom, wind in too fast and the lure will be swimming too high in the water column. What you’re looking for is the perfect balance between the two. When retrieved properly, your swimbait will be swimming along about one to two feet off the bottom, while moving slow enough that it hits the bottom to get those puffs going, resembling a feeding baitfish. Not only will the flathead more easily dial in on the pulsing paddle tail it will also have a good visual if your lure is puffing up the mud.

Tackle Talk

As these baits are larger in body and weight, they demand a more specific rod, reel and line set up. When I’m throwing the ZMan 4” HerculeZ I can get away with my trusty Okuma Komodo 6-8kg baitcast rod, paired with the Komodo KDS 273 reel. My choice of line for this set up is 20lb Platypus Braid, with a leader of 15lb Platypus Hard Armour FC Fluorocarbon. The Okuma Komodo rods and reels are perfectly designed for this style of lure fishing. The rods are brutally strong, while offering great sensitivity and they load up nicely on the cast. The rod tip is responsive and the sensitivity results in being able to easily feel the vibration of the swimbait and the detection of any bites. The Komodo reels are built tough and reliable, with stainless steel internal components, supported by an aluminium frame and side plates, making this the ultimate reel for this type of fishing. Combine this with a 9kg drag and a 7:3:1 ratio and you have a bunch of confidence in the palm of your hand.

BOOM! NEWSFLASH! A ZMan 6” HerculeZ Swimbait is to be released later in the year. This size will be awesome for XOS flathead as well as Murray cod, jewfish, barramundi and more. This size increase, 6” length, 1oz weight and a brutally strong 8/0 hook, will permit the use of a larger rod, reel and line combo too. Also new to market, released at the 2022 AFTA Trade Show, and perfect for the use of swimbait and glide bait lures is the TT Black Adder heavy baitcast rod series. The 7’0’’ heavy action would be my pick, with all rods built with quality Toray Carbon blanks and Fuji components. Throwing such huge baits, like a 6” swimbait on this rod, I would recommend a heavier line such as 30-50lb Platypus braid and upgrade the leader to target T-Rex as this will reduce break offs during the cast.

Overall, The ZMan HerculeZ is an awesome soft plastic swimbait, that has the bonus feature of an extra stainless-steel eyelet on the underside for attaching a blade (underspin) or assist hooks for added hook points. This is a great feature, with its associated benefits, however I find that flathead don’t mind it straight out of the packet. This style of fishing is a game of casts, but the rewards outweigh the grind. Remember, not many people have just gone out and caught that metre fish without putting in the casts and the effort. Taking up the challenge and swinging a few HerculeZ at your favourite flathead flat is well rewarding.

5 Tips

1. Keep the noise down.
2. Choose a good flat, with different types of structure. Good flats will have an option to fish on both high and low tide. Google Earth is a great searching tool.
3. Choose the right tackle for the job.
4. Scent up to maximise your chances.
5. After fishing, wash your swimbaits in fresh water, dry and store them back in the packet. The HerculeZ is 10X Tough and will catch you plenty of fish if you look after it.

I hope this helps you to get started with this ever-evolving technique and that you find that magic XOS flathead soon.

Tight lines, Michael Wright