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Adjusting the lip may only be part of the issue. I spent the winter testing bottle swimmers and discovered two things that are necessary for bottle swimmers to swim right.
1. Don't make the lip so thin that it gets narrow. Shorter, wider lips work best. Keep the top surface of the lip flat. Getting any curvature narrows the lip. Adjust the leading edge so that it is at 45 degrees. This has a effect on the effectiveness of the lip. I found that the Gibbs lip design works well. That is not where the Gibbs has issues.
2. Weight is just as critical as shape. Shape is critical, but if the weight is wrong, ihe plug still won't swim. Plugs that swam fantastically with no weight, had no wiggle at all if they were overweighted in the tail. One of the biggest issues I have with Gibbs bottle swimmers is the nose slides across the top instead of digging in and swimming. All the weight is in the tail. MrPogie has success with a chin weight to get the plug digging in. I tried that and didn't have the same results. Obviously MrPogie and I are doing something different because he definately has his swimmers down. I think I put too much weight in the chin. Instead I now put a weight in the belly, just ahead of the belley hook. That helped roll the plug to vertical and causes the lip dig and swim. Weight in the ends dampens the action. I put half the weight in the belly and half in the tail. This compromise results in a plug that both casts and swims well. To sumarize, don't overweight the plug! Keep the weight towards the center (pivot point) of the plug.
I hope this helps. Bottle swimmers were the biggest challege to get to swim correctly.
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