Jig Fishin

[barkelypup]

Been fishin for Bass for about 20 years and have finally decided to learn to fish a jig. It is a bait I have very little confidence in but a lot of people I know fish them. I started fishing them last year on the tourney trail I fish with little luck. I have tried fishing them like a Texas rigged worm but I find it hard to feel strikes. Any help on techniques would be greatly appreiciated.

thanks,
BP

[3dkicker]

Puppy Chow,
You picked a great topic for your first post. PnJ is now your best friend. First I would send a Personal Message to PnJ on the subject. He'll have plenty to say and probably has a form letter ready for you. Second I'd use the "Search" and type in "Jig" and you'll find tons of posts on using jigs. Third I'd spend some time when not on the tourney trail and learn the bait. I'd stick with the baits I'm best at when fishing tourney's. At least until you get some confidence and are catching fish on the jig. Last, you may need a little better rod if you are having trouble detecting bites. If your rod always feels sluggish or spongey or "muddy" when retrieving a jig you may need to upgrade because your gonna miss some real big fish.

[carolina-rig-01]

"puppy chow" welcome! well i am not pnj but i pride myself on being a jig fisherman. i never leave a ram without atleast 2 and usually 3 different jigs tied on. first off different jigs (heads being the main difference) are made for different situations. a jig bite can be as distinct as a hard thump, but a lot of jig bites are nothing more than the bait feeling a little more heavy than normal. somedays and with some jigs they want you to pop it off of the bottom, sometimes they want you to drag it like a carolina rig. stick with it and remember hooksets are cheap so when in doubt air it out! anymore questions feel free to pm me.

[BigBassin144]

I can't help too much on this subject as I an new to jigs too. Well I can't help at all. I'd like to see what everyone says cause It'll sure help me too. I'm surprised PNJ hasn't posted yet...

Welcome to the fourm BP. You'll get a lot of help here.

Good Fishin'
BB

[Rebbasser]

Welcome to the forum!

I threw jigs literally for years with little or no success but kept chunking them. Then came that magic day: threw one up on a brushpile, pulled it off and was rewarded with a 3-4 pounder. That started my confidence growing in them, and now I always have one tied on. Fishing it like a T-rig is a great way to fish them. Try dragging it instead of the lift/drop like you do with a worm. Above all, keep throwing them-you WILL get bit!

[barkelypup]

Thanks for the welcomes and the info. What type of rods to you all recomend and what type of different jig heads work for different situations? It was suggested that I learn the jig off the tourney trail but thats about all the fishing I get. I'm luck if I get 10 to 15 trips a year. Between wife, work, 2 year old with another on the way in feb and my farm I don't get as much time on the water as I would like. Come to think of it I don't know if I could ever get as much time on the water as I would like. I have had my best luck on KVD heavy cover swim with zoom long leg trailers and BPS enticer football heads with tiny paca craw.

My user name Barkelypup is from an old Basset hound I used to have named after lake Barkley. Used to live in Western KY about 45 minutes from that lake and he layed many a hour on my old procraft sunnin while I fished. Probably best fishing partner I ever had. Not once did he say that bank over there looks better or I'm ready to go home. May he rest in peace.

[carolina-rig-01]

for a rod go with the longest rod you can use and are comfortable with, for me it's a 7' falcon. and i use a mh action but a lot of guys like heave or even extra heavy action rods. for styles of jigs, well it depends on a lot of things. a football head will resist rolling on it's side, they are really popular around here for deep jig fishing but i like them about anywhere. also round head jigs like the eakins jig is a great jig for flipping (they also make a flipping jighead but i don't much care for it). if you fish grass beds, they make jigs for that too. i would start by narrowing it down to a football head and round head to start with but that's me.


i have a beagle pup i am grooming for a fishing partner. but the first time he goes to the bathroom or chews on something in my ranger i am gonna chain him to the door of a chinese resturant.

[3dkicker]

Ask around and see if you can test out a couple rods from the guys you fish with (or against). This will really help and give you an idea. A rod with a soft tip or no backbone will have you confused and unable to detect all the pick ups and then when you do set the hook you'll have a toad shake you off and swim away. And that hurts in a tournament....
Narrow head - Grass
Round head - Wood
Wide head - Rock
Sounds like you've picked a couple good trailers to use. Experiment with them. Also colors I currently use are Black/Blue (standard), Spring Craw (Dave's Tournament Tackle - except he can't get them made anymore), PB&J (S&W), Orange Craw (Kidlizard) and one more (S&W) that I don't know the name of, yet. It was given to me by one of my pro partners this summer. Sweet jig. Caught some nice Potomac river bass on it too.

[barkelypup]

Guys,
Thanks for all the tips. One more question. Do any of you all use braided line for the sensitivity? I have used it in the past but have had trouble getting a good knot. I even tried super gluing the knot which is a pain and the reason I stopped using braid.

Thanks again,
BP

[JB]

try some powerpro or suffix line (braid)

[3dkicker]

Some use it and some don't. I found that when fishing stumps and rocks and you set the hook (remember they're free) that the lack of stretch can do a number on your hands (that force that runs up the line has to go somewhere) and I've seen a friend have the rod hop out of his hands and end up in the water. He was lucky and found it later dragging the bottom. I prefer heavy (17+) mono that has some stretch and a heavy fast rod.

[Bob Smith]

Originally Posted by 3dkicker

Some use it and some don't. I found that when fishing stumps and rocks and you set the hook (remember they're free) that the lack of stretch can do a number on your hands (that force that runs up the line has to go somewhere) and I've seen a friend have the rod hop out of his hands and end up in the water. He was lucky and found it later dragging the bottom. I prefer heavy (17+) mono that has some stretch and a heavy fast rod.

That is SOO TRUE!! I've never lost a rod, but I danged sure dropped them due to the shock of solid mass versus a fish. Even with a big fish it can do a number on your wrists. I still like the sensitivity of braid over mono. Some folks can do just fine with mono, but not me. To compensate I use a 17 mono leader about 4' long and back off on my drag so that the reel "zips" on the hook set. That is still more than enough to drive the hook home on a quality jig.

A sort of rule of thumb I use on determining what type of retrieve to use is lift and glide or hop on rocks, drag, lift and fall in soft bottoms and stumps/timber, swim/glide in grass. Cold water do it all a lot slower, warm water just the opposite. I know there are exceptions to every rule, but I find what I just said to be a good starting point!

I like long rods, 7' medium action for me.

[carolina-rig-01]

i would reccomend a quality flourocarbon. i use seaguar invizx and it is awesome! some will say viscious flourocarbon, it may be great too i haven't tried it and probably won't change from seaguar anytime soon. but the low stretch in a flourocarbon line will help with a solid hookset, and it is very sensitive. remember on a jig you have a big head on the bait that you have to pull through the fish's mouth and a heavy hook you have to penetrate with. so go low stretch with your line and set the hook hard enough that when he gets to the boat he is 3" longer than he was when he bit.

[3dkicker]

Since this post is about jigs, anyone use All-Terrain jigs??? Not pushing their product but I'd like a little feedback. I'm looking into selling their Grassmaster weed jig (1 and 1.5 oz) this year and would like to hear any opinions. Any thing on their Rattling A.T. jig or the Finesse jig?
Colors? Paint - easily chipped? Hooks? Skirts? How do they hold up with use? Snag easily or catch grass?

[pig n jig]

3D, message sent on all terrain jigs.

I do not know everything and it is great to see different views on jig fishing , than what I plaster up, every chance I get. BTW , you guys posted some great advice.
I also like fluorocarbon line, I use 16 lb test, but I also use 30 lb Tuf Line XP braid on a grass rod setup .The 30 lb braid will cut through the weeds to haul the fish out where as sometimes you might get wrapped up in weeds with fluorocarbon, but for general jig fishing , the fluorocarbon works fine.
I generally pitch jigs, therefore I like a rod with a bit of flex to the tip.It allows you to pitch jigs all day, without alot of extra effort.Don't throw around heavy cover, throw it right in the heaviest stuff you can find.You must get the bite first, then worry about getting the fish out of there. P N J

[pig n jig]

http://www.allterraintackle.com/products/grassjig.html

[lunker-lander]

Those jigs sure do looks good. Kinda' the same deaa as the Terminator or Jig-X Jigs...

-Lunk-

[3dkicker]

I'm about to order a couple dozen or so. Haven't used them but I'm looking forward to hitting the grass again this spring/summer. I'll post a pic or two and post my first impressions.

[barkelypup]

Ok,
Great info so far and I can't wait to try em out. First tournament is in april i think. I have a few jigs that I have caught fish and the band that holds the skirt on is starting to dry rot and has accually broke on one. You all recomend anything for this. Heck baits are expensive enough and every last cast I can get out of one is that much better.

Thanks,
BP

[Rebbasser]

Originally Posted by 3dkicker

Since this post is about jigs, anyone use All-Terrain jigs??? Not pushing their product but I'd like a little feedback. I'm looking into selling their Grassmaster weed jig (1 and 1.5 oz) this year and would like to hear any opinions. Any thing on their Rattling A.T. jig or the Finesse jig?
Colors? Paint - easily chipped? Hooks? Skirts? How do they hold up with use? Snag easily or catch grass?

3D, PnJ turned me on to those jigs a couple of years ago and they are AWESOME. Some of the best jigs I've ever used. You won't be disappointed.

BP, I use a heavy action 6-10 Falcon Low Rider rod and 50 lb Powerpro braid for jigs mainly because I fish a lot of wood. Try a Palomar knot-never had one fail using braid. Or any other line for that matter unless I'm breaking off from getting hung up.

[carolina-rig-01]

puppy chow...you can use really light wire and wrap it around the skirt where the band is, take pliers and twist the p!ss out of it until it's tight. or you can buy a skirt making tool and some bands and remake it all together.

[senko]

i believe terminator makes those quick on skirts or somethin like that...

[3dkicker]

The better skirts are hard to find. I've learned that in order to get the good stuff you have to order it from the factory. None of the local stores sell em. I'm sure there are a couple websites that sell some good ones too. The only time I find them is at the shows (and this year I'll be selling them ). See if you can get some quality replacements and change them out if they go bad.

[basskicker]

Make sure to use a big heavy action rod to get a good hook set with a jig.a good thing to do to notice strikes is watch your line if you dont feel it then your line will be moving to the side.

[BigBassin144]

3D, you could always make your own skirts. I know that's what I should be doing since I'm never very happy with factory skirts. I do however like the 55 strand skirts on the Booyah jigs and spinnerbaits. But when you make your own skirts, the color choices are endless, and that's what I like best about making your own.

BB