hstaple1979

Until a week ago, I had only ever caught fish on a green pumpkin jig, football or flipping jig. For some reason last week, I tied on a black and blue flipping jig with a white trailer (didn't matter if it was a grub or Rage Craw) and I started catching fish, a couple really nice ones at that. In fact, I usually only throw a jig in early spring or the fall, I had never tried them in the heat of the summer. To say I'm a jig fisherman now is an understatement...

Deep water can be intimidating. I spent a lot of time this summer in the heat learning how to work deep structure. My best luck came off a neck in my home lake where several docks are located, and a sharp drop. I caught several here using a Shakey head with a green pumpkin senko. I also caught a few with football jigs. The next best area was a long grassy bank where the water went from about 2.5 ft to 25 on a gradual slope. Again, slowly dragging a Shakey head from the grass edge back to the boat picked up a good number of fish. So far, this fall, most of the fish I've caught haven't been deep (6 to 10 ft) but I have a strategy, and I know where the deep humps and structure are. Keep at it, it'll come.

In my home lake, Strike King 5XD this time of year. Earlier in the spring I use the Strike King square bill (2.5 I think?) Black back Chartreuse color, sometimes Sexy Shad. By far my favorite crankbait.

I totally disagree that Ugli Stiks are bad for plastics. These are the only rods I use for soft plastics. 6', 6'6, and 7'. I also use an assortment of Medium to Medium Heavy. Point may be it's your hooks, or experience, maybe rod length, but it's not the brand of rod. Fishing soft plastics is all about line watching, perhaps you aren't allowing enough time between bite and hook set. However, I can assure you it isn't the rod brand.

In YUM Dingers I use green pumpkin or watermelon red fleck (I think it's called). I only use them on shakey heads, though. I have another brand of Senko knock off in red shad (red and black) that I have caught a lot of fish on.

Here are mine: I hate braid, only occasionally use it. I rarely fish a jig, and haven't in over 15 years. Am going to try this year. I use floro, but prefer mono. My Texas rig rod and reel is my Dad's 40 year old Abu Garcia 5500, 17lb. mono, 6' medium action Ugly Stik. I prefer 3/0 Tru Turn hooks to all other bass worm hooks. I have never used a Senko, I have used YUM Dingers on shakey heads. I have never drop shot, wacky rigged, and I hate Carolina Rigs. I use Texas rigs, crankbaits, frogs, and other assorted soft plastics. I hate spinner bait and lipless cranks. The only spinning outfit I own is for bluegill fishing, I hate them. I don't call what you all call a ned rig that. I call it a lead head. I take an old (jig head I call them when no bait is in them) and put a YUM Dingers, or worm, or lizard, or grub, on the head and have caught a ton of bass of all sizes.

I have always fished. When I was about 8, I begged my Dad to take me to our neighbors pond for a week one summer. I guess he didn't want to dig worms to watch me stare at a bobber, so he gave me his old Abu Garcia 5000 and a Lew's Speed stick worm rod. Tied me on a Texas Rig worm, showed me how to do that. Stood on the pond bank and showed me one cast with a baitcasting, told me he wasn't going to pick back lashes out all night, so don't mess it up. Handed me the rod, made his own cast, showed me how to work the worm. And away he went. My first cast was terrible (barely went 3 feet off bank) but a 14 inch bass made off with my worm and managed to hook himself in the process. Wasn't my first bass, but first while using a bass lure, and the rest is history. My Dad was with me in our boat when I caught my PB 9 pounder. He has been gone for 6 years now. Stories like this one still make me want to cry ?

The one ounce size is the one I have heard caught fish. I'm only out $3 so I'm not too worried. I don't normally like anything bigger than m/h rods, and I usually use braid for throwing top water in thick grass or pads. I'm the first to admit I don't throw jigs very often, as these were the first I had bought in years. I may take a step down in size before I throw the football jigs. I'm an old soft plastic guy, so I thought I'd give this a shot. I enjoy learning new techniques, but I'm not too sure I made a good purchase here, even at such a reduced price.

I have mostly 7' m/h rods with Abu Garcia Revos. I have others, but these are my better rod/reel combos. (I prefer Abu, it's a personal thing, like Ford/Chevy). The lakes has a lot of grass, but it has a lot of rocky points with hard, smooth bottoms off of them. There is a lot of wood cover (stumps ect.) but I want to fish these jigs on the rocky points. Most are deep, running anywhere from 10 all the way to 25 feet. Some go as deep as 30. I usually throw 5 or 6 XD crankbaits to these points, and I catch fish, but I hate being a one trick pony. This is my home lake, I always fish it, just looking to try some new techniques. The lake has just about any cover you can think of, and the bottom varies as well. I doubt I'd try these jigs in some of the heavier cover, but I'm open to trying. BTW, I usually throw florocarbon line at 10/12 pound test, but I can go braid or heavier mono. Just looking for opinions.

That's all I have been told, fish them on hard bottoms, but as for the other tips, I appreciate that. I've never really been a true jig fisherman. I've only used them once or twice (smaller ones) and I did catch a couple, but I've always been a worm guy. I've fished all my life (for everything, really) for bass and only in the last couple of years have I started crankbaits, senkos, Shakey heads, anything other than a t-rig worm. Jigs are my focus this summer.

Hello all: I was wanting to pick everyone's brain a minute on fishing a football head jig. I found some marked on clearance for under a dollar and bought 3 in 1oz size. I have never fished this heavy of a jig, biggest I ever used has been 3/8oz. I know a lot of people who fish these on the deep points on my home lake and always come up with good fish, so I decided to give them a try. Most of my friends are pretty tight lipped on how exactly they fish them. Is this something I should work like a Texas rig worm, or drag it along the bottom? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

Texas rig 6'0 Medium action rod, baitcasting reel 1/16th ounce bullet weight, 3/0 Tru Turn bass worm hook 7.5 inch Culprit worm Plum Crazy color. I know Tru Turn hooks are old school, but if I'm fishing any other way, I'll pick up my old rod and reel that always has my Culprit tied on, and I always catch fish. I caught my PB 9 pounder this way. Everyone has their confidence rig, this is mine. I use other worm hooks in 4 and 5/0, but I miss fish a lot, where my hook up on the old Tru Turn is always a lot higher. It's pretty simple, but it never has let me down.

I would agree on buzz baits. I have never caught a fish or had a bite on one. I never used helicopter lures, but I did use banjo minnows. Since I was a failure at figuring them out, I used the minnow bodies on jig heads and as replacement beetle spin bodies, for that purpose they actually work.

I bought Flying Lures when they first came out as well. I caught fish on them the first trip I used them (hey, I was like 12) and never caught another on any of them I had again.

This is what I consider my home lake. The power plant is on the north end of the lake. There are better areas to fish in the spring and summer on the southeastern end of the lake in the spring and summer, away from most pleasure boaters and out of area fisherman who don't know the lake very well. There are no walleye in the lake, though they were stocked, it is assumed they all died off. Stripers affect nothing. This is a largemouth bass lake. It's considered a private lake, and unless you know areas, navionics or fishidy are useless. There is plenty of shore cover and areas that hold fish year round. This is the only lake I fish, ever, as it's close to home. Good luck