Problems With Jig Fishing

[SoCalFisher]

I just started jig fishing and I am just not getting any fish. I do get bites but I never actually hook the fish. Does anyone have any tips for working the jig and how to get a good hook set (I already read all the articles). I would appreciate not only tips for fishing them on the bottom but off the bottom too. If it maters I have been fishing jigs with a Shimano crucial mh 7'11" flipping and pitching stick with a Shimano curado 200e7 with 50# powerpro braid.

[tomustang]

Try a different area, it may or may not be your presentation, but the location not holding any bass

[gobig]

Sounds like you have had a few bites. The first tick is the fish picking up the jig and the second is the fish spitting it. There is no need to wait, set the hook right away. I reel and sweep all in one motion. There will be times when you get bit and all you see is the line move or they take it on the fall which should be semi slack line. It is a good idea to count a jig down. If you are fishing in ten feet of water and it stops sinking at five you most likely got bit. Many time you wont feel it, be a line watcher. As far as swimming a jig you will know when you get bit, they should pretty much hook themselves.

[Nitrofreak]

It would help to know where you are using them and what style and size, some of the best places are around docks, rocky points, humps on the bottom.

Swim jigs are best around cover imo, football head jigs work best around rocks, arkey style jigs are best for me around docks, if you are getting bites I would suggest down sizeing to a 3/8 or even 1/4 oz, find out whats around your area and go up in size from there, braided line is all I ever use with jigs, your rod and reel are good choices.

Always be ready to set the hook on the very first strike, if you feel it at all, a lot of the time you will never know the fish have taken the bait with a jig, especially if it makes it to the bottom, the fish will just inhale the bait and not move with it, line watching is key in those cases.

[MichBassMan]

As others have said, set the hook as soon as you detect a bite. In my humble opinion, and what helped me alot when learning to fish a jig was to add scent to your jig. The fish WILL hold on longer giving you more time to swing. I sometimes use megastrike on my trailer, also have a home brew of garlic and craw I sometimes use.You may be getting very small bass biting or even panfish. There is no cure for that other than moving.

Keep trying, good luck.

[flippin Dan]

Love me some jig fishing!!! The best advice I have gathered for jigs, or any other bait, is to learn what it feels like when you are not getting a bite. Anything different, swing away. You will jerk on grass or brush on occasion but that is just part of it.

[SoCalFisher]

Thanks I will try this tomorrow. I have tried jigs from 1/4oz-1/2oz. I don't think location is the problem because my brother was catching fish and I caught fish when I used a worm. I was fishing the jig most of the time though.

[smalljaw67]

Sounds like you have had a few bites. The first tick is the fish picking up the jig and the second is the fish spitting it. There is no need to wait, set the hook right away. I reel and sweep all in one motion. There will be times when you get bit and all you see is the line move or they take it on the fall which should be semi slack line. It is a good idea to count a jig down. If you are fishing in ten feet of water and it stops sinking at five you most likely got bit. Many time you wont feel it, be a line watcher. As far as swimming a jig you will know when you get bit, they should pretty much hook themselves.

This is great information and I agree with it 100% but I'll add a little bit to it. If you are catching fish on worms but not jigs it is the mood of the fish, you either have to downsize and fish a finesse type jig in the 1/8oz or 3/16oz range or upsize to a 5/8oz or 3/4oz jig. I know the upsize thing sounds strange but there are times when the faster fall will trigger a reaction strike, it doesn't happen all the time but it happens enough to give it a try.

[ClackerBuzz]

i agree with setting the hook right away IF the bass are aggressive. if not, try waiting a few seconds before setting the hook. you will feel a tick tick tick...but wait until you feel WEIGHT on ur line before you set the hook. also trim your weed guards down to ur barb AND use a pliers to pull out 1/2 the strands. alot of jigs come with weed guards so stiff and long they sound be called fish guards. work on ur flip/pitch too. you will get double the bites if ur jig enters the water with very little splash. keep a low projection angle along the water. most hits are on the initial fall. if it hits the bottom, i wait a sec, pump one or twice and move on. if the bit is really tuff you need to wait around and entice them more (in which case i will actually switch to a slow falling soft plastic/finesse technique). with jig fishing i have more fun with 'pitch and move, pitch and move'. hunt the fish.

[Lrbergin]

I fish jigs a lot and learning when to set the hook will come with time. I would imagine part of your initial frustration is just due to being unfamiliar with the feel of the lure compared to soft plastic. I personally tend to wait on the hook set and I don’t have a lot of fish spit the jig on me. That isn’t to say I don’t miss fish, but rarely do I swing on a fish after they have spit the jig. When I say I wait, I only mean that drop my rod tip and reel all the slack up to ensure a strong hook set. A good trailer will also help with the fish holding on to the jig longer. Good luck to you and it will come.

[SoCalFisher]

Ok one more question, are jigs fishable from the shore? I mean I know I can but is it worth it or should i fish something else?

[johnnytoxin]

Ok one more question, are jigs fishable from the shore? I mean I know I can but is it worth it or should i fish something else?

Hell ya you should fish jigs from shore! I am not the best at it but I have been getting some nice fish with 1/2 and 1/4 ounce jigs. Just keep throwing them. It may take a while but its worth it once you land one.

[Cincy Bach 29]

Hook sets are free!!! If in doubt reel down and let it rip. You will lose some jigs when you are first learning, hell I still lose them. But as time goes on and you get a feel for what your lure is hitting on the bottom you will be able to feel the difference between fish, brush, stumps, rock, weeds, and mud. Like other say try the countdown method and if that thing stops before you count is up set hook right away. But concentrate on making a good pitch and letting the lures fall with slack line to the bottom so it goes straight down. there are times they crush it and you see the fish flash or your line just takes off to the right or left. Other times you won't even know they have it if you aren't paying attention. Once it hits bottom try letting it be for a few seconds, try working it slow with a couple short pops of the rod. some times you have to just drag the lure on the bottom for them to hit it. This is a method of fishing that requires 100% concentration and awareness of what you are actually doing. You have to be a student of what you just did when you catch a fish.

One other thing I noticed....you are using braided line ( personally i'm not a huge fan). But if you are comfortable with it that is fine. But try this out and you will get more bites.... tie a 2-4ft flourocarbon leader to your braided line. Go on you tube to learn some simple knots for this. But you will have more bites with the invisible flouro compared to just connecting your jig to thick braid. I'd go with 20-25lb test if you want to try this out.