Jig Fishing Questions

[Cak920]

So I decided I wanted to learn to fish jigs and went out and bought a couple football jigs 1/2 oz. on my first cast I got snagged and lost the lure. I have no clue how. I was fishing on solid rock dragging bottom and it went snug so I tried shaking it loose a little and then walked almost 180 degrees around it to the other side and nothing would get it loose. Tried another jig and a few casts later same thing different spot. My understanding was football jigs were made for fishing on rock and were supposed to be very hard to get snagged. Is there something I may have done wrong or any other ideas?

[Fish the Mitt]

1 hour ago, Cak920 said:

So I decided I wanted to learn to fish jigs and went out and bought a couple football jigs 1/2 oz. on my first cast I got snagged and lost the lure. I have no clue how. I was fishing on solid rock dragging bottom and it went snug so I tried shaking it loose a little and then walked almost 180 degrees around it to the other side and nothing would get it loose. Tried another jig and a few casts later same thing different spot. My understanding was football jigs were made for fishing on rock and were supposed to be very hard to get snagged. Is there something I may have done wrong or any other ideas?

While the football jig is probably the biggest go-to for harder bottom and rock, it all depends on the size of rock. If it was small loose rock, then I am not sure what was happening as that is what I would have used as well. But if it was large chunk rock, concrete, etc.., then no jig head style would have helped if you got it wedged down in between chunk rock good. 

 

All I can say is don't give up. You may be 0-2 at the moment but so were the Yankees in the 1996 World Series - in which they came back to win it all.

[NorthernBasser]

On 3/11/2018 at 10:44 PM, Fish the Mitt said:

While the football jig is probably the biggest go-to for harder bottom and rock, it all depends on the size of rock. If it was small loose rock, then I am not sure what was happening as that is what I would have used as well. But if it was large chunk rock, concrete, etc.., then no jig head style would have helped if you got it wedged down in between chunk rock good. 

 

All I can say is don't give up. You may be 0-2 at the moment but so were the Yankees in the 1996 World Series - in which they came back to win it all.

Agree with this. Do not give up.

 

Jig fishing takes a little more patience than some other techniques. But it's also the most rewarding when you catch that hawg. I catch most of my big summer bass on jigs with a Paca Craw trailer. 

[Tracker22]

I first tried jig fishing last year. I was skeptical but my buddy convinced me to keep trying. I learned to feel the bottom and maintain contact with the jig. Differentiating some bites from the bottom can be difficult at times. Other times they just smack it hard. He also taught me that if you miss a strike let the jig sit where it is and they will come back for it. After a season of practice I feel I have it down pretty good but I still have a lot to learn. Everyone should learn to fish jigs. It’s a game changer.

[pauldconyers]

Just getting into jig fishing. To get a better sense of the line and what is going on down there is a good idea to hold the line in between your thumb and forefinger?

[WRB]

On March 11, 2018 at 6:50 PM, Cak920 said:

So I decided I wanted to learn to fish jigs and went out and bought a couple football jigs 1/2 oz. on my first cast I got snagged and lost the lure. I have no clue how. I was fishing on solid rock dragging bottom and it went snug so I tried shaking it loose a little and then walked almost 180 degrees around it to the other side and nothing would get it loose. Tried another jig and a few casts later same thing different spot. My understanding was football jigs were made for fishing on rock and were supposed to be very hard to get snagged. Is there something I may have done wrong or any other ideas?

Use lighter weight jig 3/8 oz in lieu of 1/2 oz, and use wider body soft plastic trailer like a beaver and mono/Copoly or braid line that doesn't sink. Trying to work any jig uphill through rocks is difficult because the line can sink between rock crevices and you pull the jig into the crevice. Try to locate areas with rock and clay areas instead of broken rock like rip rap.

Tom

[Todd2]

On 3/23/2018 at 3:38 PM, Tracker22 said:

He also taught me that if you miss a strike let the jig sit where it is and they will come back for it. 

And if they don't...lightly shake it and then wait some more.

[Tracker22]

Here’s another tip for getting jigs loose from rocks. Reel down just enough to bend the rod tip a little, then knock the rod handle with your free hand. Like your knocking on a door. It may take a couple of attempts but it works 80% of the time.

[JFlynn97]

Does anyone have tips on what to do specifically with your rod and reel while fishing jigs? This is my biggest problem, I always feel like I'm not working it right and it's hurting my confidence. How should you move your rod? When do you reel in slack line and when do you let it sit? And anything else?

[CroakHunter]

28 minutes ago, JFlynn97 said:

Does anyone have tips on what to do specifically with your rod and reel while fishing jigs? This is my biggest problem, I always feel like I'm not working it right and it's hurting my confidence. How should you move your rod? When do you reel in slack line and when do you let it sit? And anything else?

There isn't a wrong way to work a jig. But my most used technique is when fishing a flipping jig or casting jig and using the "6 inch hop 6 inch hop, reel in slack line, pause, repeat" method. But I've found success swimming, dragging, ripping, and dead sticking jigs just to name a few. 

[WRB]

32 minutes ago, JFlynn97 said:

Does anyone have tips on what to do specifically with your rod and reel while fishing jigs? This is my biggest problem, I always feel like I'm not working it right and it's hurting my confidence. How should you move your rod? When do you reel in slack line and when do you let it sit? And anything else?

Way back in the mid 90's I wrote a article for In-Fisherman and reference it several times in this long thread called Horizontal Jigging. Verticle jig presentations is what 80% of bass anglers tend to do; make short casts less then 30' and let the jig fall vertical into cover by flipping, pitching or punching. Horizontal jigging is casting the jig anywhere from 60' to 150' a long cast.

How are you fishing your jigs?

Tom

[JFlynn97]

37 minutes ago, WRB said:

Way back in the mid 90's I wrote a article for In-Fisherman and reference it several times in this long thread called Horizontal Jigging. Verticle jig presentations is what 80% of bass anglers tend to do; make short casts less then 30' and let the jig fall vertical into cover by flipping, pitching or punching. Horizontal jigging is casting the jig anywhere from 60' to 150' a long cast.

How are you fishing your jigs?

Tom

I only fish from the bank, so it's mostly long casts trying to cover water though I'll occasionally flip and pitch into docks and cover that I'm able to access from the bank. 

47 minutes ago, CroakHunter said:

There isn't a wrong way to work a jig. But my most used technique is when fishing a flipping jig or casting jig and using the "6 inch hop 6 inch hop, reel in slack line, pause, repeat" method. But I've found success swimming, dragging, ripping, and dead sticking jigs just to name a few. 

Thanks! How much do you move the tip of your rod for this retrieve? And when you reel in slack line, do you do it until you feel the weight of your jig or do you still leave out a little bit of slack in the water?

 

I'll have to try those other retrieves too. I've tried dragging a couple times but it often ends up with my jig getting snagged and I can't get it out. Is swimming a jig similar to how you'd work a spinner bait or chatter bait?

[WRB]

Jig fishing from the bank indicates you are working uphill or paralell side hill, not down hill unless you manage to find a long point you can cast to from the bank.

Working a jig up hill means it's always on the bottom very difficult to hop it, side hill you can hope it and downhill it's easy to lift it off or retreive it off the bottom casting horizontally.

I am not a fan of working jigs up hill, if I do will use a lighter weight jig, 3/8 in lieu of 1/2 oz for example. Jig fishing from a boat gives you every angle to work from, bank anglers are limited.

A longer rod helps in your situation, you can hold the tip high to help keep the line off the bottom and try to lift the jig off the bottom.

In your case I would hold the rod tip at 1 o'clock or nearly upright and moving it down to about 2 o'clock, lift and turn the reel handle 1 turn and pause while running the line over your index finger to feel the jig weight or any changes to the weight or resistance that indicates a snag or strike, snakes don't move! After pausing shake the rod tip several times and lift the rod tip and make another reel turn pause and repeat the shaking, rod tip lift and reeling. When you feel the line move on it's own or taps or anything alive, lower the rod tip to 3 o'clock reel and set the hook.

maintaining controlled slack is the key to strike detection, slack line all you can hope to do is see line movement.

Tom

[RichardJarel]

I just read every post in this thread taking notes... in ONE LONG SITTING! LOL! THANK YOU!

Been fishing since I was 6 (now 64, but mostly salt water). Just got serious about bass and chose to focus on plastics (Texas, NED, Drop Shot and Carolina). Been doing fairly well. I'm ready to order and start fishing jigs. Because I've been focusing on the bottom, I thought I'd stay there for a while (Yes? No?) I created a smaller tackle box (I have five), just for bottom plastics using the rigs I mentioned above.

 

The question I have is: The reservoir I fish, I've never seen traces of crawdads and the bass I catch have share teeth with no red lips (Chasing after bait fish?) Most caught on a Texas and NED rig... Most of the trailers I see people using here are "Craw" style. If there aren't any crayfish in my lake, does it matter?

 

I'm located in Oregon.

 

Thank you!

Richard

[B_Rose12]

On 5/28/2018 at 7:32 PM, RichardJarel said:

I just read every post in this thread taking notes... in ONE LONG SITTING! LOL! THANK YOU!

Been fishing since I was 6 (now 64, but mostly salt water). Just got serious about bass and chose to focus on plastics (Texas, NED, Drop Shot and Carolina). Been doing fairly well. I'm ready to order and start fishing jigs. Because I've been focusing on the bottom, I thought I'd stay there for a while (Yes? No?) I created a smaller tackle box (I have five), just for bottom plastics using the rigs I mentioned above.

 

The question I have is: The reservoir I fish, I've never seen traces of crawdads and the bass I catch have share teeth with no red lips (Chasing after bait fish?) Most caught on a Texas and NED rig... Most of the trailers I see people using here are "Craw" style. If there aren't any crayfish in my lake, does it matter?

 

I'm located in Oregon.

 

Thank you!

Richard

Hey Richard,

 

WOW! That’s ALOT of reading! lol. But there’s a lot of great tips and techniques throughout this thread for sure.

 

To answer your question, even though you may not see them, doesn’t mean they aren’t there. Crawdads are native to my home state of Delaware, and I’ve never seen one with my own eyes, but I’m sure they’re around. But even if they are or not, I’ve caught 90% of the bass on a crawdad trailer. The claws help slow down the fall rate, and when the jig is on the bottom it makes the craw look in a defensive position. I personally believe a jig (except a swimjig) is most effective with a crawdad trailer for sure! 

 

I’d personally recommend a pack of Strike King Rage Craws and Netbait Paca Craws. Can never go wrong with black and blue flake!

[RichardJarel]

Thanks for the input regarding craw-fish! In my reading (yes, I read a LOT! LOL!  ...Kind of obsessed? LOL! In the YouTube category, it's now hard to find any that I haven't seen LOL! I still watch some of them I saved to review for details. LOL!) I read (note, I NEVER take one post as the fact... I look for patterns of posts having the same answer.), I read that even if the bait isn't matched to the hatch, it just has to look a live and if the bait is different, the bass's curiosity is heightened. I actually already bought a few craw baits (including the strike king rage bug), and I'm looking to try them out. (I've never tried anything black, so I'll add the black and blue (I've read a lot of people preferring that color combo), to my shopping list for today's bait monkey indulgence (I'm actually pretty frugal though). Going to add one more Lews spinning combo to my arsenal so I'll have three of the same rigs strung up with different methods. I decided to hold off on the new casting combo until winter so I can practice casting with dummy weights at the local park (1/2 block down the street), over the winter. I have a a couple of older bait casting rigs (short rods), that I'll bring onto the boat once it's running.

 

Just completed figuring out how to create my next toy prototype project, so my confidence level on that is up and I'm ready to start. To "celebrate", I'm going fishing tomorrow! (It's supposed to be cloudy with a little wind and the lake should be fairly empty! =D

[kshays]

If I can find this info someplace else please feel free to let me know, but I've tried to google and look through some posts already for this.  What I would like to know is some of the key differences between the types of jigs Siebert has.

 

Example in the Brush Jig Section:

 

extreme mata

grid iron mata

dredge mata

extreme brush

grid iron brush

enraged series

dredge brush

 

This is the different ones in the brush series.  I had been using D&L Tackle Advantage Jigs, mainly oops and the craw colors and came upon someone who suggested Siebert Outdoors for some quality jigs.  I have not ordered any yet, but do plan on it, but was trying to find out the different types of jigs and their applications.

 

Thanks,

 

Kevin

[Siebert Outdoors]

Hello Kevin

 

Here is the break down of the differences in the Brush heads.  The different series are based on a different hook.  The actual head on my Brush jigs are the same excluding the Dredge.  The dredge 1/2 has a 1/8 weedguard and the others are 5/32.  When you jump into the Mata jigs I take a jig and add living rubber to the silicone jig giving it more bulk and profile. 

 

 

extreme mata   has living rubber added

grid iron mata   has  living rubber added

dredge mata     has  living rubber added

flukemaster Pro  has heavy living rubber added

flukemaster brush  Same as a Grid Iron Brush head but in Flukemaster colors

extreme brush Made with a Trokar Hook

grid iron brush  Made with an Owner XXX strong hook

enraged series  Gamakatsu hook Enraged Brand.  Not my design.

dredge brush  Made with an Owner Deep Throat Hook and

Supreme Brush made with a Mustad Ultra Point Hook

 

[kshays]

4 minutes ago, Siebert Outdoors said:

Hello Kevin

 

Here is the break down of the differences in the Brush heads.  The different series are based on a different hook.  The actual head on my Brush jigs are the same excluding the Dredge.  The dredge 1/2 has a 1/8 weedguard and the others are 5/32.  When you jump into the Mata jigs I take a jig and add living rubber to the silicone jig giving it more bulk and profile. 

 

 

extreme mata   has heavy living rubber added

grid iron mata   has heavy living rubber added

dredge mata     has heavy living rubber added

flukemaster Pro  has heavy living rubber added

flukemaster brush  Same as a Grid Iron Brush head but in Flukemaster colors

extreme brush Made with a Trokar Hook

grid iron brush  Made with an Owner XXX strong hook

enraged series  Gamakatsu hook Enraged Brand.  Not my design.

dredge brush  Made with an Owner Deep Throat Hook and

Supreme Brush made with a Mustad Ultra Point Hook

 

Thanks so much!  That will help a lot and there are some really great looking colors I noticed.    Exactly what I was looking for, much appreciated.

 

Kevin

[doughboy1979]

Wow, this thread is awesome!!! I am also brand new to using the jig.  What, if any, is the ideal rod/reel for jig fishing.  Also what is the ideal line to use?

[JFlynn97]

On 6/27/2018 at 4:11 PM, doughboy1979 said:

Wow, this thread is awesome!!! I am also brand new to using the jig.  What, if any, is the ideal rod/reel for jig fishing.  Also what is the ideal line to use?

I am far from a professional, but from what I've experienced and what I've read, people generally go with a higher speed reel (7.1:1 or higher), that way you can pull the fish out of cover quickly, flip and pitch more efficiently, and generally get the fish to the boat/bank as fast as possible. As for rods, personally I prefer a heavy over a medium-heavy, as the extra backbone really helps to get the hook penetrated. Go with at least a 7', maybe up to 7'6" if you're fishing super heavy structure. My all-around jig rod is a 7'3" heavy/fast paired with an 8.1:1 reel.

 

For line you can't really go wrong with braid or fluorocarbon. Braid doesn't stretch and has great sensitivity; fluorocarbon doesn't have much stretch, has abrasion resistance if you're fishing a rocky or woody area, and it sinks which can help maintain contact with your jig. Just don't use monofilament because it'll stretch too much when you try to set the hook. I use 30lb powerpro braid for almost all of my jig fishing because I've had great experiences with it: unmatched strength, strong enough to work through vegetation and I've never had problems with frayed line after fishing rocks, laydowns, or any other kind of structure. PLUS I love the sensitivity that braid offers. If I'm fishing very clear water I'll tie on a 12-15lb fluorocarbon leader, but honestly that doesn't happen very often in my area.

 

Good luck!

[Glenn]

 

[Bigmommachaser79]

I’m a jig man! I throw jigs year round. I normally toss Chompers football head jigs with a zoom swimmin chunk or a netbait paca chunk trailer. 

[TBAG]

What a great thread, I've fished jigs some but can't wait to try some of the info I've gathered here.

[Harold Scoggins]

On ‎2‎/‎14‎/‎2018 at 2:06 PM, J Francho said:

Sometimes you feel it.  Sometimes you don't, but the line does something weird.  Sometimes you don't,but it stopped sinking before it got to bottom.  Feel, concentrate, and count your bait down.  Once it's down there, imagine everything the bait is doing and running into.  Anything that doesn't add up, it's probably a fish.

Reminds me of a time my brother and I were casting jigs in deep structure. No sooner had my jig went in when my line took off across the surface and all I did was stand there with my mouth open watching it. It was my brother yelling, "Swing, swing...!" that finally brought me back to Earth. Yes, it was weird.

 

Good thread.