Trd Ned Rig

[Heron]

I have a hunch, that a half chunk of a Zoom Magnum Finesse worm would work well.   To me it seems adequately supple, buoyant, and not much salt. 

[Avalonjohn44]

Negatives?...It's an open hook bait meant to be fished on or near the bottom. That makes it useless in the weedy water I usually fish, I know because I tried ii.

 

Instead of fishing it with an exposed hook, just rig it a bit differently and bury the hook.  Google images a texas rigged grub and implement what they do with the ned rig. It might put a slight bend in the bait, but it still works. Tried it a couple of days ago.

[bma3]

Does anyone have any tips to put the TRD on the hook straight? It always has these little bumps or it is curved in one area for me. Other than that, I've had great success, especially today!

[Bluebasser86]

15 minutes ago, bma3 said:

Does anyone have any tips to put the TRD on the hook straight? It always has these little bumps or it is curved in one area for me. Other than that, I've had great success, especially today!

Best suggestion is not to worry about it. The fish don't care about it being straight. 

[bma3]

56 minutes ago, Bluebasser86 said:

Best suggestion is not to worry about it. The fish don't care about it being straight. 

Won't hinder action?

[Dorado]

Asking if there are any bad experiences with the NED rig is liking asking the Hobie crew if there are any drawbacks with their Hobie yaks. 

[Bluebasser86]

5 hours ago, bma3 said:

Won't hinder action?

What action? 

 

Mine are never perfectly straight and I don't have any problems catching fish on them. 

[fishwizzard]

 

On 5/21/2015 at 4:34 PM, Avalonjohn44 said:

Negative about the Ned rig? Trying to find TRDs in the store. Can't find them, or most ZMan plastics, locally anywhere. Where the heck do you get them if you can't shop online? 

 

You are like 2 hours from Susquehanna Fishing Tackle, which is like a little slice of bass-heaven.  They should carry what you need.  It's a long drive, but you will pass a lot of great water on the way there and back.

 

 

On 6/3/2015 at 8:07 AM, Master Bait'r said:

Guys. The rig is a concept, not a definition. Using the principles that make the Ned work, you can adapt it as Blue has shown above or in many MANY ways to fit your situation. I love experimenting out on the water!

 

Exactly.  I think people get hung up on exact definitions.  I fish the "Ned" on a weedless Owner Ultra/Decoy Nail Bomb head most of the time.  Does it work as well as a short, open hooked head?  Nope, but it works well enough and saves me time, money, and keeps more litter out of the water.  

10 hours ago, Bluebasser86 said:

Best suggestion is not to worry about it. The fish don't care about it being straight. 

 

While I know and believe this, I get all fussy if it isnt straight.  

9 hours ago, Dorado said:

Asking if there are any bad experiences with the NED rig is liking asking the Hobie crew if there are any drawbacks with their Hobie yaks. 

 

Well, you gotta ask them quickly as once they peddle past you, they can't turn around to come back and answer!

[JustJames]

The bad of Ned rig to me is not catching any fish with it?. I still not quite sure of "do nothing technique" concept of ned rig. In the mean time I caught plenty of fish on TRD.

When I started Ned I felt a lot of nibbles from small fish but nothing hook up and those snag thing kept me away from true Ned rig. I'd prefer shaky head (owner ultra head 1/8) over Ned rig.

[Smokinal]

On 4/14/2017 at 10:13 PM, bma3 said:

Does anyone have any tips to put the TRD on the hook straight? It always has these little bumps or it is curved in one area for me. Other than that, I've had great success, especially today!

I know exactly what you mean. Are you using the ZMan Shroomz jigheads with that little wire tang that holds the bait on? If so, and I use those too, I break off that tab, rig the TRD nice and straight and super glue the head of the bait to the flat underside of the jighead. Let the glue set up for a few minutes before you fish it. I've found this keeps the bait from balling up and twisting on that little keeper and it stays straight much longer.

[bma3]

23 minutes ago, Smokinal said:

I know exactly what you mean. Are you using the ZMan Shroomz jigheads with that little wire tang that holds the bait on? If so, and I use those too, I break off that tab, rig the TRD nice and straight and super glue the head of the bait to the flat underside of the jighead. Let the glue set up for a few minutes before you fish it. I've found this keeps the bait from balling up and twisting on that little keeper and it stays straight much longer.

 

Thanks, that helps a lot!

[OCdockskipper]

A TRD on a ZMan Finesse Shroomz head is my go to setup, so the negatives I am about to list aren't horrible.  No lure is perfect in all conditions but a Ned rig often shines when others don't.

 

The negatives (for me) -

• The keeper on the jighead will bunch up the bait after a fish or two grab it, so I choose to bust it off & instead glue the head of the bait to the jig;
   
• It's smaller size makes it a 3rd or 4th option when bed fishing, typically I want something that looks to be ready to create havoc when dragged through a bed & the TRD comes across as harmless.  Nonetheless, I have caught fish off beds with a TRD after they wouldn't inhale larger lures;
   
• I have avoided using it in heavy cover, both due to snagging and the rod/reel/line that is best used to fish it.  Not that it can't be used in heavy cover, just that it isn't the best option with all things considered.
   
• First 20 minutes in the morning before sunrise or at night, it seems like it is a little harder for fish to find and a larger lure gets bit more.  I don't need bright skies or clear water to be effective with it, but when there is nearly no light, it may be too subtle.  Once there is a little light, this negative disappears.

[MNGeorge]

On 5/21/2015 at 0:33 AM, Bluebasser86 said:

I catch hundreds of fish on a Ned Rig each year since I learned about it a few years ago. The TRD is nice, but I prefer 1/2 of a Zinker for mine, just seems like they last longer than the TRD does, although they're a bit more work to put together since you have to cut a Zinker in half, which isn't always easy. 

 

The TRD (The Real Deal), is actually the name of the bait, Z-man is the name of the company that makes the TRD, which is used primarily for a Ned Rig

We've had the exact opposite experience with the TRD...caught as many as 13 fish on one bait, turned it around and caught another 8 fish on it before it would no longer stay on the hook and we're not talking small fish either...we're talking river Smallies from 16 to 20 inches long. We wouldn't think of using anything but the TRD on a NED rig because they are so durable. To be totally candid, we don't fish the TRD on a shroom head however, we fish it Texas rigged on a swinging football head in order to get to and stay on the bottom in the river current. It's an ugly looking setup, but the Smallies don't seem to care.

[Bluebasser86]

2 minutes ago, MNGeorge said:

We've had the exact opposite experience with the TRD...caught as many as 13 fish on one bait, turned it around and caught another 8 fish on it before it would no longer stay on the hook and we're not talking small fish either...we're talking river Smallies from 16 to 20 inches long. We wouldn't think of using anything but the TRD on a NED rig because they are so durable. To be totally candid, we don't fish the TRD on a shroom head however, we fish it Texas rigged on a swinging football head in order to get to and stay on the bottom in the river current. It's an ugly looking setup, but the Smallies don't seem to care.

I'm getting 20-30 on a TRD but over 50 on a 1/2 Zinker isn't unusual if the zebra mussels don't steal it first. I've been getting better numbers from the TRD with the new Midwest Finesse mold. Seems like the bait stays intact much better when it's rigged on the wire keeper instead of being glued.

I imagine that swing head rig would look something like this

[IndianaFinesse]

1 hour ago, MNGeorge said:

We've had the exact opposite experience with the TRD...caught as many as 13 fish on one bait, turned it around and caught another 8 fish on it before it would no longer stay on the hook and we're not talking small fish either...we're talking river Smallies from 16 to 20 inches long. We wouldn't think of using anything but the TRD on a NED rig because they are so durable. To be totally candid, we don't fish the TRD on a shroom head however, we fish it Texas rigged on a swinging football head in order to get to and stay on the bottom in the river current. It's an ugly looking setup, but the Smallies don't seem to care.

I don't use trds anymore, but I do use half of a zinkerz, and I've only ever had one completely wear out.  And that was after it had caught 108 bass...  

So you should be getting more bass out of them than that, unless putting them on a swinging football instead of the ned rig makes them more fragile.

[fishwizzard]

If any of you guys have a source for some of those tiny swings heads, please shoot me a PM.

 

Heck, I would take a lead on 1/16 shroom heads with #2-4 hooks as well.  I have a bad feeling about how long my order from Gopher is taking and I have yet to find a good place to get smaller hooked heads from.  

[Bluebasser86]

33 minutes ago, Bunnielab said:

If any of you guys have a source for some of those tiny swings heads, please shoot me a PM.

 

Heck, I would take a lead on 1/16 shroom heads with #2-4 hooks as well.  I have a bad feeling about how long my order from Gopher is taking and I have yet to find a good place to get smaller hooked heads from.  

The one I posted is one I poured just for tiny plastics. It's a 2/0 short shank Owner Rig' N hook and a 1/8oz head. I fish the 3" Pit Boss and Baby Rage Craw on them a lot. 

[gim]

I have found two negatives to it.  One, it catches a lot of small bass compared to big bass.  Not that it won't catch ANY bigger bass, but since its so little, it tends to attract a lot of dinks.  Two, like others have mentioned, it gets hung up in thicker weeds using the shroomz head jig.  I have caught fish on it when almost nothing else works so it can be very effective.  I tend to do better in rockier terrain for smallmouth using it.

[MNGeorge]

On 4/17/2017 at 6:20 AM, Bluebasser86 said:

I'm getting 20-30 on a TRD but over 50 on a 1/2 Zinker isn't unusual if the zebra mussels don't steal it first. I've been getting better numbers from the TRD with the new Midwest Finesse mold. Seems like the bait stays intact much better when it's rigged on the wire keeper instead of being glued.

I imagine that swing head rig would look something like this

We use a different swing head but essentially that's it...like I said, it's ugly but the Smallies don't seem to care.

[tander]

To me this is the perfect jig head for the Ned rig. 1/16oz with a small weedguard.

[MNGeorge]

On 4/17/2017 at 10:37 AM, Bunnielab said:

If any of you guys have a source for some of those tiny swings heads, please shoot me a PM.

 

Heck, I would take a lead on 1/16 shroom heads with #2-4 hooks as well.  I have a bad feeling about how long my order from Gopher is taking and I have yet to find a good place to get smaller hooked heads from.  

 

Bunnie,

You have a PM

[jr231]

@Last_Cast got me a set of heads and trd for fishmas and I tried em out yesterday at a local pond. The bite was slow and I only managed 2 on a finesse jig before I decided I was going to try the damned "Ned" rig. ( Glad you did too bud , thanks.) 

 

Ended up catching 12 in about an hour.  All 12" and under but it was actually fun because it felt like every cast I was catching one after I was having such a slow day ! 

 

I'll keep this technique in my back pocket on days I'm fearing a skunk. Right there with a kalins grub and 4" senko.. 

[Rudy523]

 I fish the weedless Ned rig Jig Heads. I catch alot pre spawn on these. The problem I have, which I                                          guess isn't bad is I get a lot of Rock Bass and small Northerns in between the Bass Bite

 I fish the weedless Ned rig Jig Heads. I catch alot pre spawn on these. The problem I have, which I                                          guess isn't bad is I get a lot of Rock Bass and small Northerns in between the Bass Bite

 I fish the weedless Ned rig Jig Heads. I catch alot pre spawn on these. The problem I have, which I                                          guess isn't bad is I get a lot of Rock Bass and small Northerns in between the Bass Bite

 I fish the weedless Ned rig Jig Heads. I catch alot pre spawn on these. The problem I have, which I                                      guess isn't bad is I get a lot of Rock Bass and small Northerns in between the Bass Bite

 I fish the weedless Ned rig Jig Heads. I catch alot pre spawn on these. The problem I have, which I                                      guess isn't bad is I get a lot of Rock Bass and small Northerns in between the Bass Bite

 I fish the weedless Ned rig Jig Heads. I catch alot pre spawn on these. The problem I have, which I                                      guess isn't bad is I get a lot of Rock Bass and small Northerns in between the Bass Bite

 I fish the weedless Ned rig Jig Heads. I catch alot pre spawn on these. The problem I have, which I                                      guess isn't bad is I get a lot of Rock Bass and small Northerns in between the Bass Bite

[OCdockskipper]

Obviously a stuttering problem...

[IndianaFinesse]

6 hours ago, Rudy523 said:

 I fish the weedless Ned rig Jig Heads. I catch alot pre spawn on these. The problem I have, which I                                          guess isn't bad is I get a lot of Rock Bass and small Northerns in between the Bass Bite

 I fish the weedless Ned rig Jig Heads. I catch alot pre spawn on these. The problem I have, which I                                          guess isn't bad is I get a lot of Rock Bass and small Northerns in between the Bass Bite

 I fish the weedless Ned rig Jig Heads. I catch alot pre spawn on these. The problem I have, which I                                          guess isn't bad is I get a lot of Rock Bass and small Northerns in between the Bass Bite

 I fish the weedless Ned rig Jig Heads. I catch alot pre spawn on these. The problem I have, which I                                      guess isn't bad is I get a lot of Rock Bass and small Northerns in between the Bass Bite

 I fish the weedless Ned rig Jig Heads. I catch alot pre spawn on these. The problem I have, which I                                      guess isn't bad is I get a lot of Rock Bass and small Northerns in between the Bass Bite

 I fish the weedless Ned rig Jig Heads. I catch alot pre spawn on these. The problem I have, which I                                      guess isn't bad is I get a lot of Rock Bass and small Northerns in between the Bass Bite

 I fish the weedless Ned rig Jig Heads. I catch alot pre spawn on these. The problem I have, which I                                      guess isn't bad is I get a lot of Rock Bass and small Northerns in between the Bass Bite

Heard you the first time, no need to repeat yourself seven times...