Need some finesse jig feedback

[thebillsman]

Hey, I'm putting together an outfit for light jigs and finesse worms. I'm in PA so I'm not pulling any hogs out of heavy cover. 

That said, I wanted to get away from Medium Heavy's and braid. I went with a Medium/Fast 7-footer and a 7.1:1 Lews TP which I know will be okay, but I got Sunline Sniper 14# for cheap and am wondering how this will cope. I don't have much experience with FC and don't want to use 14# if it will result in issues with lighter jigs.

 

[5fishlimit]

What weight jigs are you talking about? 

3/8oz, 1/4oz, or down to 1/8oz?

[hawgenvy]

8 to12 pound FC would probably be a better match. But the 14 (since you have it) ought to work and might be nice to have if you're bit by a 4+ pounder. It'll still be invisible but might slightly affect the naturalness of the fall and wiggle of the bait.

[Cgrinder]

Probably fine. I might go 12, but I could also see 16 if you need a little more oomph. Sniper's not thick for its pound tests and it handles pretty well.

[thebillsman]

2 minutes ago, 5fishlimit said:

What weight jigs are you talking about? 

3/8oz, 1/4oz, or down to 1/8oz?

The ZMan shroomz I plan on using are actually 1/6oz. My plan is to be around 3/8 with the trailer rigged.

[5fishlimit]

1 minute ago, thebillsman said:

The ZMan shroomz I plan on using are actually 1/6oz. My plan is to be around 3/8 with the trailer rigged.

I would use a spinning rod for the ned rig, and 14# is too much line for that rig, IMHO. 6#,or 8# is what I would be using. 

[thebillsman]

1 minute ago, 5fishlimit said:

I would use a spinning rod for the ned rig, and 14# is too much line for that rig, IMHO. 6#,or 8# is what I would be using. 

Spinning rod not an option at the moment. Don't know if I would be comfortable with that low of a test on a baitcaster.

[5fishlimit]

 

 

[thebillsman]

1 minute ago, 5fishlimit said:

 

 

It won't just be Ned's. Tungsten footballs and rigged worms will also see a lot of use with this outfit.

[Jrob78]

You should also know that when you say "finesse jig" people assume you're talking about a skirted finesse jig.  Not a big deal but might help you get better feedback.

[5fishlimit]

1 minute ago, thebillsman said:

Spinning rod not an option at the moment. Don't know if I would be comfortable with that low of a test on a baitcaster.

I would consider using a different presentation with your setup. I don't see how a 1/6oz mushroom head jig and TRD would weigh 3/8oz.

3 minutes ago, thebillsman said:

It won't just be Ned's. Tungsten footballs and rigged worms will also see a lot of use with this outfit.

Different tools for different jobs. The football jigs and worms are fine. 

Ned rig, not so much. 

[Robert Riley]

I have 10lb Sunline Assassin spooled up right now. Haven't used it yet. I throw 3/8 jigs on my DX745. 

[Bluebasser86]

For finesse jigs like Jrob posted the picture of, I use a 6' 10" MH/F with a 200E7 Curado and 12lb InvisX. 

For the Ned rigs like the OP is talking about I use a 6' 10" ML/XF spinning rod with a 30 size Supreme XT 24lb Gliss and a few feet of 8-10 pound leader. 

You can get light spinning rods for very cheap, and it doesn't take anything special to fish a Ned (Ned Kehde fishes his namesake rig on cheap Shakespeare rods and 40+ year old Mitchell spinning reels with the bail removed). Frugality is one of the trademarks of Midwest Finesse (Ned Rig), fishing. 

[Puggz]

5 hours ago, thebillsman said:

Hey, I'm putting together an outfit for light jigs and finesse worms. I'm in PA so I'm not pulling any hogs out of heavy cover. 

That said, I wanted to get away from Medium Heavy's and braid. I went with a Medium/Fast 7-footer and a 7.1:1 Lews TP which I know will be okay, but I got Sunline Sniper 14# for cheap and am wondering how this will cope. I don't have much experience with FC and don't want to use 14# if it will result in issues with lighter jigs.

 

Personally I prefer a spinning rig for this application.  A 6.5 to 7 ft medium light, mag lite, or medium action with 6 or 8lb FC.

[smalljaw67]

I live in PA too and I make a lot of tackle and you are the main reason I pull my hair out!!!  LOL!!!!! 14lb line because the soft plastic is heavy and using it on a casting outfit and then when you fish it the next post you would make is that the hooks on the 'shrooms heads are junk because you'll bend them out with that set up. The hooks on those heads are called Aberdeen hooks, they are designed so they can be bent straight to free from snags and then be bent back again. The Ned rig is designed to be used with these hooks on a light to medium power spinning rod with 4lb to 8lb line max and believe me, it will work, I have landed many 4lb and 5lb Susquehanna river smallmouth with a 1/16oz ball head jig with a size 2 Aberdeen hook and the hook wasn't bent but I did it with a medium light spinning rod and 6lb line.

[thebillsman]

16 minutes ago, smalljaw67 said:

I live in PA too and I make a lot of tackle and you are the main reason I pull my hair out!!!  LOL!!!!! 14lb line because the soft plastic is heavy and using it on a casting outfit and then when you fish it the next post you would make is that the hooks on the 'shrooms heads are junk because you'll bend them out with that set up. The hooks on those heads are called Aberdeen hooks, they are designed so they can be bent straight to free from snags and then be bent back again. The Ned rig is designed to be used with these hooks on a light to medium power spinning rod with 4lb to 8lb line max and believe me, it will work, I have landed many 4lb and 5lb Susquehanna river smallmouth with a 1/16oz ball head jig with a size 2 Aberdeen hook and the hook wasn't bent but I did it with a medium light spinning rod and 6lb line.

Thanks for the help.

I just want to restate that this isn't exclusively for ned rigs. I also have keitech tungsten jigs that will see a lot of use. 

Getting away from Ned's, will 14lb fc be too much for standard 1/8-1/4oz jigs?

[Turtle135]

8 minutes ago, thebillsman said:

Thanks for the help.

I just want to restate that this isn't exclusively for ned rigs. I also have keitech tungsten jigs that will see a lot of use. 

Getting away from Ned's, will 14lb fc be too much for standard 1/8-1/4oz jigs?

I throw 1/4 ounce jigs on 14 and 17 pound test Trilene XT monofilament all the time. These are bottom contact football jigs and brush jigs with a craw trailer added that I use when I am looking for a smaller profile than a 1/2 - 3/4 ounce jig. The swim jigs I throw most frequently are 1/4 ounce. Trilene XT is a thick line that way overtests so you should be fine with the 14 pound test flouro.

[Evan K]

I just got myself a new setup for throwing finesse jigs (among other finesse baits)- a ML XF Spinning rod and 2500 size reel, with 6 lb. P-Line Fluoroclear. I can get plenty of casting distance, the line is limp and manageable, and the rod is sensitive but has enough backbone to work a larger fish out.

[thebillsman]

9 minutes ago, Evan K said:

I just got myself a new setup for throwing finesse jigs (among other finesse baits)- a ML XF Spinning rod and 2500 size reel, with 6 lb. P-Line Fluoroclear. I can get plenty of casting distance, the line is limp and manageable, and the rod is sensitive but has enough backbone to work a larger fish out.

Thanks for the insight but I will be using a casting M/F. Wondering if 14lb will be overkill.

[Felix77]

I prefer a spinning outfit for finesse jigs.  FWIW my setup

7' Medium spinning

Reel - 15lb PowerPro with 8-10lb FC Leader.

[Robert Riley]

To answer your question about overkill: I say yes. I fish 14lb max. The lightest line you can get away with is how light you want to fish. As I mentioned earlier, I use 12lb. You may even be able to get away with 10lb if you'd like to try. Seagaur and Sunline make great FC at a great price (Red Label and Model FC respectively). Go order a small spool of each from TW and have a trial and error spring season.

[thebillsman]

37 minutes ago, Robert Riley said:

To answer your question about overkill: I say yes. I fish 14lb max. The lightest line you can get away with is how light you want to fish. As I mentioned earlier, I use 12lb. You may even be able to get away with 10lb if you'd like to try. Seagaur and Sunline make great FC at a great price (Red Label and Model FC respectively). Go order a small spool of each from TW and have a trial and error spring season.

Well I always use 12lb Trilene which has a diameter of .013 and the 14lb Sniper is .0122. Sniper isn't going to stretch much no matter the test, but I don't want to be busting guides or bending too many hooks.

I was previously using 50lb braid for my 1/4oz jigs paired with a MH so that has to be putting much more stress on the hook in theory, no? 

[ChrisD46]

15 hours ago, 5fishlimit said:

I would use a spinning rod for the ned rig, and 14# is too much line for that rig, IMHO. 6#,or 8# is what I would be using. 

^^This^^ !! ... ML / Fast spinning rod with #6 lb. co-poly , mono or FC line ... For the rod / line setup you have I would look to buy Strike King Bity Bugs or small Booyah jigs  in like 3/16th , 5/16th , 7/16th or 1/4th oz sizes and use a baby Net Bait Paca Craw , baby Strike King  Rage Craw or smallest Berkley Chigger Craw . You could also look to use a small single tail or double tail grub (<3") or lastly a small paddle tail swim bait (<3") . Black & Blue and Green Pumpkin colors will cover the majorty of your needs in PA.

[smalljaw67]

4 hours ago, Turtle135 said:

I throw 1/4 ounce jigs on 14 and 17 pound test Trilene XT monofilament all the time. These are bottom contact football jigs and brush jigs with a craw trailer added that I use when I am looking for a smaller profile than a 1/2 - 3/4 ounce jig. The swim jigs I throw most frequently are 1/4 ounce. Trilene XT is a thick line that way overtests so you should be fine with the 14 pound test flouro.

Yes, 14lb for a 1/4oz jig is fine but not all jigs, I make some 1/4oz football heads that 14lb test would be overkill unless used on a spinning set up. I guess it matters to me since I make so many kinds of jigs but you are thinking of 1/4oz skirted jigs which normally have a hook that 14lb line can easily handle. The OP sounds as if he wants 1 rod for ned rigs and 1/4oz jigs, you can do it but that line will lead to bent and broken hooks so the best bet is to use a spinning set up for the light stuff.

[thebillsman]

1 hour ago, smalljaw67 said:

Yes, 14lb for a 1/4oz jig is fine but not all jigs, I make some 1/4oz football heads that 14lb test would be overkill unless used on a spinning set up. I guess it matters to me since I make so many kinds of jigs but you are thinking of 1/4oz skirted jigs which normally have a hook that 14lb line can easily handle. The OP sounds as if he wants 1 rod for ned rigs and 1/4oz jigs, you can do it but that line will lead to bent and broken hooks so the best bet is to use a spinning set up for the light stuff.

Thanks for that!

I think I'm going to forego the Ned's and stick with light jigs that don't have light/wire hooks. I think I'll be okay.

 

I had originally referenced this thread to make my decision. Seemed like most guys were using between 15 and 20lb for their jig outfits.

http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/117269-fc-for-jigs/