Good jig to start off with.

[Sharkicane]

Hey BR, 

 

I am looking to get into and learn how to fish with jigs. I know there are a ton out there and a type for every situation. Grass jigs, swim jigs, flipping jigs, football jigs, and the list goes on. I had planned on ordering a few swim jigs here soon and I figured I might as well get some other jigs while I am at it. 

 

I know there is no "one size fits all" jig nor is there a "beginner" jig lol however are there any jigs out there that yall would recommend that are fairly versatile and that you can throw into pretty much any piece of cover? 

 

Tackle Warehous has one I was looking at the Ballin out jig by Buckeye Lures but idk if that really is a good versatile jig or not. The reviews say it is but there just arnt that many. 

[BankBasser]

3/8oz Siebert Arky in green pumpkin w/rage chunk trailer.

[deep]

What kind of cover are you fishing? What depths? Pitching/ flipping or are you planning to fish them on long casts? What gear do you plan to use (casting/ spinning)?

[Sharkicane]

18 minutes ago, deep said:

What kind of cover are you fishing? What depths? Pitching/ flipping or are you planning to fish them on long casts? What gear do you plan to use (casting/ spinning)?

Its a solid mix of brush, lay downs, and grass. Fishing from the bank so from I think about 10' - 15' up to 2'. It gets deep pretty quickly I think. I am using casting gear on  6'5 MH rod. I plan on doing a little bit of everything pitching it here and there and then maybe casting it and swimming it back/dragging it on the bottom in other places. Where I fish you will have a laydown here then 10 yards down the bank youll have a wad of grass, 20 yards after that you'll have just big rocks and other stuff with submerged grass. It really is all over the place lol

[deep]

Ok, casting gear sounds good. You don't need a light wire hook in that case.

 

With brush and wood in the mix, I would actually prefer a somewhat shorter shank hook and fish more vertically (rather than drag it; use the rod tip to guide the jig in and around them).

 

With the depths you plan on fishing, I'd start with a 1/2 oz. (up to 2' or *twenty* feet??).

 

While I do prefer football heads in rocks, fishing them in grass is not easy. Agree that the arkie head is a good all-around choice. In fact, I'd recommend a brush head if you're casting <50' or so. Most brush head jigs also have the hook angle optimized for short distance fishing.

 

You'll lose jigs from the bank. I lose them from the kayak/ boat often enough.

 

If you want to go the arkie head jig route, go to walmart and buy some "arkie brand rattle band bass jig". Costs ~$1 each out here anyway. Trim the weedguard a bit; that'll make it stiffer. Also superglue the weedguard in. I've had them occasionally fall apart after a few hours (if the jig lasted that long).

Get some mono or a ziptie and tie the skirt; they'll fall apart otherwise. I usually do a lot more mods. But don't worry about that. I like these for good all-around jigs at any price (after the mods).

 

Pair with your favorite trailer. GYCB 5" DT grubs are a good all-around choice. $5 for a pack of 20 and they catch fish. I also like rage craws (the regular size, not the baby, not the lobster), rage menace, beavers when it's cold, keitech crazy flappers, and a few others. Haven't met a trailer that didn't catch fish. Pick one you're confident in.

 

A more convenient option might be a swing style jig with no skirt. Strike king structure head in 3/8 oz. Do not buy the football head swing jigs for this purpose. Pair with your favorite plastic, and you can pitch flip skip and cast that and fish it exactly like a skirted jig.

 

Good luck.

[Catt]

3 hours ago, BankBasser said:

3/8oz Siebert Arky in green pumpkin w/rage chunk trailer.

 

I would start with 1/4 & 3/8 oz in green pumpkin & black-n-blue 

[Sharkicane]

1 hour ago, Catt said:

 

I would start with 1/4 & 3/8 oz in green pumpkin & black-n-blue 

In that style the Siebert Arky head?

[Catt]

1 hour ago, Sharkicane said:

In that style the Siebert Arky head?

 

What I look for in a jig is a smooth transition from the line to the eye & around the belly, which requires the eye to be slightly rolled forward.

 

The reasoning is I want my jig to follow the line up to the cover & then slide over or through the cover smoothly.

 

When I depress the weed guard I want as much gap as possible between the hook point & the body of the jig without out the eye in the way.

 

The grass jig fits the bill perfectly ?

[kickerfish1]

I can cover everything I want with one style. That is the Cali swim jig style or as North Star refers to them the flip and swim. I can swim them or work them on the bottom. My second favorite style would be a brush head or alien head. If you drag jigs with any type of weeds around these will come through them much better than an arky head or a football head. Colors are like anything else. Black and blue for water with poor clarity and green pumpkin/watermelon variations for clear water. Then you branch out from there if you so desire.

[FishDewd]

Removed

[Bluebasser86]

16 hours ago, BankBasser said:

3/8oz Siebert Arky in green pumpkin w/rage chunk trailer.

Add a black and blue one also and you're ready to start jig fishing. Arky is a good all around head style, and Siebert makes a great jig. 

[burrows]

I started with the strike king bitsy bugs from wall mart and a grub trailer or I would cut the end of a Chigger craw and use it as a trailer. 

[ww2farmer]

52 minutes ago, Burros said:

I started with the strike king bitsy bugs from wall mart and a grub trailer or I would cut the end of a Chigger craw and use it as a trailer. 

This ^^^

If your just starting off jig fishing, keep it simple and cheap.

 

Strike King Bitsy jigs get bit, will give you confidence in jig fishing, and are less than $2.

 

Get the "bitsy flip" if your fishing in heavy cover, they come in 1/4, 3/8, and 1/2 oz. The black/blue, and green craw colors are all you need. Match them up with a compact trailer like a 3" Chigger craw, and you'll catch a lot of fish on this combo to develop "feel" and confidence in fishing a jig. Then expand from there into more specialized or premium jigs based on your new found confidence and success.

[NHBull]

I have more Arky’s than anything else lately, but swim jigs are being used more often this year.....so far

[RHuff]

Terminator’s Pro Series Cover Jig in 3/8 oz is a great jig that can be fished through grass and wood cover. I highly suggest the Green Pumpkin Orange color pattern. 

[WRB]

When I am teaching a bass angler to fish jigs my priorities is to catch bass by using high percentage strike ratio jigs that don't cost too much and have premium hooks.

The jig that fits this criteria is GYCB  plain black Hula jig or Football jig depending on the bottom structure or cover. This jig doesn't have a skirt and costs about $1 each with weed guard. The weedless Hula jig with Owner hook works for this application and fishing from shore. The double tail 4" Hula grub is good with 3/8 oz, 5" with 1/2 oz.

A drop of super glue gel helps to keep the grub in place for grubs for several bass.

I like the 330 color for high percentage strikes.

The fewer options you have helps to concentrate and stay focused on catching bass instead of making too many changes. The hook is the most important component with any jig, it must be sharp and strong and Owner or Gamakatsu hooks are both.

If a skirted jig is your preference look at Siebert Outdoors, site sponsor.

Tom