Ned rig vs. shakey head

[plawren53202]

Just wanted to get everyone's take on when you would throw a Ned rig versus when you would throw a shakey head. At least in my mind, they are similar and would target similar situations--both are obviously a more finesse oriented approach and fish a little slower--but at the same time a little different. I have a couple of thoughts about when I think I would throw each versus the other, but curious to compare with what others think. 

[Jig Man]

If they won’t take shaky, I feed them Ned.

[Mobasser]

I would use a shakey head worm combo for a slower bottom retrieve. I think it may come through weeds easier also.

[RoLo]

 

I can't speak for central U.S., but here in mid-Florida, you'll almost never hear Ned Rig mentioned.

Shaky-head worm?  All the time.

 

Roger

 

 

 

[Team9nine]

Not similar at all IMO. Ned for shallower open water or the edges of cover, often “nothing looking” banks, and frequently retrieved off bottom. Shaky for more cover prone areas, especially wood and to greater depths and often more bottom oriented.

[fishwizzard]

15 minutes ago, Team9nine said:

Not similar at all IMO. Ned for shallower open water or the edges of cover, often “nothing looking” banks, and frequently retrieved off bottom. Shaky for more cover prone areas, especially wood and to greater depths and often more bottom oriented.

Youtube has changed "the Ned" to basically an open hook shakeyhead with a short fat worm.  It has made talking about Ned/MWF very annoying, like trying to order food at a restaurant where everything on the menu is called a club sandwich but they are all different meals. 

[Ogandrews]

Going to fish a shakey head A lot more often that a Ned. I can cover more water with a shakey head because a ned is best fished dead sticked for longer periods of time imo. I can drag a shakey head through rocks, wood, weeds, sand, gravel, and it is effective through all of it. You can effectively fish neds through the heavier stuff as well. A shakeyhead can be fished with a finesse worm, a smaller creature or craw, or a big worm with a heavier and bigger shakeyhead and fished aggressively. A ned obviously works, but all of the hype about it on YouTube is really overemphasized in my opinion. It’s so trendy to use one now that people think it is the cure all lure. It obviously gets bit, but so does a tube, dropshot, wacky/neko with a small senko, split shot rig, hair jig, smaller grub, small swimbait. People forget how many good finesse baits there are because there is so much publicity around the ned. I throw the ned, but I definitely use a dropshot, tube, hair jig, and 4” senko more often.

[Bluebasser86]

Shakyhead is strictly a bottom fishing bait for me, while a Ned rig spends very little time on the bottom when I'm fishing it. A Ned rig is a much more versatile bait, so I fish it much more often. Add in the fact that zebra mussels make fishing shakyheads almost impossible in a lot of our lakes, explains why I don't fish them often.

[OkobojiEagle]

jigworms... how you fish them is your preference

 

oe

[frogflogger]

Ned rig not a new deal - just a very effective way to catch bass - lots of anglers have been using it for decades.

[FryDog62]

IMO - a Neko and a Shakey Head Fish more similar in style than a Ned.

[Teal]

Man I was ned rigging, long before it had national attention... I was just putting a finesse worm or robo worm on a crappie jig head.. shakey head was the same.deal for me... i really like the shakey head.. it's a bait FOR ME, that can be Bubba fished. (Up size size everything and use it on heavier gear and even sometimes huge presentations, I have used 3/8 jig heads and 9 inch worm)  It's nothing for me to use larger or heavier jig head, maybe a longer or crazier worm style, and pitch it under docks on edges of vegetation and simply power fish it.  That being said, that concept defeats the purpose of ned rig.  The ned whole purpose of the ned is to be sublte.

 

  I personally.love a shakey head it's one of my go to baits and one of my panic baits... if I need a bite, I feel confident in a 1/8 - 1/4 ounce jig head, with a straight tail worm.

 

Another evolution of the shakey head that's been super productive for me has been a 1/4 or 5/16 oz stand up jig head fished on straight floro, with a watermelon w/red flake zoom shakey tails worm.  Its an odd combo, I get that.. but all the action is on the fall and then.you get a little action from the tail when you sit and shake it.  I power fish the the crap out of it.  It's a bait that I like to pitch to targets, work it, and then reel it up and pitch again... super effective on boat docks and in grass lines.  

 

Have fun with it, shakey head fishing is fun!

[scaleface]

^^ this

[Jermination]

16 hours ago, plawren53202 said:

Just wanted to get everyone's take on when you would throw a Ned rig versus when you would throw a shakey head. At least in my mind, they are similar and would target similar situations--both are obviously a more finesse oriented approach and fish a little slower--but at the same time a little different. I have a couple of thoughts about when I think I would throw each versus the other, but curious to compare with what others think. 

i throw the shaky head when i need to be weedless, typically ned is reserved when i'm fishing for smallmouth or a rocky bottom lake. Ned is my go-to when downsizing, if i'm throwing bigger worms or creatures i bust out the shakyhead

[Choporoz]

17 hours ago, plawren53202 said:

Just wanted to get everyone's take on when you would throw a Ned rig versus when you would throw a shakey head.

Ned rig: I threw it a bunch after I heard about how great it was - probably not more than one outing in last year or more, though

 

Shakey head: Been using shaky heads since I began bass fishing; still do - often

 

I will not suggest that ned rigs don't work - they do.  And I won't say that they can't catch big bass - they do.  But, between the dinks and the painfully slow drop and presentation, I find a shaky head to be more versatile and more fun for my liking.  If I'm tying on a ned rig, it means I'm feeling pretty desparate.

[plawren53202]

3 hours ago, Jermination said:

i throw the shaky head when i need to be weedless, typically ned is reserved when i'm fishing for smallmouth or a rocky bottom lake. Ned is my go-to when downsizing, if i'm throwing bigger worms or creatures i bust out the shakyhead

I appreciate everyone's responses, and the diversity of opinions. I think this is where I land on this, generally. There are a couple of places I fish where it's Ned without much thought: my subdivision pond or other ponds I fish with lots of dinks; nearby small stream, for smallmouths. 

 

The Ned is my skunk killer on the pressured public ponds I fish most of the time. This morning for example, the bite had quit at my subdivision pond; I tied on a Ned (SK Rage Ned in Okeechobee craw) and caught fish on 3 casts in a row. Granted they were all 3 dinks; but that's about all there is in this pond.

 

Reason for my question was that my parents just got a place at Kentucky Lake. To date I haven't really gotten to do any bigger water/boat fishing. So I don't have any personal experience if the Ned's role as my skunk killer will transfer to bigger water. I could envision the shaky head filling that role, and fishing it a lot like I fish a Ned rig--slow dragged along the bottom, or short hops on the bottom. I just don't use the shaky head a lot right now because the places I fish with lots of dinks, I get a lot of short takes from them on any longer worm, where they are clamped on to the end of the worm but no hook set.

[Jermination]

1 minute ago, plawren53202 said:

I appreciate everyone's responses, and the diversity of opinions. I think this is where I land on this, generally. There are a couple of places I fish where it's Ned without much thought: my subdivision pond or other ponds I fish with lots of dinks; nearby small stream, for smallmouths. 

 

The Ned is my skunk killer on the pressured public ponds I fish most of the time. This morning for example, the bite had quit at my subdivision pond; I tied on a Ned (SK Rage Ned in Okeechobee craw) and caught fish on 3 casts in a row. Granted they were all 3 dinks; but that's about all there is in this pond.

 

Reason for my question was that my parents just got a place at Kentucky Lake. To date I haven't really gotten to do any bigger water/boat fishing. So I don't have any personal experience if the Ned's role as my skunk killer will transfer to bigger water. I could envision the shaky head filling that role, and fishing it a lot like I fish a Ned rig--slow dragged along the bottom, or short hops on the bottom. I just don't use the shaky head a lot right now because the places I fish with lots of dinks, I get a lot of short takes from them on any longer worm, where they are clamped on to the end of the worm but no hook set.

Ned will work on Kentucky lake but the buckeye lures EWG shaky head in 1/2 oz will do very well out there on the ledges. I throw a lot of heavy shaky heads in 20+ FOW and get quite a few bites, reason being most people throw the ol ball and chain around here and that little different look will trigger some strikes. I fish the ned in 20+FOW on several lakes in the area(Norris, Cherokee, Douglas) but they are all pretty clear deep tributary lakes. The TN river system lakes like kentucky lake the ned is just too dang hangy on a lot of them and has been known to bring out my inner rageaholic lol

[Elkins45]

I fish them in similar ways but on different gear. Ned is on 6-8 lb line and a spinning reel, so it gets fished on the edge of cover or otherwise relatively snag-free water. 3/16 or 1/4 ounce jig worms get fished on baitcasting gear with heavier line so I will toss them into heavier cover. I also prefer them for deeper water because I get to the bottom faster and that’s where they seem to be the most effective.
 

50 pound braid and a heavy weedless jig worm are a lot of fun to toss in gaps in the lily pads in southern lakes.