Alabama or Umbrella Rig - tell us about your AHA moment

[txchaser]

I'm still learning the alabama rig. I'm catching fish on it, sometimes anyway.

-I can certainly draw the connection that if bass are chasing the schools hard enough to push them up to the surface, the a-rig has done well for me. 

-So far, smaller/JR a-rigs have been more productive

-Slower/deeper better than faster/shallower

-Steady gets me more bites than pulsing or stopping

-Sometimes they are biting the key or different bait, sometimes they are biting anything but that. As an example last weekend they wouldn't bite the one bait with chartreuse-dipped tail, so I replaced it. 

 

But mostly I feel like I'm just guessing and flailing around, especially with no livescope or 360. If I see shad I start throwing it around. 

 

What were your breakthroughs where it was productive enough for you that you started thinking about getting a dedicated rod for it? 

 

[Bluebasser86]

Mine was a trip to Beaver Lake in Arkansas. It was almost all we threw for 3 days. I caught largemouth up to 6.25, smallmouth to 5lbs, several 3lb spots, wipers, several white bass over 3lbs, a couple walleye, and several stripers up to 20lbs. Until that trip I probably hadn't caught a dozen fish on it. We started doing way better when we used baits with blades on them. Full sized rigs with lighter heads to allow us to reel very slowly was the trick and the strikes were addictive, they were so violent. 

[roadwarrior]

The Rig is too heavy or me to cast for hours. I prefer trolling.

On the outside arms I like the LFT Live Magic Shad or Rage

Menace. On the main wire (center) I rig a Rage Swimmer or

Johnson Silver Minnow.

 

On my best day I only caught one striper, the first of the day. My

buddy followed up with 19! I was the "net boy".  Most of our fish

were 15-20 lbs, our big fish was 28.

 

 

 

 

[Jig Man]

For me it is a cold water bait.  I’ve been using them for several years.  I wanted a variety of designs so I chose to make my own.  I like the flash mob type best with silver willow leaf blades.  I mostly use 4/0 hooks with 1/16 or 1/8 oz heads to cut down on the weight.  I have used a lot of baits on them but like flukes and swimbaits best.

 

 I got started with them on Bull Shoals fishing for winter time white bass those 3 and 4# whites will nearly jerk the rod out of your hands.

 

Over time I have 3 setups dedicated to Arigs.  Two of them are in the boat all the time.

[Kenny Yi]

Chatterbaits on the four outside wires, a 7 inch Magdraft in the center trailing wire (since everyone insists it should be different)

 

JK, I became more successful when I treated it like a big spinnerbait, bounce it off stuff, vary retrieves, use flash

[king fisher]

2 hours ago, Kenny Yi said:

Chatterbaits on the four outside wires, a 7 inch Magdraft in the center trailing wire (since everyone insists it should be

Please tell me you don't use Jackhammer chatterbaits.  I have enough invested in an A rig as it is.  I would like to try chatterbaits on one, but don't want the Bait Monkey to be nagging me to spend $15 apiece for chatterbaits on A rigs.

[roadwarrior]

You missed "JK", just kidding.

[J Francho]

The J-Will 1/8 oz. heads have been just right for me. When I was using it a lot, I got pretty comfortable counting it down to the depth I wanted, and it didn't weigh so much my shoulders were shot after a day. I don't get too fancy with it, though I like Fat Impacts for baits. 

[InfantryMP]

 I 2nd the 1/8oz heads, but I use the smaller 3.3 I think they are rage swimmers in white mainly. 

I throw it on my 7'4 H rod with the Flash Mob JR. I also use 55lb braid throwing it.

 

I have only caught a few on the rig so far, but I did just spend several days trying it on a new lake with fish between 25-30ft of water. I did not have any luck with it last week, but I will still keep trying it. 

 

The only think I do not like about the Flash Mob JR, is the head is upside down when retrieving. I have not looked at it close enough to figure out why, maybe my knot is messed up or something, but the pink underbelly side is always up when it comes in.