Dragging vs. Slow Lift and Drop for Winter and Early Spring Jig Fishing?

[LrgmouthShad]

42 minutes ago, skywalkerV said:

 

Fairly new to incorporating the T-Rig or Football Jig to my arsenal, what does a bite feel like on these? Am I just line watching? 

Bite could be clear taps on the bait, one tap with or without the line jumping, sudden slack in the line (one of the hardest IMO), sudden tightness in the line, line moving, mushy sensation when you lift up, etc. Something you see or feel is different. How is it different than hitting a laydown or coming through grass? Thats something you have to feel for yourself. But if you are coming through grass getting a certain sensation and then all of a sudden you feel something different, could be a bite 

[softwateronly]

19 hours ago, skywalkerV said:

 

Fairly new to incorporating the T-Rig or Football Jig to my arsenal, what does a bite feel like on these? Am I just line watching? 

 

Learning how to "weigh" your jig by feel is key.  Then learning the general feel of all the different cover you're fishing.  When something different happens, reel down till weight and swing.

 

It's the real reason why I have jig rods.  I've gotten used to all their tells and nuances.  

 

scott

[Bird]

I had an epic day last April, the 4th to be exact and again this year on the 4th of April, crazy....... according to wife's FB.

 

Simply swimming a 3/8 swim jig slowly through and over cover.

I don't pick up and drop many baits at all, would rather drag.

 

 

[FishTax]

What jigs do you guys like for this? When I look at Seibert I’m overwhelmed by the options. Grass, brush, dock knocker, sniper, etc. if you had an all purpose which would it be? I feel I lose many in timber. 

[Jar11591]

47 minutes ago, FishTax said:

What jigs do you guys like for this? When I look at Seibert I’m overwhelmed by the options. Grass, brush, dock knocker, sniper, etc. if you had an all purpose which would it be? I feel I lose many in timber. 

The brush jig is my all purpose jig. I mainly throw it in timber but it does well coming through grass as well, and good for dragging. If I could only fish 1 type of jig it would definitely be the brush jig. 

[Motoboss]

Resurrecting this thread with a few questions. I’ve fished jigs sparingly over the years with poor results, because I was terrible at it, but now realizing my methods were poor. There is a wealth of information and knowledge in these post but let me ask about jig “line” which should help in starting with the best setup possible.

 

Most successful using braid directly tied to the jig?

Braid and (fluro-mono) leader tied directly?

Fluro or mono main line directly to the jig?

Any combination of line tied to a snap?

Any combination line tied directly or with a loop knot?

My jigs of choice are Siebert’s in various styles/weights and color combinations.

 

[WRB]

Can’t tell you what others are using but I use 12 lb Tatsu tied direct with a San Diego Jam knot, custom 6’10” ALX MH+F rod with 8:1 Tatula bait casting reel.

I fish deep rocky structure lakes with sparse cover.

7/16 oz custom hair jig with pork rind trailers or same jig living rubber Puff Ball with Yamamoto twin tail trailer.

I want the jig to stay near the bottom or on the bottom similar to slow stop and go swim jig when retrieving and falling on controlled slack after casting.

Focus on strike detection most are very subtle, you can’t miss aggressive strikes.

Tom

[Motoboss]

Yeah Tom the last time I fished jigs regularly was when pork rind trailers were the deal and easy to find. They were tough to rig but really have the action!
So mono/fluro line tied directly to the jig 👍

[rgasr63]

On 3/26/2023 at 6:13 AM, Catt said:

I work a jig the same way I work a Texas Rig which is Ole School with the only difference being the hops are smaller.

1) Make a long cast

2) Strip 3 or 4 arms length of line, this will assure a vertical fall

3) Count the bait down, 15' of water count to 20 to make certain the bait is on the bottom, do it in your head if need be

4) Pause a good 30 seconds after the bait reaches bottom

5) Lower your rod to the 2 o'clock position while reeling slack & feel for anything unusual

6) Move the rod from 2 o'clock to 1 o'clock in three motions

7) Pause 30 seconds & feel for anything unusual

? Repeat 5, 6, & 7 all the way back to the boat

Some times I'll simply drag the jig along the bottom really really slow

This is really good advice for me. I have been in a slump with jigs for a while. I have caught a few but not as much as years before. I am going to tone down my hops and see what happens. 

[WRB]

A trick I do when Jig has stopped and sitting on bottom I lift the rod tip up about 45 degrees and shake the rod tip using the reel handle. The movement is a slight jiggle that put some life into the trailer and helps me slow down.

Tom

PS, PM your email to send a copy of Horizontal Jigging.

[papajoe222]

Line choice, for me, depends a lot on, not only water clarity, but the equipment used. For casting gear, I almost always use braid. The exception is when fishing rip rap. If the water is super clear, I may go with a mono or fluoro leader.  For hair jigs, fluoro gets the nod and for spinning gear, it's braid to a long fluoro leader as straight fluoro has a tendency to jump off the spool in the higher pound tests.

[Motoboss]

@papajoe222 you started this over a year and a half ago I I find it to be one of the best conversations on jig fishing on the forum! Thank you

My “go to” is always braid to flouro leader but jig fishing is such a subtle approach I’ve been leaning towards just straight 16# Sniper for a dedicated jig setup throwing mainly 3/8 and 1/2oz baits on casting gear. Other than fine gravel and lay downs in the river most lakes are softer, weeded bottoms and Spring and Fall the vegetation is either just growing or dying off so braid isn’t totally necessary.

 

I do fish finesse jigs on spinning gear but it’s a braid to leader setup always.

 

Interested in how a jig is attached to the line. I usually tie directly to it but a snap is a much more efficient connection and a tremendous time saver. But is it a hindrance to the jigs action? Or a threat of breaking/opening up concern

 

A loop knot seems like the best method allowing the most freedom of movement but not quite as secure or strong as a typical straight attachment knot, like the Jimmy Huston knot I tie regularly.

 

 

[LrgmouthShad]

On 4/8/2023 at 9:23 AM, LrgmouthShad said:

You know, maybe it’s just me, but I do not have a formula for how I work a jig. 

 

On 4/8/2023 at 9:23 AM, LrgmouthShad said:

I do not care about how I’m “supposed” to work a jig

I ain’t changed! I get a few on a jig!

19 hours ago, Motoboss said:

Fluro or mono main line directly to the jig

I am straight fluoro with all jigs, unless punching!

[Pat Brown]

Yeah this is a fun thread for sure!

 

After some moons have passed - my take is essentially - you gotta try different stuff out with baits to make fish bite sometimes.  😂😂😂👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼

[Motoboss]

10 hours ago, WRB said:

A trick I do when Jig has stopped and sitting on bottom I lift the rod tip up about 45 degrees and shake the rod tip using the reel handle. The movement is a slight jiggle that put some life into the trailer and helps me slow down.

Tom

PS, PM your email to send a copy of Horizontal Jigging.

Tom, your article on Horizontal Jigging is fantastic! A lot of vital information in an understandable, no nonsense manner of writing.

 I now see the importance of picking the right tool for the job.

Well done! Happy Thanksgiving.

[Catt]

Movement without Movement 

 

I want to create movement in the skirt/trailer with minimal forward movement. 

 

I don't "drag" a jig or a Texas Rig for that matter. When I want the jig to move forward it's with 3 fast short hops/strokes. Then it's back to Movement without Movement!

[Motoboss]

@Catt would that be similar to a small , less enthusiastic, jerk bait sort of “short stroke” tug?

[Jigfishn10]

If I know that the fish are responding better to a dead stick bait, sometimes just dropping the rod tip down creating slack in the line and snapping up at the point when the line gets taught again is all you need sometimes to trigger a strike. The shirt or bucktail hair (I fish a lot of bucktail jigs) will flare out without moving the jig forward as @Catt mentions in his post. 
 

EDIT

This post is how I move a jig while dead sticking. I don’t know Catt’s technique. I brought the popcorn to find out tho …  

[Catt]

@Motoboss I call it establishing the rhythm 

 

Rhythm is the regular repetition of a pattern of sounds, words, or movement  

 

What I've written here is where I start, it may not be how I finish. 

 

Figuring out the rhythm, the speed, the movement, or whatever ya wanna call it is key to getting bit. As mentioned above it changes daily. 

[Motoboss]

I get it, unfortunately my rhythm with jig fishing has always been rather spinnerblade’esque. Toss it, yo-yo it, pull it, speed it up/slow it down and repeat until I switch to another rod and bait, the reasons why I was terrible at jig fishing. Worm’n is my strength but never really associated it to jig fishing.

I spent too much time watching Denny Brauer pitching a jig in wood and pulling out fish, never worked for me. So fishing for over 60 years I usually avoided jigs but now want it become a strength. I realize it’s in the details.

 

There IS a method to the madness.

[Catt]

@Motoboss

 

[txchaser]

One thing I'll add... much like a carolina rig, if you find a transition, weed clump/edge, a stump or basically anything different than the regular bottom, there's high payoff for stopping right there. And with the jig you can use the obstruction to sway the whole bait, ie movement without moving the jig. Most of my larger jig fish have been after a good amount of time stopped, but moving in place. 

 

I usually have better results when I drag (or just reel a little like tom, jig doesn't come off the bottom much) than when I hop. With the exception of when I need big hops. 

[FishTax]

I've learned a lot in the last year. I now have multiple jig setups. Swim jigs for open water I throw on 14 lb mono. My retrieve is to keep them moving, but I test different parts of the water column as well as different retrieves as far as popping, shaking, pausing, etc. 

 

Brush jigs I like braid as in usually throwing into wood lay down and such. I tend to let these chill and do very little movement. My retrieve is closer to Catt on this one. I've yet to dial in the horizontal retrieve but have been trying it. 

 

Football jigs I use 17-20 lb mono. Throwing around rock or whatever else. I'm a mono fan and it's my default for most things. Retrieve varies but usually some hopping involved. 

 

There is no one right way. I've learned to experiment and try new things, pay attention so when you get bit you can repeat what you did and also analyze why they bit that time. Every trip out it seems they want something different, sometime a subtle tweak, sometimes a total change..I love jig fishing!