bucktail jigs

[I.rar]

how do you work these things?

i grabbed a couple of booyah bucktails from dicks while i was raiding their clearance bin , but im clueless. ive seen people talk about how jigs can trigger bites when bass seem to have 'lock-jaw' after a cold front moves through. would a 3.5" beaver work as a trailer?

ive always questioned myself using jigs with an exposed hook because i think i would get hung up on everything.

while on the jig topic , what makes you decide to grab one jig over the other? like , when would you prefer a spot remover over a football head , or bucktail? i have done some reading on the subject , but im still lost.

:-?

[SirSnookalot]

I use my saltwater jigs for bass, bucktails or red tailed hawks and they work well.

They can be fished several different ways, not in order of effectiveness.

straight retrieve

vary retrieval speed and work them up and down in the water column

slow jig off bottom, raise em up and let em fall

twitch and and a quick pause

[Paul Roberts]

There's no magic in it. They catch fish really well and were the body of choice before living rubber hit the market. I used 'em just like a jig-n-pig today -same lure really. Also used smaller heavier versions for deep smallmouths. Don't be afraid to experiment with body materials for jig heads. It's all good.

Bucktail offers something special in one particular way; It is buoyant so it creates a wake -moves water. Tied dense it can really slow speed of the lure too.

I used to fish a particular creek channel years ago that bass would stack up in early in the year. I caught them consistently when water temps broke 50 on grub jigs, jig-worms and then to twitched topwaters when water hit 55. But below 50 -nada. I discovered it was speed that mattered, so I devised a sssuuuuupppppeeeerrrrrr sssssllllllooooooooooooowwwwwwwww jig (get the picture )

I used a 1/16oz classic Slider head, a brush of good bucktail, a twister trailer, and a clip-on overhead spinner. This rig could be cccrrrrraaaaawwwwwllllleedddddd.... I called it a "Shaving Brush" and it caught bass really well in that cold water.

[I.rar]

thanks guys. im going to give em a shot next time im out. ive always been intimidated by them since ive always fished hardbaits or soft plastics t-rigged. since ive moved to NC , it seems all the fish go to school and learn to ignore the basic plastic presentation.

[SirSnookalot]

Many survival kits including military include a couple of jigs...they work. In my main venue it's toss up as what catches more fish, spoon or jig, applies to fresh or saltwater.

[RoLo]

There is really no wrong way to fish plastic worms, spoons & bucktail jigs.

Deer-tail hair is "hollow" and has a unique natural action that's very effective in both fresh and saltwater.

Like SirSnookalot pointed out, the Naval Survival Kit from WW-ll included the Upperman Jig,

a laterally-compressed jighead originating from New Jersey that looks like a lima bean.

Even in the age of high-tech lures & swimbaits, you'd still be very hard pressed

to beat a bucktail jig dressed with a fresh-cut belly-strip

Roger

[I.rar]

good stuff guys.

one more question though , what makes you decide to trim/thin the weedgaurd?

[basser89]

Something I do (usually in the winter when I can't get out) is tie my own! I use them mainly for smallies in the Potomac. The jigheads I've been using have just been a regular ball head jig with no weedguard. Its a pretty rewarding feeling when you catch one on a bucktail you made yourself!    The way I usually fish them is just drift them along with the current and pop them off the bottom from time to time. That's what's worked best for me. Actually tie a few BIG ones (on a saltwater darter jighead w/no weed guard) up for musky before too and caught a decent one swimming it.

[BobP]

squertz, most bucktails don't come with weedguards. If they do, I trim them the same as a regular bass jig.  Trim the length so about 1/4" of the guard covers the hook point. Next, bend the bristles back and forth to break any glue that worked its way into them when the guard was glued into the head. Thin the bristles "by feel" until it's just stiff enough to protect the hook point while pulling the jig through obstructions. Some divide the weedguard and bend bristles out to each side for more protection. If you do this, leave it stiffer since there will only be half as many bristles in each "bunch".

You can trim a bucktail to length to "match the hatch" but that will lessen the undulation of the hair when it's in the water.  That subtle action is what makes bucktails attractive to bass, so it's a last resort.

[SirSnookalot]

I use these bucktails that have weedguards and I just leave them as is.

It's called a flats jig, works great for bass or any kind of fish.