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Jarod Shelton
2013-08-17 06:35:02

Jigs With JROD Part 1


Intro: Jigs with Jrod Jig fishing. It opens up all types of questions. What is it? Just flipping and pitching right? Jig and Pig, ½ oz black and blue with a #11 pork rind right? Just find a log and flip it. That's what Denny does, it's simple right? Well, not quite. There is finesse, there are football jigs, casting jigs, flipping jigs, grass jigs, round heads, pointy heads, ahhhhhhh and swim jigs! The list goes on. What are the best jigs and when should you use them? What type heads are used for what type of cover? What size? What colors are the best? Everyone loves the skirt color, it attracts us, it attracts bass. In this series of "Jigs with JROD I'm going to go through them all. All the jigs I know at least. I know some of you out there are making that secret bait in the underground basement or garage that is top secret. We're going to talk about that too, making them. We are also going to talk about setting your boat up for jig fishing, how to position your boat, how you should run your electronics and trolling motor. So get ready for some great information, cause it's coming from what I have learned from some of the best jig fisherman in the country. And they are going to kill me. Chapter 1: Flipping Jigs What is a true flipping jig and what size are they? Many of this series will be divided by technique, and you will find that many jig head types will be used in the same categories. Flipping jigs are one the jigs that will fall into many of the categories. Why? Because you can "flip any jig. Remember, we are talking about true flipping. When I am flipping I want a jig that will get through what I'm flipping to. If you are flipping wood, a 3/8oz or a 1/2oz will do. In some cases, especially behind other boats in very thick lay downs, I will use a ¾ oz. This HIGHLY guarded secret among true flippers. When the boats ahead of you keep flipping that same old black and blue 3/8 oz, I hard crashing ¾ oz Green Pumpkin orange jig might be the trick for that kicker. That being said, I almost always go with a 3/8oz if I'm shallow. If I'm in grass it all depends on how thick the grass is. I want to penetrate the grass, with the lightest weight possible, while maximizing my fishing time. What I mean is that yes you can flip a 3/8 oz jig on top of a hydrilla mat, shake it and shake it and hope get it to find a hole and fall through, but I don't want to do that. I start with ¾ oz so I can flip right in the reeds, hydrilla, whatever it may be and have it punch through and cause a reaction strike. Many times you will need a 1, 1 ¼ oz, or 1 ½ oz jig. Some companies do make a 2 oz jig and they work great, but that is a heavy, heavy jig. Your bites will go down will this heavy of a jig. I would then use a tungsten weight, skirt, and snell knot with a flipping hook that may come through the cover better. 90% of the time they will hit it on the fall. If it's super cold they may pick it up after it hits the bottom or you drag it or hop it a few inches. The bass will tell you what they want. What makes a good flipping jig? When flipping I prefer a jig with a flat eye. I prefer this in all my jigs because where you tie your knot, and the angle of the hook eye to the rest of the jig body makes a huge difference on hook up ratios. If I have a flat eye jig, and I put one more kicker in the boat on a given day, instead of loosing that one fish, just think how better off I am. On the other side of the "line tie spectrum, the line tie can impact how the jig will come through cover. An inline eye will come through grass a lot better than a flat eye. You do not want to the jig to carry grass to the bottom, and you do not want to be pulling grass off your jig every time you pull it out from a flip. Some jigs companies have jigs with in line eyes that will not decrease your hook up ratios because of how they are made. I am not a liberty to tell you why, because as we say in my world, I can't leak classified info, but just know that your hook ups will actually increase. I do not currently have any of these jigs to take pictures of due to deployment. These jigs fall into the category of poison heads and punch type heads. Head design makes a huge difference in the way it comes through cover. Most jig heads are designed these days to come through cover with ease. I remember this rule most of the time. When flipping wood I stick with Arky styles and flat eye hooks. When Im flipping super thick grass, I stick with poison head styles, or punch head styles with an inline eye. Hooks. You are flipping, you need a gaf hook right? Well not really. The only time you really need a super super strong tuna or salmon style hook is when you are flipping grass with heavy braid. In wood cover or flipping docks you will be fine with a standard heavy hook found in most flipping jigs. 90% of the time you want a heavy hook. That other 10% of the time is when you are using light line in clearer water, or you are finesse flipping with smaller round head jigs or similar type finesse jigs. What type of equipment should you use to flip with? 7'6 to 8' rod, big line, close to the cover. My favorite rod to flip with is an 8 Dobyns rod that can handle big jigs and big fish. I use this rod the majority of the time I am flipping 65 to 80lb braid. Plus its extremely light compared to other 8 foot rods and can handle the battle. I have two types of flipping rods rigged up. I like one for grass and one for wood, docks, or any other type of cover that is not grass. When flipping fluorocarbon I like to use a Dobyns Mike Long signature jig rod. It is 7'8 and can handle any jig flipping situation. It has a great tip that helps when flipping lighter jigs. I prefer 20lb fluorocarbon on this rod most of the time. In some cases in the winter when I want to slow my fall, I will use 20 to 25lb. monofilament. Reels are very important even when flipping. I prefer a reel with a 7:01 ratio so when I do get bit, I can reel fast and get that fish up and out of the cover fast. One technique that is near and dear to my heart is finesse flipping. Getting super close to docks and dock walkways and flipping with finesse jigs. In this case I use a Dobyns 742 medium fast rod. It has a enough length to flip, and not too much to hinder my flip under and around obstacles. I will use as low as 10lb test with this rod sometimes, but the majority of the time I use 15lb fluorocarbon. This would be a technique I would use at Table Rock for example. Left of Right handed? I am right handed, and I prefer to flip with a left hand reel, but I can do both. I have flipping rods set up for both sides because some angles on docks and covers are better when flipping left hand, and some are better for the right hand. The main thing to take away here is that you want to be able to set the hook as soon as that jig hits the water. A bass can be positioned to take your jig as soon as sees it and reacts. That can be very fast in many cases. Be ready to set the hook. Your reeling hand should be positioned on the reel once you complete your flip. In most cases for me, I can do this better left handed. So how do you find these great flipping jigs? They are everywhere on the internet, tackle stores, and maybe your jig making friend can make you some. There are several companies that make great flipping jigs. Tango 6 Bass Anglers are ready to work with a select few of the elite jig companies to ensure we promote the best jigs on the market today. Stayed Tuned to Tango 6 Bass Anglers for more on jig fishing. We will talk about many techniques specific types of jig fishing such as pitching and skipping. We will also break down pitching jigs, finesse jigs, boat control and operation, and how to make jigs. We won't forget to talk about colors and trailers, and when and when not to use rattles. More to come folks!
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