A beginners guide to jigging - PART 3

Getting down to the business end - Jigs

Jigs with lumo on one side are deadly in deep, dark waters, producing a strobe effect while being worked. Alan Le with a very nice hapuku caught on a Kilwell Broken Arrow jig at White Island with Memory Maker Charters. (Photo: Memory Maker Charters)

(top) long tail-weighted jigs with a lumo strip on one side, such as the Rapier from Action Imports, are killers in deep water or high current areas; (Middle) the ever popular Kilwell Broken Arrow, Zest Deep Slim and Action Imports Rapier have all proven to be deadly in deep water. (short) short wide-bodied jigs, such as the Mosquito and Bumble Bee jig from Action Imports, are great shallow water jigs with a very erratic darting action;

(top) Slider-style jigs, such as these Action Sliders from Action Imports, give a great darting action due to their profile, and are suitable for shallow to medium depth water. (bottom) long slim centre-weighted jigs, like the Scimitar from Action Imports, can be suitable for use in most depths, due to their pin-like profile allowing them to drop rapidly through the water column and in high current areas.

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Getting down to the business end – jigs

On entering a tackle store and encountering a wall covered in jigs of assorted weights, shapes, lengths and colours, it can be challenging to know which ones will suit your needs.

One thing is for certain, though: jigs will catch the fisherman long before they ever catch a fish! I warn you now that visiting tackle stores and fondling jigs is very addictive, and can be unhealthy for your bank balance (and yes, I speak from experience).

Which jig shape where?
Tail-weighted jigs
This jig shape features more weight near the rear of the jig, hence the name. It tends to fall through the water column quickly and is great for using in deeper water (100m+) or in areas where there is a lot of current running and you’re having trouble getting to the bottom with a centre-weighted jig.
Tip: On numerous occasions I have found that rigging a tail-weighted jig at the heavy end (i.e. ‘upside down’) can trigger fish into biting when they aren’t responding to a conventionally-rigged jig. Rigging the jig this way causes the jig to tip while dropping during the jigging motion, giving it a more erratic action.

Centre-weighted jigs
These jigs have most of their weight in the centre, causing them to fall in a sideways, sliding or fluttering motion, depending on the angles, length and width of the jig. These jigs, especially the shorter, wider examples, are best suited to shallower water, as they take much longer to get to the bottom than tail-weighted jigs. They are, however, very effective because their fluttering action causes them to stay in the strike zone for longer.
If you want to use a centre-weighted jig in deeper water, then go for something that is long and narrow in profile so it gets down more quickly.

Weight versus depth
There is an old adage that you need around 100g per 100-feet (33m) of water, but when it comes to mechanical jigging for kingfish – or any other species for that matter – I disagree with this. (Possibly this may hold true when yoyo jigging for snapper using monofilament line, where the aim is to use the lightest possible jig to get to the bottom.) Personally, I don’t really select a jig’s weight based on depth – unless it is in very deep water, where commonsense will tell you that you are going to need something fairly heavy to get to the bottom. Instead, I select the jig weight to match the rod/reel setup I am using at the time, which in turn should also reflect the size of fish being targeted and the terrain you’re fishing over.

Firstly, you need to use a jig of a certain weight to match your rod/reel/braid setup, otherwise you won’t get the best possible action out of the jig. Using a jig that is too light for the gear being used will result in the rod flicking the jig high on the upstroke, which can cause loose loops of line around your spool. However, use a jig that is too heavy for your gear and the rod will end up soaking up much of the jig’s action, cramping its dancing style.

Once you have selected a rod/reel setup you think will suit the terrain you’re fishing and the size of fish likely to be caught, choose a jig to suit that setup. If using a 300g set-up, for example, you should select a jig of around 200-400g, with 300g being the optimum weight for the outfit.
There is a spot I fish that is between 35-40m deep, but often holds fish of around 18-25kg. So if I were to go by the old saying of 100g per 100ft of water, this equates to a jig of around 115-130g – which I most definitely would not use, being better suited to my 150g set when targeting snapper. Instead, I normally use my 350g set-up, as I know it handles fish of the size encountered quite comfortably. I arm it with jigs from 250-400g, which, because of the shallow depth, tend to be short and relatively wide centre-weighted jigs with a lot of flutter to keep the jig in the strike zone for longer.

The following guide lists the style and type of jigs that suit the indicated depths, along with a few recommendations available in New Zealand tackle stores.

Shallow water (50m or less)
I suggest short, wide-bodied centre-weighted jigs for this, with good options including: Action Imports ‘Bumble Bee’; Williamson ‘Vortex’; and the Zest ‘Leaf’.
Medium depth (50m-100m)
Use long-profile, centre-weighted jigs. A few recommendations include: Action Imports ‘Action Slider’; Action Imports ‘Stilleto’; and Zest ‘Hardy Long’.
Deep water (100m-200m)
I suggest using either a long, slim-profile centre-weighted or tail-weighted jig. A few good options include: Action Imports ‘Scimitar’; Katch1 ‘Spear’; Zest ‘Curved Slider’.
Super-deep water (200m+)
Use a long, slim-profile, tail-weighted jig. A few recommendations would be: Kilwell ‘Broken Arrow’; Jigging Master ‘Rocket’; Zest ‘Deep Slim’.

What colours work best?
Colour selection is a personal thing; most jiggers have favourite colours that they prefer to use more than others. Personally, I like to use colours that match the colour of the baitfish in the area, because that’s what the fish you’re targeting are probably feeding on.

I tend to go for natural looking colours first, such as blue-silver, pink-silver or gold-silver, which may imitate baitfish such as the various mackerel species, squid, pink maomao, trevally etc. In deep water I prefer using jigs partially lumo painted on just one side, or with multiple stripes down its length, which causes a strobe or flashing effect rather than a constant glow. I believe this flashing effect helps entice fish to bite the jig. I don’t like fully lumo-painted jigs that just glow.

Try to not double up on colours amongst the jiggers on the boat at the start of the day. Instead, use different colours, and if you see a pattern emerging, where one particular colour gets more attention than the others, then switch over to that colour. It’s about increasing your odds.

Next month we’ll look at jigging’s common mainline-to-leader knot – the PR knot. We’ll also cover leader to terminal tackle connections and how to tie your own assist hooks.

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