BUSTING
BASS WITH JIG WORMS
By Wayne Ek
About the time bass reach their post-spawn period, I would be willing to bet
that 90% of the Midwestern tournament anglers will have at least one rod rigged
with some form of the jig worm. Using this simple and versatile rig can be one
of the most productive methods for busting bass. Whether you’re finessing them
out of shallow cover, dragging them from under docks or mining them from
deep-water weed lines, it’s hard to ignore the jig worm.
I’m still surprised at the number of my guiding clients who have never heard of
or fished a jig worm. So before we go any further I should take a few minutes to
describe it. The main component is a simple lead-head jig. The jig head can be
plain or painted, round, stand-up, glider or a mushroom head. The plastic bodies
most commonly used on the jig will be worms, tubes, creature baits or Senko
style baits. As you can see this can be a very versatile bait.
Before we get into specific presentations, lets talk about the tackle used to
fish jig worms. I think it would be safe to say that jig worming is generally
looked upon as a finesse technique. And I would guess that 80% of my jig worming
could be called finesse fishing. Just the word finesse seems to indicate that
you should be using a quality rod that affords you great sensitivity.
My favorite spinning rod for jig worming is Quantum’s (PTS665F), which is a 6’6”
med./heavy rod, rated for 8-17 pound lines. For a number of years I favored
shorter spinning rods (5’6’’ to 6’0’’) in medium actions for jig worming, but
with these shorter rods I lost too many fish when they started to jump. When I
went to a longer rod I lost fewer fish. I think this is because a little longer
rod gives you better control over a fish.
For spinning reels I like Quantum’s Kinetic and Catalyst reels. I prefer a size
20 reel for fishing braided line, which I use most of the time. However if
conditions dictate the use of a fluorocarbon line I will move up to the size 30
reel. I’m a big advocate of using fluorocarbon lines, just not on spinning
reels. On a spinning reel fluorocarbon lines can become hard to manage,
especially once you start using lines with higher test ratings. That being said,
the Kinetic size 30 is a wide spooled reel that handles 8 to 12 pound
fluorocarbon quite well.
About 20% of my jig worming has nothing to do with finesse. This application is
more like a nose-to-nose, toes-to-toes, down and dirty brawl. For this you need
a rod with enough backbone to handle heavy line and a reel to match. Last year I
used a 7’ Quantum medium/heavy rod with a fast taper, rated for 10-25 pound
line. For a reel I used a proto type of Quantum’s new “BURNER” (TE1170PT) reel.
This is a high speed 11 bearing reel, with a (7.1:1) gear ratio, which handled
both braid and fluorocarbon lines flawlessly. The majority of the time I fish 30
pound Power Pro in moss green on this rod/reel combination.
The rods and reels are only part of the equation, now let’s talk about the
actual jigs and plastics to use. I have narrowed my jig selections down to 3
styles that cover most of my fishing needs. The first jig head is made by
Northland Tackle. It’s called the
Lip-Stick Jig-Worm. (See Photo) I use this in black
(bullhead) and brown (crawfish), in 3/32nd oz. & 1/8th oz. weights. I use them
for finesse fishing 6” worms, Baby Brush Hogs, Baby Ring-Fry and 5” stick baits.
The second style of jig is made by Gopher Tackle Company (www.gophertackle.com)
and is my “go to rig” when fishing is tough. This is the Pro Series mushroom
head jig. It comes in 1/16th, 3/32nd, 1/8th and 3/16th weights. Most of the time
I use the 3/32nd or 1/8th and 90% of the time the color will be black. I rarely
use anything other than a 4” finesse worm on this jig. My “go to” worm is a 4”
straight-tail finesse worm with a black body and chartreuse-tipped tail, which
Berkley used to make. I think they are currently out-of-production and are
becoming very hard to find. The third jig is used on the bait-casting rod for
the “down and dirty” fishing mentioned earlier. Gopher Tackle Company
manufactures it also. This jig is the VMC Barbarian Series mushroom head jig. I
use this in 3/16th and 1/4 ounce weights. Mainly I use just two colors, black
and brown. I use this when fishing Berkley Power Slugs, Brush Hogs or Ring Frys.
The jig worm is so versatile that there are probably dozens of ways to fish it
and just about any pattern that develops on the water can be exploited with the
jig worm.
One of the areas where the jig worm excels is deep weed line fishing. Let’s talk
about a technique that works great on deep weed lines. During the summer period
my “go to” rig on a deep weed line is the aforementioned spinning rod, with a 4”
straight-tail finesse worm, especially during a cold-front period. I like weed
lines made up of curly leaf cabbage, coontail or a mixture of both. Softer
vegetation like milfoil is hard to fish with a jig worm. In West Central
Minnesota where I guide, we can have very distinct weed lines out in 22 feet of
water, so finesse fishing a jig worm this deep is a slow process, real slow. If
you can find a cabbage patch on a fast break, you may have found a gold mine. I
like to cast up into the deep edge of the weed line and let the jig worm fall
down into the cabbage. You’re going to hang up in the cabbage leafs, and that’s
what you want to happen. Once the jig-worm hangs on a cabbage leaf, don’t jerk
it loose. Just shake the rod tip, this will usually cause the jig worm to fall
down to the next level of vegetation (a lot of your hits will come at this
point). If the jig worm will not shake loose, then snap it loose and let it
fall; again after snapping it loose expect to get bit, as this instant
acceleration can trigger some jarring hits. Once I’ve hit the base of the weed
line I shake/doodle the jig worm, wait a few seconds and snap the jig worm off
the bottom. Sometimes I will continue this back to the boat. And at other times
once I hit the weed line base, I’ll reel in and start over. If I locate a strong
bite on a deep weed line I will switch to the Northland Lip-Stick Jig worm.
Because I use this jig in a little heavier weight, it allows me to fish faster.
With these jigs I like to use a 6” worm, a Baby Brush Hog or Baby Ring Fry. When
you have a strong bite going these baits seem to generate more bites from larger
fish.
A second technique for fishing emerging weeds during the pre-summer period and
deep weed lines during the summer period, involves power fishing. This is the
“down and dirty” fishing I mentioned earlier, using a bait-casting outfit. As I
said before, I usually use braid for this technique, but will switch to 17 to 20
pound fluorocarbon if the lake is extremely clear, as I think using fluorocarbon
lines on clear water situations will generate a few more bites. With this
technique you’re not fishing right on the weed line, but moving up into the
weeds. The same holds true with the emerging weeds. I use the VMC barbarian jig
head in ¼ oz. and a Berkley Power Slug (black) for fishing both areas. With this
presentation you make a medium length cast and let the jig worm sink on a tight
line. Once the jig worm stops, lift the rod a little. You’re going to be
surprised at the number of times there is already a fish on it. I cannot explain
it, but fish just seem to hold on to this rig for an unnaturally long time. If
you don’t get bit, reel up any slack and snap the rod. Try to move the jig a
couple of feet, and hold on… when they hit this bait they just crush it! Because
of the design of the VMC jig head and because you’re fishing it on a braided
line, this bait will slice through most weeds. If you’re fishing this bait
correctly you should be able to look behind your boat and see the weeds you’ve
sliced through floating on the surface.
The third area I like to use the jig worm on is an inside weed line during the
summer period. By this time of the year the inside weed line should be well
defined. Also, by now young-of-the-year sunfish and perch should be large enough
to become a viable food source and they will be using the inside weed line for
cover. Generally, I will use a spinning rod with a braided line and a
fluorocarbon leader for this fishing. The water is shallower, so longer casts
are generally called for. I like starting off using a Lake Fork Ring Fry on the
3/17th oz. VMC Barbarian jig head for this presentation. If I know from past
experience that this section of weed line can produce larger fish, I may switch
to a Zoom Brush Hog. I fish inside weed lines quite fast. Any bass on an inside
weed line is an active fish who’s up there for only one reason and that is to
eat!
A couple of tricks I use to make jig worming a little easier are:
If you don’t know how to tie the Albright or uni to uni knot, you should learn
to do so. These are both great knots for attaching a fluorocarbon leader to
braided line.
When tying either knot I like to place a little drop of fishing glue on the knot
and line before tightening it down. Since I’ve started doing this I have never
had the line break at the knot.
When rigging your plastics on the various jig heads, add a drop of glue to the
jig head where it meets the plastics. This will hold the plastics in place when
ripping it through the cabbage. The glue I like to use is called “ Fishin’
Glue”, by Carlson Tackle Company. I like this glue because it has a little
applicator brush built right into it the cap of the bottle.
For the most part I look at the jig worm as a numbers rig. I have
caught some very large bass finessing a jig worm, but for the most part I use
the jig worm when fishing is very tough or I want to put a lot of fish in the
boat.
That being said, the last couple of years I’ve been using the jig worm rigged
with a Berkley Power Slug in the late fall, just before freeze-up. Normally we
would be fishing a large pig and jig combination at this time of the year for
some really large bass. Once I’ve work an area over with the pig and jig, I go
back through it with the jig worm and pick off some additional fish, which are
usually larger than what I had taken with the pig and jig on the first pass
through the area. And last spring I used the 1/8th oz. Pro Series (Gopher
Tackle) jig head with a Berkley Gulp 3” Minnow Grub on shallow weed walleyes
with great success. So, as you can see, the jig worm is probably one of the most
versatile rigs you will come across. If you get a chance give them a try and see
what you think.
Good luck this season and I hope to see you on the water.
Wayne Ek,
Agape Fishing Guides
classicbass.com Field Staff
