Fishing jigs are simple by design. Little more than a hook with some lead molded around the shank, jigs perform an important function with little or no fanfare. The basic purpose of these essential lures is to deploy live bait or soft plastic lures near bottom. What could be more simple?
Unfortunately jigs and jig fishing isn't as straight forward as all this. Jigs come in a multitude of head shapes, designs, hook sizes and hook types. Each of these unique features has a function that plays an important role in specific methods of jig fishing. Think of jigs as fishing tools. You can saw a sheet of plywood with a circular saw, but a table saw will generally produce a straighter cut.
I'm sorry to report that there is no universal jig design that magically triggers walleye strikes in all fishing conditions. The truth is, serious jig fishermen have need for at least four different jig types, not to mention an assortment of different sizes within each of these categories.
The four most useful jig styles can be organized as jigs best designed for casting, vertical jigging, dragging and fishing in weeds or other cover.
CASTING JIGS
Any jig can be casted into position, but certain features can make specific jig designs more effective at this chore than others. The most important feature in a casting jig is a large hook gap. Jigs with small hooks are okay for crappie, but they fail miserably as walleye jigs. With the possible exception of the muskie, no other fish is more difficult to hook than a walleye. The inside of their mouth is nothing but bone and hard tissue that resists hook penetration.
A large hook gap helps to grab tissue inside the fish's mouth, in effect doing a better job of sticking and holding those walleye that bite.
The second feature to consider when selecting a jig for general casting is the overall length. Jigs that are too long present a target that's difficult for walleye to completely suck into their mouth. This is especially true when fishing a minnow or whole nightcrawler.
Short shank style live bait jigs feature a compact length and a wide hook gap ideal for general casting situations. Some excellent jigs in this category include the Northland Fireball, K&E Tackle Hot Wire, Bait Rigs Slo-Poke and the Road Runner jig. Each of these products combine the ideal features for casting jigs to sand, gravel or clay bottoms where snagging isn't a major issue.
Most casting situations will require one of three common jig sizes including 1/16, 1/8 and 1/4 ounce. The smaller sizes work best in shallow water and the larger sizes in deeper water or on windy days.
VERTICAL JIGGING
Vertical jigging is a deep water game. If the water depth is less than 10 feet, chances are the presence of the boat will spook fish before they have a chance to spot the jig. Vertical jigging is most often practiced in flowing water, but this jigging method can also be used in lakes to fish sunken islands and other defined structure. In general, the jigs used for vertical jigging are heavier than those used for casting. The most common sizes include 1/4, 3/8, 1/2 and 5/8 ounce models.
When anglers are faced with a vertical hook set, a few key features must be taken into consideration when selecting jigs. Most importantly the jig must hang horizontal in the water. A 90 degree bend on the hook eye is essential among jigs used for vertical jigging.
The second feature that helps improve hooking success when vertical jigging is a long hook shank. Short shank jigs like those described for casting produce a somewhat weak hooking ratio compared to long shank jigs. The reason for this is simple. Long shank jigs simply reach further into the fish's mouth and in turn grab a larger real estate of tissue and bone. This may seem like splitting hares, but using long shank jigs for vertical presentations is important.
A third feature that's essential for vertical jigging is hook sharpness.
We all know that sharp hooks do a better job of penetrating, but this is never more important than when vertical jigging. Vertical jigging most often takes place during the winter and early spring when the water is exceptionally cold and walleye are lethargic. Extra thin lines are required for vertical jigging, further making it difficult to get a solid hook set. An ultra sharp hook is critical for all vertical jigging situations.
Long shank jigs suitable for vertical jigging are many. Some of my favorites include the K&E Tackle Sticker, Lindy Max Gap, Bait Rigs Odd Ball and Northland's Lip-Stick jigs.
DRAGGING JIGS
Sometimes the most effective way to fish a walleye jig is to do nothing at all. Simply dragging a jig along bottom is one of the most deadly ways to target walleye. Obviously this method works best when targeting walleye on sand, gravel, clay or otherwise snag free bottoms.
Nearly any jig design can be dragged, but certain styles do a better job of positioning the hook where it is most likely to end up stuck in a fish's mouth. A jig design that rests on the bottom with the hook pointed upwards is essential when dragging jigs. If the hook doesn't ride upright, the hooking ratio will suffer and the incidence of snagging will increase.
Good jigs for dragging tend to be specialty products that are a little harder to find, but worth the search. The Odd' Ball Jig by Bait Rigs is an outstanding jig design suitable for dragging bottom.
WEEDLESS JIGS
The term weedless jig is an oxymoron. No jig can be completely weed or snag free, but a number of jig designs do an excellent job of keeping the cover at bay. One might imagine that jigs in this category would all be equipped with either a fiber or wire weed guard. Not necessarily.
Depending on the cover type and how dense the cover is, the best jig for the job may or may not require the addition of a hook guard. The rule of thumb when casting jigs to cover is to avoid using hook guards unless absolutely necessary. Hook guards do a nice job of allowing jigs to slip through cover, but they also play a role in reducing the hook up ratio of fish that bite.
Look at hook guards as a necessary evil and do your best to fish without them if possible.
Jigs suitable for fishing cover that don't incorporate a hook guard all have one feature in common. These jigs feature an eye tie that comes out the nose of the jig rather than the top. Known as a 60 degree hook, this style of jig can literally slip through grass, weeds, sticks and even rocks amazingly well. Because the line attaches to the jig at the nose, debris doesn't tend to collect on the jighead.
The first commercial jig to take a serious look at cover fishing was the Bait Rigs Slo-Poke. Designed to have a low center of gravity and a hook eye that protrudes out the nose of the jig, the Slo-Poke is an exceptional jig for casting in both light cover situations and open water casting chores. Northland's Stand-up Fireball is another good cover jig that is best fished in light cover or open water.
Dense weeds or wood cover mandate the use of jigs that incorporate a hook guard. Among weedless style jigs two types of hook guards are commonly used including those made of plastic and those fashioned from braided wire. Plastic hook guards tend to be stiff and must be bent between your fingers a number of times to soften then enough that they fold down when a fish grabs the jig. Wire style hook guards are more user friendly. The stiffness of these guards can be adjusted in several ways. Simply bending the hook guard down is one method. Unraveling the wire is another way to soften these hook guards. A third method is to use a pair of side cutters to remove some of the wire threads.
Quality walleye jigs in the hook guard category include Lindy's Veg-E-Jig and Timbr' Rock Jig and Northland's Weed Weasel. The best sizes to stock up on in this category include 1/16, 1/8 and 1/4 ounce.
A WORD ON ATTRACTOR JIGS
A number of the jigs styles outlined above are also available with various forms of attractors. Blades that spin on the hook shaft or rotate on a swivel are the two most common ways of adding flash to a jig design. Collectively called attractor jigs, there are times when this touch of added flash can pay big dividends.
Attractor jigs have a place but it's important to keep in mind that often they aren't necessary. Also, if you opt to use an attractor jig, keep in mind that using a jig that's one size heavier than would otherwise be used is a good idea when fishing attractor jigs. To get the blades rotating or flashing means the jig must be fished more quickly. Therefore it's essential to select a little heavier size lure when fishing attractor jigs.
LINE SIZES AND TYPES
No discussion of walleye jigs would be complete without at least a few words of wisdom about line types and sizes. Jig fishing for walleye is about light line and small lures most of the time. The standard line for jig fishing among most walleye enthusiasts is a quality six pound test monofilament. Lines with low memory cast well and perform best.
Anglers who struggle to feel bites may want to consider using a similar break strength super braid line. Low stretch lines telegraph light bites better than monofilament, but in most cases this extra sensitivity is unnecessary.
For most jig fishing situations using a highly visible line is a huge advantage. Being able to see the line makes it easier to control slack line, detect subtle bites and also to monitor your line for certain presentations like vertical jigging. Trust me, walleyes won't pay any attention to the color of your fishing line, but you should.
SUMMING IT UP
The leadhead jig is a simple tool that does a magnificent job of triggering walleyes into striking. Taking a hard look at jig designs is the best way to understand the finer points of the jigging game. One size doesn't fit all when it comes to fishing walleyes with leadhead jigs.
ng on the cover type and how dense the cover is, the best jig for the job may or may not require the addition of a hook guard. The rule of thumb when casting jigs to cover is to avoid using hook guards unless absolutely necessary. Hook guards do a nice job of allowing jigs to slip through cover, but they also play a role in reducing the hook up ratio of fish that bite.