jig head size

[bulldogs195461]

ever since my sp charter with brad smith with my 22 yr old im loving fishing with plastics,but somethings got me stumped.most people here and brad all suggest jig heads that slowly move through the water,which makes sense ,my go to sizes are 1/6 and 1/8th,which im very confident with.my son uses nothing but 1/4 jig heads and completely oufishes us big time ,even in shallow water,and catches every species known to man and more,its amazing,it goes against what im told.although tempted i still stick to what i think is appropriate,but would like anyones comments on this,as its been happening over several fishing trips im beginning to think its not all ar-e lol.we fish only estuaries,and this is occurring landbased but when we hire a boat,

cheers john

nd

my

[The Mad Hughesy]

Don't take him next time and u will out fish him haha

Guess he jut has great mojo. My brother has been out to chase small bull sharks for about 2 years, many many sessions and he has yet to get one. He always cracks it when I get them...he uses all the same setups etc... Just luck sometimes

[bulldogs195461]

thats what i keep telling myself,he does seem to have a knack,and now a big head to go with it,lol

[TIM D]

John it always pays to try different weight jigheads depending on the current. If you want to have the edge over your son grab some custom jigheads and let your son use the plain lead heads, then see who's outfishing who.

How sexy are these

cheers tim

[tazzy.]

The thing i don't understand is how you can cast far enough with such light jig heads. I normally find myself, against all advice, going back the 1/4oz jig head because I cant get any distance with my casts. Am I just really bad at casting or am i doing something else wrong?

Sorry bulldog if this is hyjacking the thread but i thought it was relevant here

[TIM D]

tazzy give us a run down on your rod,reel and line

cheers tim

[tazzy.]

I'm using a Berkley enticer 6"8', abu garcia omega reel size 2000, 8 pound braid and 10 pound leader

[TIM D]

I'm using a Berkley enticer 6"8', abu garcia omega reel size 2000, 8 pound braid and 10 pound leader

Whats the rod rated at ?

cheers tim

[Surfingant]

I'm using a Berkley enticer 6"8', abu garcia omega reel size 2000, 8 pound braid and 10 pound leader

You'll struggle to cast really light jigheads with that, what sort of braid are you running and is your reel spooled correctly? Everything needs to be in tune when casting light weights.

[Often Debaited]

Bulldogs : depending on the depth , current speed , and weather (which does play a big part not that we think about it...) depends on what size to go with . but then also its also about what species you're chasing ......... there are so many variables so best thing to do is keep a diary of your fishing trips,also what gear you used and so on . make it as in depth as you want and then go back through them and see if there is a pattern as to what weather is was or was it high or low tide , what weight jig head did i use that day ........just an idea.. lets you know when to go back a year later and have the same success in the same spot...has worked for me hehehehe hope this helps

[Gloomy Samurai]

,my go to sizes are 1/6 and 1/8th,which im very confident with.

For what it is worth from someone who doesn't know much either, I would stay with that and even go lighter if chasing bream. Probably not so important for flatties. If the whole idea of soft plastic fishing is to mimic a bait fish, then making them swim like a rock isn't going to do it. Enough weight to get it on the bottom and thats it.

You can still cast plenty far enough with light gear like Ant said.

Andrew

[tazzy.]

My rod is rated at 3-5kg. I think it is spooled pretty well, I dont get many tangles or anything. If anything it may be a little over full.

Ant why will I struggle with that combo? What should I change?

Thanks for your help guys

[Jords]

Yeah tazzy if just chasing bream/flatties/etc. drop to 6/6 at the most.

And bulldog, if fishing flat water for flatties I'll fish 1/12 generally as the heaviest, 1/8th in strong strong winds. if fishing shallow or pontoons, try 1/40th on a still day or up to 1/20th if a bit of wind/current. Usually fish 4lb leader as a max around pontoons, or try straight through fluoro to get an easy cast (no leader knot bumping in guides)

[Often Debaited]

oh and the other part is your line class based on what rod you have......eg. 1-3kg rod , 1000size reel with 4lb line....using a 6 maybe 8lb leader ( also use lower lb leader to tune it) or a 3-5kg rod , 2500 - 3000 size reel running 8 - 10 lb braid with 12 to 15lb leader......and check the taper of the rod , see if its fast , medium or slow because that plays a part too ! get 2 more rods for the estuary , a 1-3kg and a 4-8kg and matching reels..apart from that have fun !

[billythakid]

suss out what size hook he is using . it may be something simple like how far along the plastic the hook protrudes . more tail end of the plastic hanging behind the hook will create more movement than a hook that restricts the movement

suss out these

1. hook size and gauge

2. straightness of plastic on jig head

3. colour of plastic

4. his retrieve and action

its a start and may up the odds in your favour

[Bri The Pom]

John it always pays to try different weight jigheads depending on the current. If you want to have the edge over your son grab some custom jigheads and let your son use the plain lead heads, then see who's outfishing who.

How sexy are these

[attachment=58445]Customheads.JPG[/attachment]

cheers tim

Do you make your own jigheads Tim or just paint them.

[TIM D]

Bri i'll send you a PM

cheers tim

[mcknight]

like the look of these jig heads where do i get??

[tazzy.]

Oh well guess I'm up for new rod and reel!

Good luck on getting a few up on the young fella bulldog

[Hein]

I use a 1/4 jig head pretty much every where I fish!!! I've used that size in 1 to 2 metres of water and caught plenty of flatties, bream, tailor etc and have even used the same size jig head in 40 metres of water out on the 24 fathom reefs and caught snapper, tuna, cobia and traj.

Seems to be a very versitle size jig head (for me anyways). :whistle:

[Woggie]

Personally as a rule of thumb, I like to go as light a sI practically can so it drifts down naturally to the bottom. It must be heavy enough to make it to the bottom however. I like to run 1/12 up to 1/8oz for most estuarine applications.

Fair comment you make about the 1/4 however. I have read articles stating they like to use a heavier jighead such as a 1/4 so that it creates a puff of sand/silt as it hits the bottom, thus intriguing fish to your offering. Who knows, there might be something in it, but I still like to go light, but always match your conditions, depth, current, tide, winds etc

[Aquaholic]

like the look of these jig heads where do i get??

I have a few made up if you want any, they are $2.00 each. Thanks Tim for the wrap.

On topic it is what most have already said, but lately Tim D and I have been practicing our knot tying skills and really like the FG knot for its very low profile through the guides. This is the method we use for tying http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2e9XgPsWZao

I like FG knot from 20lb up, slim beauty for most of my bay fishing using 10 - 12lb. From there keeping a full spool is critical when using threadlines (eggbeaters)

Aquaholic