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Reply With QuoteIn Joe Robinson’s book, he talks about making his own jigs using Aberdeen hooks and attaching small split shot to them with super glue.
Worked fine for him and much cheaper than tungsten.
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Has anyone experimented with making UL jigheads out of fly hooks?
I never got around to acquiring any of the Daiwa Gekkabijin jigheads, and now it appears they're out of production. I'm sure there are a lot of other great JDM jigs out there, but like a great deal of JDM gear, it can be quite costly and troublesome to obtain them. With jigheads this is more problematic than with things like line, rods, and reels, as losing jigheads on a regular basis is just the name of the game. For years before JDM UL gear gained any signification traction, I tried custom jigheads from here and there. Experienced good, bad and in between, but nothing particularly impressive. I use a cheapie hook sharpener on all the jigheads I currently have which gives them a much better point, but it's hard to sharpen tiny hooks and I feel like I have to sharpen them after a couple fish. Store-bought jigheads in my experience are mediocre at best and need to be sharpened before they are of even remotely acceptable sharpness.
I am very vaguely familiar with hooks used in fly tying, and I know that many of them are SHARP. Unbelievably sharp. I don't know the first thing about pouring jigheads or the types of fly hooks available, but I've seen many flies tied with small tungsten beads. Is this at all a viable option for the kind of fishing most of us are doing with jigheads in the .5gram to 2.5grams range? If using the tungsten beads intended for these hooks isn't an option, how about a custom mold for them with the appropriate weight poured on them?
It's taken me years to get rid of even my most commonly used jighead sizes, but I'm getting there, and I'd love a replacement that I'm happy with out of the box. I know there are some very talented and knowledgeable people here, and hoping that those wiser than me may be able to figure out a way to create what a lot of us are looking for.
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In Joe Robinson’s book, he talks about making his own jigs using Aberdeen hooks and attaching small split shot to them with super glue.
Worked fine for him and much cheaper than tungsten.
Crappie.com Legend
Glad you said this, DB4D. When going thru my old collection of hooks for something suitable to use with floats in certain situations I thought the Aberdeen was the closest fit for a “jig” style hook. They are readily available and I thought the size 8 is just right for trout magnets, among other soft baits. No bait offset, good shank length, etc.Originally Posted by deathb4disco
Bob
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I just checked the Robinson book. He used the Eagle Claw 215 hook in sizes 6, 8, and 10. He would bend the hook near the eye to make a space for the split shot. This would effectively turn the hooks into sizes 4, 6, and 8. He would also wrap .020 or .025 lead wire around the shank and seal the wraps with Zap-A-Gap. This created a "collar" which helped to hold the soft plastic in place.
He used AAA (.8g) and BB (.4g) shot for the heads. He also drilled a tiny hole in the split shot and inserted a V-shaped piece of mono to form a weed guard. (He is a little obsessive.)
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Just looked that one up, DB, and that would be a real good one for the application, especially the idea of bending the hook near the eye.
Bob
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And expensive. Anything with the word "fly" in front of it is more expensive: fly rod, fly reel, fly line, etc.
Of course, JDM tackle is not exactly cheap. If you have no trouble paying JDM prices, though, fly hooks should not be a problem for you.
There is a hook called the "30 degree hook". A lot of fly guys use them for their "jig" patterns. If you went that route, you could just slip the bead onto the hook. There would be no need to "pour" anything. However, the 30 degree hooks I've seen are used for big saltwater flies. I haven't seen any suitable for smaller, UL baits. (They may exist. I just haven't seen them.)
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I haven’t tried the fly hooks you speak of. I’m pretty happy with the point on the sickles I use. Like you, I bought a bunch a long time back and just now working towards the end of them.
Creativity is just intelligence fooling around
Trophy King
Been doing it with tungsten beads so far. Mainly euro nymphs but I have the jig hooks and tungsten beads to do some 4mm beaded jig heads on Hanak 450BLs and Fulling Mill Jig Force hooks in size 10. Planning to tie some euro streamers soon.
Main reason I'm tying these is they are deadly on trout.
I also have a few sample packs to tie up to about 1/8 oz jigs using brass beads on a SS nail. The sample packs were given to me by a steelhead fisherman who was selling non lead jig heads to steelheaders but he quit his business last year.
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Trophy King
Will add I've been away due to health issue which arose last December after I returned from Colorado. Had to have surgery 6 weeks ago and still on the mend but hopefully almost there. Missed a whole season of winter trout fishing.
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Trophy King
What is your target species? If it's pan fish then stick with jig heads made on the Eagle Claw Lil Nasties. These work well on trout too and I tie on these for my son or when fishing snag prone areas. I save my trout jigs/nymphs on fly hooks and 2x Mustads for the good spots.
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