lesson learned about round head jig molds

[skiptomylu]

THat is the best thing Fatman because we can talk about this all we want to, it is what it is. I gave up on expecting a jig to weigh what it says and am more interested in it physical size. It's not going to change and if weight is that important for what ever reason then they need to consider that otherwise just fish size. A 1/32 is usually pretty close and 1/16 may actually be 1/18, but it's not a big difference most of the time. Now just know when you buy a 1/16 Roadrunner it's going to be a good bit heavier than that, but then the funny part the 1/8 is much more accurate. Jig heads is a very strange thing and you can get a fancy as you want with sockets for the glue on 3D eyes and all, but my self most of the time will just use a plane head with no eyes and don't care if it's a minnow head or a ball head. I just don't see the need for the extra cost of the special eyes and if I want eyes I just as soon paint them on and put a good clear coat over that.

Skip

[eriksat1]

I have never even thought about the actual weight of the jig, it is more the physical size of the jig head that I look at. And the only reason I even use a collared jig head is for something for the thread to hold on to, instead of trying to tie to a hook shank itself. The collar helps makes the hair or what ever flare out. While open water fishing, a slower drop is usually better, so who cares what quality lead it is, as far as weight. When ice fishing I often use Tungsten jigs because they do drop faster but you are going through ice and slush sometimes trying to get it down the hole, and you want a small heavy jig to get down to your depth faster and help keep your line tight to detect light strikes and keep line coil to a minimum.

[darcie1]

Pure lead and hook size.

[Micanopy]

Pure lead and hook size.

and…….

The mold makers do not concern themselves with ensuring that the cavity sizes are correct for the weight of the finished jig. I feel that has more to do with the differences than any of the guesses so far.



I have a CNC mold that was said to be 1/8th ounce with the collar on one side, and the flip side 1/8 th ounce without the collar. It is in fact 1/10th ounce without the collar. The maker didn’t care to resize the cavity to make it larger for the non collared side. Didn’t care to do so. Didn’t care if I cared either.

I also have a CNC mold that is spot on. The maker obviously took the time to pour a few cavities and make adjustments in the size of the cavity to get the weight correct.

Do-It molds gets lucky every so often with their stuff. I think they hold the finished jig up and say….”Hmmmmm looks like 1/16th ounce. Don’t it Bob ?”

So in the end does it matter if a jig weighs 1/16th ounce or 1/18th ounce ? Probably not. Those that troll to catch fish are really the only ones that the difference might affect, and even so the difference wouldn’t be noticeable.

I use a small digital scale to check the weights when I first get a mold. The rest of the time it stays in a drawer. My wife saw it one day and asked if it was from my drug dealing days. I told her no it wasn’t. I used a really big scale back then. LOL

[skeetbum]

Mic, thanks for reviving this post. It has comments from a friend long gone, Redman. A very nice guy that was a good influence on all that crossed his path. This conversation is as relevant now as it was then.

[justinp61]

If you guys want to send 12 jigs of each size and style to weigh and get an average I’ll be happy to report back.