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No bragging,,,ok? I am pretty good bass fisherman...
but for tightlining sacalait.. i am a newbie. I dont know a lot but willing to listen to those who KNOW.
My question....
I often use 1/32 oz jig and 1/16.
When you pop the jig to move it...the 1/32 is really slow in returning the line to tightness. The 1/16 is a little better.
My question is... for tightlining... do most use 1/8?
The slack from the 1/32 after popping the jig recovers so slowly.
You should be watching the slack in the line after you "pop"...
If the line does ANYTHING unusual while returning to it's original state..then set the hook....crappie tend to bite on the fall of the jig....sometimes he will just come up from under the jig and inhale it and not move..this will show in your line as an unusual stopping of the fall of the jig or a wierd sideways movement of the jig...
You won't always feel the bite..so watch that line as the jig is falling for unusual movements...
Sometimes you want that slower fall of a lighter jig....
A better questions might be what kind and test lines you should be using with light wts.
I find light braid or mono work fine. You figure in the weight of the jig plus plastic lure, the depth you fish and the distance of the cast as factors that effect sensitivity.
I've been pouring soft plastic minnow and rig them on 1/32 and 1/16 oz jigs. The total wt. of the lure is about 1/8 and even when a small perch hits the lure, it feels like a tick or like nothing when a crappie hits it. Perch bump and grab (like walleye); crappie charge and suck in lures on the move (except topwater or floating minnows).
Fish aggression levels will vary the strike intensity.
Good luck
I Second that.Quote:
Originally Posted by rnvinc
All good advice so far. Mono has memory and acts to absorb some of the contact with the jig. Heavier jigs straighten some of this, increasing the contact. Braid has little or no memory or stretch and the contact is way different, more intense. Some lighter hits go undetected on mono that are felt as light hits on braid. Watching the line, preferably hi-vis, is one of the most important things you will learn. I have had days when 60% of the hits were seen and never felt. Vertical jigging is a lot of fun, and patience is key. Keep us posted, Tight lines.....Skeet
All good aswers, especially the part about watching the line. Only thing I might add is that as the water temps drop I seem to have better luck with a smaller, slow falling bait. Sometimes, instead of "popping" it, I'll raise the rod tip a couple of feet then lower it slowly keeping the line tighter as it falls.
X2.. well said SkeetQuote:
Originally Posted by skeetbum
Light line and Tunsten jigs. I use 2-4 lb. line. Like others have said keep a eye out for the lift some times its more often then the yank.
I use 4 lb line. Frequently I fish with single tail minnow imitations like the bobby garand. I let the lure to the disired depth. I hold it still for 15-30 seconds. I then give it a very small twitch - a slight flick of the wrist. Often within seconds, a fish will hit. I then repete after a minute or so. I jig my lure very little. Recently the bite is just a slight tick - barely detectable. I fish 16th oz jigs due to the wind in SEK.
Hardly ever use 1/8th unless the wind is kicking. Most of time I use 1/16th, and will change to a 1/32nd when getting short strikes. Sometimes the slow fall of the lighter jig is what gets the bite, sometimes not. I don't move my jig around very much once I reached the depth I'm fishing, for the most part, I try to hold it as still as I can. You will never be able to hold a jig still no matter how hard you try.