First time jigging looking for help

[muskychuck88]

I have been ice fishing for years but have never picked up a jiiging rod was wondering if anyone wanted to give me some advice on what to use an what exactly i should be doing i have never even jigged open water

[GiantSquid]

I picekd up a "Whoopin' Stick" jigging rod from Cabelas for $20.  Check with fishusa and fish307. I was at Fish307 this season and they had PLENTY of good jigging rods - cheap!

[muskychuck88]

i have a jigging rod an a couple jigs but dont know if they are good or what else to try i used it a couple time an havent had any luck

[john t.]

What kind of fish are you jigging for.

[muskychuck88]

anything i can catch i have spent alot of time on alot of lakes with 5tip-ups an havent even had a flag an after the last trip i had like that this year me an a buddy got jigging rods an figured catching something is better then catching nothing

[john t.]

OK let's start with the pan fish.
Rod . should be a very light action( add spring bobber if needed)
line. should be no more then 4 lb.
jig's. any gentz worm, fat boy or mar-mooska sz, 10 or 12, tipped with wax worm or maggot.
if you get serious any flasher will improve your catch.

[Indiana_Lou]

I know the rod and certainly your terminal tackle is important but I'm surprised nobody mentioned electronics! I think the key to successful jigging is having your jig "in the zone." And the best way to achieve that is with a good sonar unit. You can be using the best jig possible but there may not be any fish within fifty feet of your hole. Or you might be jigging bottom in 30fow and the fish are up at 15'. Personally I prefer not to use a spring bobber and rely on "feeling" the bite or watch the response of the line as you jig. Of course that requires a good sensitive rod. Hope this adds some insight to your question.  Lou

[DMC44X]

I agree with the electronics, i may drill 5 or 6 holes until i find the sonar reading that i want. Once i'm marking a good "fish" reading it's gametime. Nothing like watching those red and green lines rising towards your presentation.......... i'm an addict.

[john t.]

I know the rod and certainly your terminal tackle is important but I'm surprised nobody mentioned electronics! I think the key to successful jigging is having your jig "in the zone." And the best way to achieve that is with a good sonar unit. You can be using the best jig possible but there may not be any fish within fifty feet of your hole. Or you might be jigging bottom in 30fow and the fish are up at 15'. Personally I prefer not to use a spring bobber and rely on "feeling" the bite or watch the response of the line as you jig. Of course that requires a good sensitive rod. Hope this adds some insight to your question.  Lou

i did,  last line

[Parks Guy]

Hello Muskychuck

The next time you go fishing, set up four of your tipups and walk around.  Visit other anglers and look at what they are using and ask questions.  If they appear friendly, ask if you can try jigging with it (The reason for setting only four tipups).  If you find a setup you like, buy one.  The lakes are full of friendly people who are willing to help.

[iceotter28]

my jigg pole is fairly light with a 6 lb main line that i tie to a swedish pimple in the two inch range. i then tie a lighter florocarbon leader about a foot long to a micro jig off the split ring by the hook. i fish either black or chartreuse tipped with waxies. this combo will catch about any thing.

[snuffcan]

The thing that makes jiggin and tip up fishin not always "go together" is through mid season the best tip up fishin tends to be around shallow weedlines in coves and the best jiggin tends to be on deeper flats and main lake channels.These two areas aren't always close together. When you set try to find areas where you can stand over deeper water to jig and have tip ups in toward shallow weeds without being too far away. Early and late in the season you may find good jiggin and tip up fishin in similar shallow depths though. As for electronics, they are great for jiggin, but don't be discouraged from trying it if you don't have electronics. I caught thousands and thousands of pan fish over 30 years of ice fishing before I got a graph for ice fishing. Light line (light enough so the weight of your jig pulls your line tight when the jig is in the water) an ice jig tipped with a waxy or maggot. Drop the jig to the bottom, reel up a crank or two then jig and pause ...... If your rod feels heavy when you lift , pull! Use a very light rod or look for one with a spring bobber on it, because the bites can be very light.

  good luck

[muskychuck88]

thanks guys i will let you all know how it works for me

[capt.crappie]

I agree with the electronics, i may drill 5 or 6 holes until i find the sonar reading that i want. Once i'm marking a good "fish" reading it's gametime. Nothing like watching those red and green lines rising towards your presentation.......... i'm an addict.

I have been ice fishing for 20+ years & in my opinion electronics are not needed to catch fish. I catch more than my share of fish without any type of electronics. I grant you there are times that it might put you on fish. But a good jig fisherman doesn't need them. As far as jigs chuck. Every one has their favorites. most of mine are made by[ custom jigs & spins]. How ever any jig tipped with some type of bait works well. Even just a hook. If you prefer no bait try a jigging Rapala. I catch every thing from bass to pickeral on my jigging Rapala's. Most times I use no bait on them. Today I caught 8 bass on my Rapala.While other guys around me were catching nothing. Most of them were sitting looking at their electronic's.

[Ironeagle]

 1  this is prob best tip i can give you, fish like to come up to eat the bait, start just about a foot off the bottom, then jig a little, then slowly start raising the rod. this is when most fish will bite.
 2 dont over jig to fast, it not this fast up and down jiggin motion, only a few inches. and sometime just shake it like if you were cold and you hands were trembling.
  3 if you don't have a very flimsy tip rod(stiff) i would tell you to get a spring bobber for on your rod tip, this has helped me catch alot more fish.

[DMC44X]

I have been ice fishing for 20+ years & in my opinion electronics are not needed to catch fish. I catch more than my share of fish without any type of electronics. I grant you there are times that it might put you on fish. But a good jig fisherman doesn't need them. As far as jigs chuck. Every one has their favorites. most of mine are made by[ custom jigs & spins]. How ever any jig tipped with some type of bait works well. Even just a hook. If you prefer no bait try a jigging Rapala. I catch every thing from bass to pickeral on my jigging Rapala's. Most times I use no bait on them. Today I caught 8 bass on my Rapala.While other guys around me were catching nothing. Most of them were sitting looking at their electronic's.

I never said that i "NEEDED" electronics to catch fish, but i have one so i use it.

[jigginPig]

Quick simple tip on spring bobbers... Remember that your spring rising is also a strike...wont always pull down. This is also a reason light line is a must. Your jig should always pull your bobber down slightly when in the rested position. I dont agree with only jigging softly. There is a time for it but being agressive will produce fish also. Try different things and the fish will show you what they like...I promise! Yeah and get a flasher!

[Indiana_Lou]

That's why in my earlier reply I said about watching the reaction of you line. As the line is descending all of a sudden line starts stacking up on the surface as if it hit an obstruction and it did, "a fishes mouth!" There doesn't have to be a distinct pulling down of the rod tip or spring bobber. That also brings up a point of why I like to fish within my shanty regardless of the weather conditions. I feel I concentrate better because of less distractions when out in the elements or watching other fisherman chase flags,etc. I don't mean to be unsociable but I'm there to hopefully catch fish. Now this doesn't mean squat if you're out there when the fish are extremely aggressive and slamming anything in sight. I'm referring to catching fish during that "light bite". You know the time fisherman come off the ice and say, "No fish today they had lockjaw!" "Saw lots of fish on the screen but they wouldn't bite." Maybe they were biting you just didn't recognize the subtleness of it.   Lou

[jigginPig]

That's why in my earlier reply I said about watching the reaction of you line. As the line is descending all of a sudden line starts stacking up on the surface as if it hit an obstruction and it did, "a fishes mouth!" There doesn't have to be a distinct pulling down of the rod tip or spring bobber. That also brings up a point of why I like to fish within my shanty regardless of the weather conditions. I feel I concentrate better because of less distractions when out in the elements or watching other fisherman chase flags,etc. I don't mean to be unsociable but I'm there to hopefully catch fish. Now this doesn't mean squat if you're out there when the fish are extremely aggressive and slamming anything in sight. I'm referring to catching fish during that "light bite". You know the time fisherman come off the ice and say, "No fish today they had lockjaw!" "Saw lots of fish on the screen but they wouldn't bite." Maybe they were biting you just didn't recognize the subtleness of it.   Lou

Yep, Agreed.

[john t.]

 Maybe they were biting you just didn't recognize the subtleness of it.   Lou
[/quote]I call those bites vex bites. that's when a flasher comes in handy  ( any flasher )
but just starting out keep it simple, keep it fun. i don't run tipups( most of the time ) so i can consentrate on my jiggin rod.
i agree about fishing with some one that jig fishes

[jigginPig]

Maybe they were biting you just didn't recognize the subtleness of it.   Lou
I call those bites vex bites. that's when a flasher comes in handy  ( any flasher )
but just starting out keep it simple, keep it fun. i don't run tipups( most of the time ) so i can consentrate on my jiggin rod.
i agree about fishing with some one that jig fishes

Why use tip ups John, When you  catch catfish jiggin? lol

[john t.]

That's true.  lol    this was me this morning   

[Indiana_Lou]

Amen John t. Without getting in to the Vexilar vs Marcum war, I have a Marcum LX3-TC The colors are yellow weak, green stronger, red max. My favorite line is  "yellow, green, red.... fish is dead!" Well not always, I do practice some catch and release too. If my signal turns red I almost always lift and you'll feel that resistance. And up to that point there might not have been any indication of a bite. That's why I think electronics can really increase your odds of hook-ups. But to each their own. Speaking of catfish while jigging, two years ago on Yellow Creek I landed a 29" 10#-9oz channel cat on 2# test while jigging for crappies!   Lou

[muskychuck88]

well i was out today i forgot a lot of things like hooks my box with all my jigs in it so i came out with one jig wax worms tip ups an shinners no luck only got one fish nice perch but on a tip up but i think i have an idea of what i should be doin now hopefully i have better luck tomorrow