Thread: The Umbrella Rig for Crappie (Minibrella)...

These rigs are used all the time in salt water. I have used them on fishing boats in Florida. They are sometimes uses just as Chris said, but in the salt, most of the time they are used as teasers to get the fish up so you can cast to them. They do resemble a school of bait fish. There is also a rig with 6 small fly type hooks that hang straight down, its called a Zabinki rig. I have a couple of them in my kit. They are used to catch bait fish. I spent several years as 1st mate on a fishing boat in Florida when I got out of the Navy in 1971.

Originally Posted by ceb

I remember reading an article about this rig in Crappie World. I think you can make them be more than one hook. However, the principle behind the use of it is that the rig resembles a baitfish school. The one "hooked" lure is a little longer than the rest of the lures. Therefore, the rig now looks like a school of baitfish with one hanging lower and sticking out like a sore thumb. The crappie (and other fish) are programmed to hit that one lure that sticks out from the rest of the school of baitfish, and that's the one that just happens to have the hook in it...

Otherwise...these rigs are going to be difficult to troll. If you do, you'd better go with superbraid line and change out the sinker that comes with the rig to a heavier one. After saying all this...I've never even held one in my hands, so be sure to give us a report on how they do!

Ps...and they do look like a mobile that would hang in a kids room.

CEB, great information, thanks for sharing...I wonder if that article is archived on a website somewhere? I'll go looking around. I'll let you know if I have any luck at all, I ordered two of them....MM

Originally Posted by rockmike

They are just a small version of the umbrella rigs used for stripers and salt water fish. You could change out the teasers for hooked baits, but they are hard enough to use with only one hook. They probably catch more fishermen than fish, but I'm a sucker for something like this.

I am kind of with you RockMike....I am not a sucker, but I for SURE just HAVE to know for myself if something works or not, haha. Thanks for the post, it sounds like I should rig one with several hooks and one with teasers and see how the two differ in performance...the PROOF is in the PUDDING! Thanks.

MM

Originally Posted by flyflinger

These rigs are used all the time in salt water. I have used them on fishing boats in Florida. They are sometimes uses just as Chris said, but in the salt, most of the time they are used as teasers to get the fish up so you can cast to them. They do resemble a school of bait fish. There is also a rig with 6 small fly type hooks that hang straight down, its called a Zabinki rig. I have a couple of them in my kit. They are used to catch bait fish. I spent several years as 1st mate on a fishing boat in Florida when I got out of the Navy in 1971.

Wow, impressive resume you must have FlyFinger...!! Did you ever fish around Ocala? I cannot remember where it is but I went once, we had to go through a manatee zone to get out to where the fresh water and salt water divide by these huge rock islands?? Sound familiar at all? MM

Originally Posted by crappiemaster

the guy that makes then lives in South Carolina. He will sell them to you for about $8. He makes then out leader wire. They used to have a phone # to reach then on there web page but it looks like they change it. I think Burditt baits is in Anderson, SC.

Thanks for the information, if you get his number, let me know please, thanks.

MM