Big Jigs

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Originally Posted by ScottV

The main reason for the big hooks is the size of the mouth on the big 2 lb plus crappie. The hook up ratio really increases with a bigger hook. Of course if you hang up, you might as well get ready to tie another one on. Lol

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I understand the big mouth on the 2 pound plus crappie, I catch my share of them here too, but I just have a different way of thinking about that. First I really believe if you put the color they really want on then they will inhale the jig and the hook gets in close to their throat, Now if they are just not active maybe the lips get hooked a good bit, but when active and you actually hit the color really right on they will end up with that hook way in the back of their mouth and then hook size makes no difference. Now I am really careful when I can see one of my little 1/32 Oz Roadrunners when reeling the fish in because I know it's not in the back of their mouth and then any hard pull may tear it out, but then I figure that would be the same with any hook.
I know you guys average more big fish than we do, but we do catch a lot of 14" to 16" crappie and every once in a while a 17" or even an 18" one. Still I am more a believer in getting the color they want most and if I do I know that jig will not even be seen coming in. At least that is my thinking on that. I do use some #2 Sickles, but even that is a big old hook. All the walleye jig heads I got that are 1/8 all have the #2 Sickles in them and I do even have some #2's and #1's in 1/4, but still mostly personal use I go to the #4 more.

Think about this for a minute and know it shocked me when he told me this, but a guide here on Toledo Bend that use to be the only full time crappie jig here and has his own lodge uses a 1/8 with a #6 regular bend hook, LOL! Now for me even that is just too small, but he swears his customers loose less jigs that way. Personally I don't really care about losing a jig because I have thousands of them so no big deal about that. I guess if I ever porve it to my self that it's better to go big hook I would so guess now I will have to experiment some, but of course my little Roadrunners in spring just have the hook they have so not then. I know with them we hardly loose many fish at all and we do hammer them in spring.

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Originally Posted by ScottV

It must have been tied really well to stand up that long. Lol

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Have had some guys tell me they had a jig last for up to 300 fish. I know the Roadrunners don't make it that long because of the marabou tail gets eaten off faster than hackle, but even one of them can last way over 100.

Scott you should really come fishing with me in the Spring! we would have a lot of fun!

Hi Skip, hi Scott, usually just keep quiet but ya;ll have brought up something i've been experimenting with just that [hook size] one day last Jan. on the Tombigbee river me and a friend of mine was fishing in competition he swears by minners and me by jigs well we fished all day side by side, he is a super crappie fisherman he was using a 18 ft. pole an me with with a 11 ft.b&m fishing in 21 fow catching fish around 17 to 18 fow,he had me 4 fish to my 1, I was missing a lot of fish it was unreal something i've always had a problem with, something had to change are I was about to get smoked so I changed from a 3/32 #4 hooked jig to a 3/32 #2 hooked jig the hook set ratio went up dramatically I was amazed and he was to after 7 hrs on the water he had 19 fish to my 24 fish a day I want forget. since then all my jigs carry a #2 hook and not missing hardly any fish.

Good story. On my local lake, Okatibbee, I usually use a 1/6 oz or 1/8 oz jig tied on a #1 red sickle. I'll tip the jig with a Crappie Nibble. I don't tie anything smaller than #2. I pull crankbaits all summer and when a crappie gets a whole crankbait in his mouth, I wouldn't think a #1 sickle hook would be too big. If I were single poling tight cover, I'd use a smaller hook. I mostly spider rig though, using 12' poles. I fish the submerged stumps along the creek channel. I've got lots of them as weighpoints on my GPS fishfinder. While I'm pulling cranks during the summer, I'll mark any stump I go over cause after the water starts cooling off, that's where the crappie will be. Even during the spring spawn, I'm in the middle of the lake catching good crappie 10 to 12 ft deep off of the stumps.

The 3/32 is in between 1/16 and 1/8 I love that size all on hand tied jigs.

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Originally Posted by crappie legend

The 3/32 is in between 1/16 and 1/8 I love that size all on hand tied jigs.

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I like the 3/32 walleye head. I use it a lot.