Learn how to rig jigheads onto various soft plastics popular for inshore fishing. When you do, you'll catch more speckled trout and redfish!
That's because the fishing in Louisiana can get really good. It’s so good a novice can fish with poorly rigged tackle and still catch a fantastic box of speckled trout and redfish. I know, because I used to be that guy.
But when the fish got finicky I stopped catching them so easily! I eventually learned how to throw a jig, and part of that journey was learning to properly rig jigheads in the first place. Once I mastered that, I began catching more speckled trout and redfish, especially when the bite got tough.
Nicer speckled trout tend to become easier to catch when you rig your tackle correctly.
How to Properly Rig Jigheads and Soft Plastics
In this guide you'll learn how to rig jigheads onto:
Orient The Lure On The Jighead Correctly
The tail must be pointed down and the hook pointed up. This is how paddle tail baits are made to swim through the water. Straight tail baits don’t have this feature, so rig them on a jighead them with the belly down. Sparkle beetles can be rigged with the red dot on the side, top or bottom.
One exception to these rules are the Deadly Dudley Rat Tails. Rig those with the textured side up. Berkley Live Gulp Shrimp in New Penny are another. Sometimes they have the darker color on the bottom of the lure, rather than on top. Rig these with the darker color on the bottom.
The above picture depicts the incorrect way to rig jigheads. They are crooked, upside down and, like the sparkle beetle, just plain wrong. The soft plastics below are oriented correctly on a jighead.
Rig Jigheads So the body Is straight, not crooked
If a soft plastic has a straight back then it needs to be rigged onto the jighead in such a manner that it remains straight.
The above picture is not the correct way to rig jigheads onto a Vortex Shad. The body needs to be straight so it swims correctly and hook sets are complete.
This is how it’s done! You want the body straight so the paddle tail can do its job. Also, the hook is exposed more to better pin the fish.
Rig Jigheads To Be centered, not off to the side
The hook must exit the lure’s body in the center or the bait will not swim correctly. A funny-swimming bait is less likely to get bit by a fish and makes for inconsistent action when swapping colors or fresh bodies.
If the hook exits the body off-center the lure will swim at an odd angle through the water. This can deter a fish from striking, especially during difficult bites like what you may encounter on The Trestles.
You want to rig jigheads so that the hook exits dead center from the lure body. This way the lure swims straight through the water and fish are more likely to bite.
Just remember this simple trick...
A simple trick to rig jigheads is to lay it over the lure body to visualize where the hook should exit. This way you get it right the first time and avoid destroying the soft plastic with multiple attempts. This way water flows against it, and not with it, creating maximum action as the bait falls.
How To Rig Jigheads On Curly Tail Grubs
Rig these like any other soft plastic, but with the special consideration that the tail is facing down, opposite from the hook.
The next step is to get the bait in front of the fish...
So now you know how to properly rig jigheads on popular soft plastics used for inshore fishing: paddle tail swimbaits, straight tail soft plastics and curly tail grubs. But it doesn't matter how well your lure is rigged because if a fish never sees it then how can she possibly bite it?
The next step is to learn how to get your lure in front of fish so they can bite it. For that I recommend my free video course detailing exactly how to do that.
Learn how to find biting fish and you'll consistently make great catches!
But there's one more important detail...
The best thing you can do is find biting fish in the first place. If you can pull this off then it really won't matter whether or not you properly rig jigheads because biting fish are going to give it a try anyway.
How do you find this desirable fishing scenario? Well, it begins with judging the conditions, those that are predicted and the conditions that happened leading up to the day of your fishing trip.
After that, you want to be able to safely navigate to those fishing spots and back to the dock. This and more is what I teach inside my flagship course, Inshore Fishing 101, which contains 12 hours of video spread across 50+ lessons with instructor support from yours truly.
Inshore Fishing 101 is Convenient
I loved the easiness of going through Inshore Fishing 101, and that I could go back and redo a video lesson.
The content is outstanding! Devin is easy to listen to and follow along. His passion and knowledge of our fabulous fishery is something everyone that wants to better their game should consider.
I have done my best to transfer my knowledge of the marsh to my grandsons. They will watch Inshore Fishing 101, at a minimum.
Leo Damaris
Grandfather
No More Frustration
I too was frustrated with the many times I went and fished all day only to come home with little to nothing.
I have been an Elite member now for a couple of months, and while I haven't loaded the boat yet, I can say that I have learned a lot.
Some of the stuff that Devin teaches, I think that I already was doing but not understanding why. Plus I learned the things that "I didn't know that I did not know".
I am very pleased with LAFB Elite, and recommend it to anyone who's on the fence considering if they should join or not.
Like Devin says: it costs less that a bucket of live shrimp, so what do you have to lose?
Dannie Spivey
South Carolina Angler
No more getting skunked!
I've been fishing Lake Pontchartrain since I was a kid and learned a lot inside Inshore Fishing 101.
What stuck out the most to me was presenting baits to fish. I got skunked many times until I learned how to do it the right way.
I love to laugh, so the humor you put in the videos was awesome.
It took about two weeks for me to complete Inshore Fishing 101. I've already applied things you taught me and have increased my catch.
Thank you, Captain Devin!
Matthew Tamburello
Over To You
Do you have a preferred way to rig jigheads? Is there something you think this guide is missing and could benefit from? If so, please share it in the comments below.
Tight lines, and thanks for visiting!
