I fish regularly with these devices off the west coast of Florida. We usually swim within 100 miles of shore. The lures are deadly if there are fish. First, I would reduce the line to 150 pounds. We caught a mako shark last weekend and it didn’t even pat the leash. Second, make sure the hooks are at least halfway through the anchorage on the big bindings. As for the work, lower everything to the bottom and reel one turn, then lift and reel down to find slack. A high speed reel definitely helps, we use 6:1 reels. If you get halfway up the water column, drop down and do it all over again. The fish are usually caught near the bottom. If you feel strikes on the jigs and don’t get a hook, use the ones where the hooks come to the end of the jigs.
The only other tip is to bring the jig almost to free fall, but still stay on very loose line. This is a bit tricky to do, and the speed of the rod tip when lowering the jig depends on the weight of the jig and the depth at which the fish is. After setting it up, a few swings are enough to determine the speed of the drop. In my experience, there will be a lot of strikes right after the jig reaches the apex.
This puts you at a disadvantage if you are using the full stroke of the rod tip, as the tip may be too high to catch on when the fish strike. I prefer to do half-track wiring if at all possible. However, the fish were demanding full strikes that day, so I was missing hooks on about every third strike. I quickly got used to this technique.
If you’re after smaller fish, you can use light-weight jig heads with small grubs or minnows as bait. For bigger fish, like trout or bass, use a heavier-weight jig head with larger bait. Another option is to simply cast out your jig and let it sink to the bottom; when you feel a bite, reel in slowly. Experiment to see what works best in your particular fishing situation.
When casting your line, make sure to allow the jig time to sink before beginning your retrieve. For best results, fish the jig in areas with lots of structure, such as around downed trees or submerged rocks.
The best way to fish them is by casting them out and allowing them to sink to the bottom before retrieving them with a slow twitching action.
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