How can I make my jigs weedless?

The weedless jig is actually a patented device (US Patent 4864766) and consists of a bundle of individual stainless steel wires, all very fine, molded into the head of a jig.  This forms a weed deflector.  The wires are generally separable and form an array of deflectors according to the user’s design and preference.  The bundle of fine wires is flexible and mechanically interlocked into the head of the jig by an innovative method of molding.

Depending on the target species of your fishing excursion, you may not really want a weedless jig.  For example, when you are fishing for crappie, you shouldn’t be swimming your jig through the brush anyway.  Vertical jigging works better, and the wire molding on the jig tends to deflect crappie as much as it does the weeds.  In fact, if you read a lot of forums, you’ll find that many anglers who buy the weedless jigs clip off a lot of the weedguards and use just a few of the plastic pieces on the jig.

Instead of spending the time making your own jigs weedless, I would suggest making a trip to the local bait and tackle shop to purchase one or two jigheads with brush guards.  Once you have them, take one and trim about half the length of the weed deflectors off.  Now, try fishing with both of them and see what you think.  Not every specialty device works well for all anglers, and you may or may not like these tools.  Either way, buying a tester sure beats spending a lot of time creating your own, especially if you hate them!

Tags: crappie fly fishing, crappie fishing in ohio, crappie ice fishing, crappie fishing gear, california crappie fishing, crappie fishing kentucky