MY SECRET JIG COLOR & HOW TO MAKE IT ~ DIY
If anyone is going to copy my method above for melting their lead on a kitchen hob they need to also follow my safety measures which I neglected to mention in the post . A word of caution to all, do not melt lead inside, very dangerous for your neurons ; unless you plan on retirering soon. Paint- I prefer to use powder paint for its durability and ease of use. “The most helpful instructions were how to unhook a fish.”
I also moulded some putty around the area where the wire extended from the lead head creating a small hump of sorts on the shank of the hook which would serve as a holder for the skirt later on. I used a scrap of poplar wood to fashion a mould of sorts as can be seen in the sequence of pictures below. I choose poplar for the mould making as it is very smooth grained and quite easy to work with. You will notice that the mould making procedure is a bit on the ‘rough and ready’ side.
Jigging lures, or jigs, are some of the most versatile lures in that they can be used in just about any place you find fish. Jigs comes in all shapes, colors, styles and weights and can be fished in a variety of different manners so that they mimic baitfish. The two most common jigs are probably the bucktail jig and the vertical jig. Depending on the species you want to catch, it’s important to learn the difference between the two so you can understand, for example, the best jig for bass fishing.
Don’t worry about having a perfect design just yet; you’ll be able to sand the lure down later. Flipping jigs take advantage of a bass’s ambush-style strike tactics. Drop your jig to the bottom of a healthy patch of weeds or a rock shelf. Keeping a little slack in the line, give the rod tip a few sharp lifts to hop the jig along the bottom. This motion represents a crawfish’s defensive movement, which is the primary prey for rock-oriented bass.
This time I fixed on the cable tie as tightly as possible around the neck of the jig head thus trapping the skirt in place. These colours would serve as a base coat for the scale pattern that I planned to spray on next – black being a base for silver scales and silver being a base for black scales. Make boisterous vertical motions with your rod by flicking your wrist and popping your fishing rod tip up a short distance.
This bundle was tied together temporarily and loosely at it’s centre using a small cable tie to keep it all together – see the picture below. Our trained team of editors and researchers validate articles for accuracy and comprehensiveness. WikiHow’s Content Management Team carefully monitors the work from our editorial staff to ensure that each article is backed by trusted research and meets our high quality standards. Vary your movements by jigging the rod up and down and side-to-side. A bit of experimenting turned up little information about making the jump from fly tying to lure making (perhaps I didn’t know where to look), so I called Brian Schmidt.
Vertical jigs will have one or more dangling hooks attached to a split ring which can be attached to the top or the bottom of the jig. Vertical jigs range anywhere from 1/8oz up to 14oz and are also referred to as “butterfly jigs.” The Jig Heads After Being ‘Dressed’ with Epoxy PuttyAlthough probably not really necessary I gave the jig heads one coat of epoxy clear coat before painting. This was easy to do as I was set up for and clear coating some other lures anyway – had I not been I might have skipped this step altogether. A Single Coat of Epoxy was Applied to Help Protect the PaintThe jig heads were finally finished off by dotting on some eyes and giving the whole paint job a covering with some epoxy clear coating. A bit of fiddling about with some wire and a pliers resulted in the arrangement that can be seen in the picture below.
Football jigs feature a head with two tapered ends like a football, and a light, thin hook that immediately pierces the bass’s mouth. The football-shaped head creates an unpredictable yet stable movement pattern along rocky bottoms. Dragging, rather than hopping or jerking the jig across the bottom of the water, causes the jig to wobble from side to side, which looks like a walking crawfish.
If you’re interested in making jigs, custom trebles, spinnerbaits, or buzz baits start by getting a good vise and a stout bobbin. Other tools include a whip finisher, scissors, a pair of pliers, and some quality super glue. Pick up a few basic materials like hooks with jig heads, various feathers, and rubber skirts, and you’re ready to start creating. To make a fishing lure out of a spoon, start by cutting the bowl end off with a hacksaw. Then, use a metal file to smooth out the edges of your spoon so they don’t harm the fish.
That means matching the weight of each jig to the depth at which you are fishing. Deeper water will require heavier jigs to reach the bottom. It is also important to take the tides and current into consideration when choosing your jig weight. Attaching the Skirt to the Jig HeadWith the jig skirt now in place I replaced the elastic band with a cable tie .
Dion Liriano is a 51-year-old American zookeeper who has retired from the business. He was once a highly successful director of the Zoo and Aquarium, but he has since hung up his gloves and moved on to other ventures. Dion's passion for animals began at a young age, when he would help his father care for their family pets. This love grew exponentially when he started working at the zoo; Dion quickly became one of the most experienced keepers in the business. He credits his success to the relationships he built with both staff and animals over the years.