Worm/jig bite 2025
Catt reply :
Ok let's see if we can shed some light on the subject of feeling a worm or jig bite; many people say the two are totally different but I believe they are very similar. Let me first start by comparing what is felt with a variety of other baits.
Top water: with these baits the bass will generally suck the bait in from underneath, from behind, or come completely out of the water.
Spinner bait/crank bait: with these baits the bass will generally hit from the side or from underneath.
With these baits there is a certain amount of line movement because the bass are moving when they hit the bait.
Worm/jig: with these baits the bass will simply flare its gills causing a vacuum which moves water and your bait into their mouth. With this bite there is very little if any line movement thereby not much is transmitted to your rod tip.
The art of feeling a worm/jig bite is a fine combination of watching your line and feeling for unnatural sensations of what your bait should feel like. Some times you will feel that classic Tap, some times you'll only see line movement, some times your line will simply go slack, but some times there will only be a feeling of heaviness that is almost like your line will not move. The bites where the bass moves after inhaling you bait are the easy ones to feel because there is line movement, the bites where the bass simply inhales your bait and just sits there are the hardest to feel. Feeling a worm/jig bite requires keeping a certain amount of tension on your line while at the same time keeping a certain amount of slackness in your line. To the average angler this makes no sense at all but the worm/jig angler it makes total sense.
Tommy T
bassbob08 reply :
I always keep a little slack in the line,not so much that its lying all over the water but so that my line is bowed from my rod tip to the water.I feel that, if I feel the fish before I see the line move I react faster,I guess my thinking is if I feel the fish before I see the line move,its almost to late.It sounds correct to me. have been doing it that way in forever and it works.
roadwarrior reply :
I find the most important difference between the two bites is the holding period. Bass will hold a soft plastic MUCH longer than a jig. I think the texture of soft plastics feels right whereas lead does not. I find jig fishing challenging and I think it requires a much quicker response.
CJ reply :
I agree CATT.Nice thread.
For the most part an angler must be quicker with a jig but it is not always that way.
IdahoLunkerHunter reply :
QuoteI find the most important difference between the two bites is the holding period. Bass will hold a soft plastic MUCH longer than a jig. I think the texture of soft plastics feels right whereas lead does not. I find jig fishing challenging and I think it requires a much quicker response.
Have you been reading my mind RW? This is exactly how I feel. You better be ready to set the hook asap when jig fishing, I usually give a second or two more when fishing plastics, I seem to lose less hook sets this way.
roadwarrior reply :
I have been working on my jig fishing for two years with some limited success. I know this will make me a better fisherman, but the learning curve has been steep.
Pond Hopper reply :
QuoteI find the most important difference between the two bites is the holding period. Bass will hold a soft plastic MUCH longer than a jig. I think the texture of soft plastics feels right whereas lead does not. I find jig fishing challenging and I think it requires a much quicker response.
I agree completely, jig fishing requires quick reactions and hooksets at the slightest detection of a bite(thanks HawgHunter). Worm or soft palstic fishing to me,, gets more small panfish bites and often time I will let them run with it a couple feet to ensure a solid hookset. To me fishing the 2 is different also, but thats a different thread also. 
Corey
Siebert Outdoors reply :
very nice Catt.
This is a going to be a very opinionated post but here goes.
IMO to learn how to "feel" the jig. Start night fishing. I believe this has made my jig fishing even better.
Reasons:
Not much going on lake wise
Nothing to look at and will give you better concentration.
When you cant see you relie on feel. This is where a good rod comes into play. You can feel the jig and every move it makes. After awhile you will learn what is and isnt a bite for the most part. The difference between, wood, rocks, mud, etc. I think night fishing is a good use for a learning tool.
Catt reply :
I totally agree RW that the difference is in the holding period but the feel of the bite are very much alike in that the bites are subtle. Both requiring total concentration and an awareness of what is taking place with the lure.
GMAN I believe every one who wants to truly learn what a worm and jig bite feels like should night fish.
Some thing else that taught me how to feel that subtle bite was the fact that during the 70s we used what is known a Bubba tackle which is heavy rods and line no lighter than 25# test. After becoming accustomed to this tackle, the change to today's more sensitive rods along with lighter line only magnifies the subtle bites.
nboucher reply :
Not to make jig fishing too Zen, but one of the things I like best about this kind of fishingand I've come to love jig fishingis that it has really forced me to learn how to fish by feel. There's obviously a lot of truth to watching your line, etc., but I do that anyway, whatever the bait. In fact, I often find that jig bites happen so quickly that afterward I'm hard pressed to tell you what I reacted to. Something triggered my hookset, but it happens so instinctively that I often don't know whether I responded to sight, feel, or just some kind of jig mojo that doesn't have a name. I'm convinced that the key to jig fishing is to do it a lot and then to do it some more, even if it's sometimes frustrating. Analyze it if it helps, but above all, try to just feel it.
David P reply :
This is what I have been trying to get the hang of for the past month now and have come a LONG way sense I first started.
The tap tap is the easiest to detect, obviously.
Just recently I have begun to set the hook when I feel resistance though, and many times this has resulted in a fish of decent size.
It's tough though when there's tons of weeds and stuff in the lake you fish because I feel resistance 90% of the time.
It's ironic that you post this when I've been dealing with the same issue and really trying to master this one part of fishing.
Bass XL reply :
I have really enjoyed using the jig lately....mainly because I got the skill down. I noticed that the jig hit can be just like a worm hit, but dif. Most of my jig fish suck it in, and swimm left or right. Or they just suck it in and start shaking like crazy. But I also do feel that famous "tap tap" like a worm bite.
justfishin reply :
I feel soft plastics fishing comes with experiance. You have to learn for yourself whats going on at the end of your line. The taps, ticks, weightless feeling, line watching, judging the depth and seeing your line stop before it hits bottom are all generated from personal experiance. Jig fishing is a little different. Anything unusual and set the hook. They will not hold on near as long, especially with a 1/2 jig and big trailer. Most of the jig bites are on the fall so pay attention. I always keep a finger on the line while jig fishing, even when flipping in which makes up 90% of my green bass tactic in heavy cover.
moby bass reply :
I have a question here on jig fishing. I've recently started to try it. It seems as though every jig I find has the fiber weed guards on them. It seems to me that this would be unnecessary in open water and would make the hookset more difficult. Do you guys always keep the weedguards on or do you cut them off.
Is it more difficult to set the hook or does the bass inhale the whole rig sufficiently that a strong set pushes
the fiber out of the way. Also what weight rod and line. I know this will depend on how heavy the cover might be but in general. Last night I was trying a jig in some open water, hopping it on the bottom, using
a 7 ft. medium rod. The tip flexed quite a bit, giving good action without much rod movement, and I could feel the bottom but I don't know how well a hookset would have gone. I believe the jig was 3/8 oz plus trailer.
Catt reply :
I can not think of any place I fish that doesn't have heavy cover but I think if you are fishing areas with limited amounts of cover you would be better off using a jig without fiber weed guards with say a Fat Ika type bait.
Here's my selection of rods
Jig Rod
Daiwa TD-V701MHRB Team Daiwa-V
Length: 7' 0
Line Class: 10-20 lb
Lure Weight: 1/4-1 oz
Power: Heavy
Action: Fast
Coupled with a Shimano Cardiff CDF100A spooled with Power Pro 50#.
Worm Rod #1
Shimano Crucial CRC-X610MH
Length: 6' 10
Line: 10-20 lb
Lure: 3/8-3/4 oz.
Power: Medium Heavy
Action: Extra Fast
Coupled with a Shimano Calcutta CT100A spooled with Berkley Big Game 15#.
Worm Rod #2
Castaway CSAP68 Sport Series All Purpose
Length: 6' 8
Line Class: 10 to 17 lbs.
Lure Weight: 5/16-3/4 oz.
Power: Medium Heavy
Action: Extra Fast
Coupled with a Shimano Calcutta CT100A spooled with Berkley Big Game 15#.
justfishin reply :
For open water jigging I trim the bulk of the guards off, as well as, trim the weed guards down and flex them so when bent against the hook it only takes up about 1/8-1/4 beyond the point. If its grass I usually " fan " my guard, as well. I do this both for open water and " Swimmin " a jig and worm. I don't think a medium rod is suited well for a jig, I would go to a 6'6"-7' MH-H and Xtra Fast. A great all around jig rod is a Team All Star 6'10" MH. Catts choices are excellent. As far as line choice mine in swimming and open water is green #15 Big Game. For flippin wood and spatterdock I usually use #20 Big Game, or Sten Dura Tough. If I am around a lot of Zebra Mussels, as on the Lower Potomoc in DC, I like to use Trilene XT in #25.
Catt reply :
Sometimes when answering someone's questions its easier to bring up old threads 
buzzfrog reply :
great thread, i set my hook on everything, fishing from the shore it is hard to get a hit, gotta watch the, line, The harf part for me is when it seems to fall right in front of them the take it and do nothing, thats hard for me, no knowing the deph of the water, and not sure if my bait has fallen... i think jigs are the hardest of the artificial bait to use
Bankbeater reply :
Good post, Catt.
POPRG reply :
No doubt,good post Catt..i feel a jig bite is a bit more violent than a worm bite to me. Also some good replys as to a jig being dropped a bit quicker than a worm.
That jig "tap--crush-tap.." VS a worm suck it up and mosey away..i tend to line watch more closely wormin' than jiggin.
Was out today..20+ MPH winds,choppy white-caps throwing a 3/8 brauer jig w/ a rage chunk trailer draggin reeeal slooow and could still feel that jig take over the down timber/stumps....except for the one who decided to swim directly at me after the take! though i lost her on the hook set,but she held the jig and i hooked her at the lift-up for a new cast 
ChiCityBasser reply :
I haven't had any success with the jig in the few times I have tried it but I have been using the senko and fat ika after reading a post by RW. I can only speak on the worm bite after having much success and learning to really feel the bite except when the fish just picks it up and moves off with it. I've had great success fishing with the worm, fat ika and creature baits and agree it's a matter of line watching and other factors plus the rod and line that contribute as well and practice, practice, practice and more practice. There have been days that only my plastics rods come out with me so I can get a better feel for the bites and learn what the cover and bottom feel like when using the fat ika and that has really made a difference in my hookup ratio.
Great post Catt also.
Catt reply :
Sometimes when answering someone's questions its easier to bring up old threads
00 mod reply :
On 6/29/2013 at 8:59 AM, Catt said:Sometimes when answering someone's questions its easier to bring up old threads
And this is a GREAT one to bring back up!
Jeff
WRB reply :
I agree with Catt on the strike; engulf the jig or worm into the back of the mouth to crunch it and kill the critter by flaring the gill covers, opening their big mouth pumping water and the jig or worm in. If you don't feel or see the line move or stop, you miss the strike. To me jigs are smaller and the weight is part of the hook, so the whole jig goes into the mouth of LMB. If the jig doesn't feel right to the bass, it's rejected just as quickly as it was engulfed.
A worm rigged with a sliding sinker the bass usually gets just the worn without the weight into it mouth and a soft plastic worm feels real. With a worm the bass will actually eat and swallow it if you leave enough slack in the line, this rarely happens with a jig.
Tom
CPBassFishing reply :
I agree with your sentence about keeping tightness and slack in your line at the same time. Fluorocarbon really helps me with this because of its slack line sensitivity. I keep enough slack so I can feel the fish but it does not feel me. Great post Catt.
mr.kagrise reply :
Though I'm a fairly new convert to the jig, soft plastics are my bread and butter. A LOT of creature baits this year! That being said, I gotta agree with the importance of your rod. For me, fishing a jig and trailer can be tough because of the weight. You go from hopping a craw with a 3/16 weight to working a 3/8 jig plus trailer, that added weight can cause a lot of false hook sets. There's nothing wrong with that, misses are free, but a quality rod takes a lot of that away. Once you make your mind up to learn a technique, fish that technique all day. Practice, practice, practice!
WRB reply :
Bumped this back up for those new worm/jig anglers.
Tom
Fishingintheweeds reply :
On 7/19/2007 at 12:14 PM, David P said:This is what I have been trying to get the hang of for the past month now and have come a LONG way sense I first started.
The tap tap is the easiest to detect, obviously.
Just recently I have begun to set the hook when I feel resistance though, and many times this has resulted in a fish of decent size.
It's tough though when there's tons of weeds and stuff in the lake you fish because I feel resistance 90% of the time.
It's ironic that you post this when I've been dealing with the same issue and really trying to master this one part of fishing.
So, you're saying that you didn't do anything different, other than deciding to set the hook now, at the times you felt resistance? As in, the things you felt didn't change, you just changed your behavior and began setting the hook on resistance?
It seems like that would be the way...or how else would you know. Just to see. I'm asking now though because you're the only person I've seen whose said you did everything the same, all you did was set the hook more. And you found out it WASN'T just some vegetation or dragging over a rock, and you caught more fish.
That's very straight forward. Ha, ha, I'm not sure if David P is still out there, 11 years later...but maybe? Has anyone else had this experience?
Fishingintheweeds reply :
On 6/29/2013 at 8:59 AM, Catt said:Sometimes when answering someone's questions its easier to bring up old threads
What is the best post about rod quality? I have two mh, but they're very different and the one I mostly throw the frogs on, is kind of a broom stick. I don't think there's a problem with the rod, it just might be better suited for something else. The length is good but it's heavy. I've thrown a 3/8-1/2 oz jig on it but the more I've done this, the more I've started to think that there's a lot I may be missing due to a lack of sensitivity.
Catt reply :
@Fishingintheweeds
In 2007 my jig rod was a Daiwa TD-V701MHRB Team Daiwa-V, not exactly a highly sensitive rod by today's standards. Still got that old rod... still catch fish with it!
Caught 1,000s of bass on Berkley Lighting Rods ????
Sensitivity starts with your line & rod but ends with your hands & brain.
Even the most experienced anglers still set hook on grass, twigs, leafs, or whatever.
Fishingintheweeds reply :
Right. I'm certain that the rods I have now are probably 10 times better than the rods used by the very first, good jig fisherman...and he still caught the fish. Same for a lot of the baits. Since I've started back up a few years ago, I've already accumulated way more stuff, rods and reels than most sane people. So, I try to remind myself of the above on a regular basis.
I guess that was what I was looking to read various opinions on, if the rod actually makes THAT much difference. Right now, the line on that rod is 50 lb braid. Mostly because I spend a lot of time chunking frogs with it and then, really whatever else isn't too light for that setup. Based on some of what I've read so far, I may try the jigs on another rod that already has lighter line on it.
So, one thing by itself isn't the magic, the improvement comes from the combination of these things more than just the rod. And it sounds like a good place for me to start would be with lighter line and a lot more practice.
Ha, until I started going down this rabbit hole, I'd never considered setting the hook on what's probably nothing, just in case. But this week, I can't count the number of times. I guess I gotta get one, or 100, like THAT before I know the difference between whatever that was...and all the ones that were nothing.
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