jiggerjohn
Active member
- Joined
- Mar 23, 2010
- Messages
- 547
During this season so far, I've discovered how to totally" mop up" trout ,crappies, largemouth and smallmouth bass, and even carp and catfish ! Yep, I studied the trout fly fishers use of 1" mop nubs from auto cleaning mitts, which has been so productive for them as bright ,fat little grub imitators. Then, lured on by spirited you tube videos by a fellow with the handle "crappie hippie", I saw the value of expanding the fly tier's art to our warmwater jig species. Once on to this inexpensive, glowing chartreuse or flo orange material ,my catch rate of rainbow trout and crappies went through the roof, with continuation into early summer for Lake Erie largemouth & smallmouth bass, panfish, sheepshead, and channel cats. Lately, large local carp have become HUGE fans !
Of course, it's extremely easy to simply lash a single mop nub below the neck of a small jig in the 1/32 to 1/16 oz size,using those nifty leadfree roundheads, with no 8 O'Shaughnessy hooks from our own Hawnjigs! This is actually the only tie needed, tho I sometimes spiral on a wool or dog hair collar to cover the wraps. Fished alone, with tiny rod twitches while slowly sinking, the soft ,sensitive microfiber moplet fidgets enticingly, sometimes wobbling side-to-side, or jukes up and down. It's caught around 15 species so far, 16 if you include the irate snapping turtle that grabbed on the other morning!
As famed Nebraskan jig fishing Ace, Keith Okimoto constantly chastises me, though, I'm never satisfied to let well enough alone ! I started wondering if the mop action swinging so loosely and attractively below could possibly mimic a very colorful "underspin" effect ,minus a weed catching metal blade. SO I placed a small paddletail straight out from the very rear of the hook on my mop jigs, and found this extra swim and vibration, actually creating a double action, was sheer dynamite on bass and crappies! (any slim soft plastic will work as this backside tipping, and will greatly benefit from a brilliant chartreuse, actionized belly). Then remembering how small double tail, crab like jigs always produced, I started tying a twin mop tail, each leg splayed out to the side, just at hook bend, and spiraled some material up front to cover the hook shank ; fished on a twitching drop with UL gear, hard fished pond bass and panfish went nuts! Oh, and my carp? Since the jig is essentially a MOP, I soaked my one inch jig in corn juice, tipped with a corn kernal, and let the slow descending wobble catch their eye ,let it rest on bottom for a few seconds, reel a bit more & drop again, etc. They grabbed on to this aromatic little morsei, held on to the soft tasty offering, then TOOK OFF to long battle !!
Oh, I'll still continue to play with new variations, but this may be the only jig I'll ever tie again for most freshwater fishing!! Get yourself a light jighead, a mop nub, and a length of tying thread, then you'll "mop up", too!
Of course, it's extremely easy to simply lash a single mop nub below the neck of a small jig in the 1/32 to 1/16 oz size,using those nifty leadfree roundheads, with no 8 O'Shaughnessy hooks from our own Hawnjigs! This is actually the only tie needed, tho I sometimes spiral on a wool or dog hair collar to cover the wraps. Fished alone, with tiny rod twitches while slowly sinking, the soft ,sensitive microfiber moplet fidgets enticingly, sometimes wobbling side-to-side, or jukes up and down. It's caught around 15 species so far, 16 if you include the irate snapping turtle that grabbed on the other morning!
As famed Nebraskan jig fishing Ace, Keith Okimoto constantly chastises me, though, I'm never satisfied to let well enough alone ! I started wondering if the mop action swinging so loosely and attractively below could possibly mimic a very colorful "underspin" effect ,minus a weed catching metal blade. SO I placed a small paddletail straight out from the very rear of the hook on my mop jigs, and found this extra swim and vibration, actually creating a double action, was sheer dynamite on bass and crappies! (any slim soft plastic will work as this backside tipping, and will greatly benefit from a brilliant chartreuse, actionized belly). Then remembering how small double tail, crab like jigs always produced, I started tying a twin mop tail, each leg splayed out to the side, just at hook bend, and spiraled some material up front to cover the hook shank ; fished on a twitching drop with UL gear, hard fished pond bass and panfish went nuts! Oh, and my carp? Since the jig is essentially a MOP, I soaked my one inch jig in corn juice, tipped with a corn kernal, and let the slow descending wobble catch their eye ,let it rest on bottom for a few seconds, reel a bit more & drop again, etc. They grabbed on to this aromatic little morsei, held on to the soft tasty offering, then TOOK OFF to long battle !!
Oh, I'll still continue to play with new variations, but this may be the only jig I'll ever tie again for most freshwater fishing!! Get yourself a light jighead, a mop nub, and a length of tying thread, then you'll "mop up", too!