The effectiveness of jigging is well known and is the go-to method for a host of pelagic and reef species. When you think vertical jigging, the most common image is of a heavy metal jig in deep water for species such as yellowtail kingfish. And while this image is true and correct, there is a whole lot more to jigging than just heavy metals for kingfish. Vertically jigging is actually a very versatile form of fishing, with a variety of jigs designed for different retrieve styles, water depths and target species.
Aside from heavy metal jigs, we now have butterfly jigs and an assortment of micro jigs to accompany our larger models; effectively encompassing a wider variety of species. All jigs are designed to mimic a baitfish, with butterfly jigs and micro jigs smaller in profile, and designed for different retrieve styles.
Shimano have designed a range of high-quality metal jigs to encompass these designs, with a suite of sizes and colours to suit most fishing scenarios. All of these jigs featuring Shimano’s Scale boost technology, which incorporates complex scale reflections on the jig finish to give a lifelike appearance.
Ocea Easy Pebble is your classic heavy metal jig, predominantly designed for quicker retrieves in deeper water for pelagic species. These jigs are designed with one convex flank to give the jig an erratic and irregular swimming action on the retrieve, which helps to attract the attention of nearby predators.
These jigs are ideal for kingfish, samson fish, amberjack, cobia, bluefin, dogtooth, and a host of other mid water brawlers. The Ocea Easy Pebble is typically dropped all the way to the bottom, and then a fast jigging retrieve is maintained until approximately mid water, and then dropped to the bottom and repeated again until you get a bite. If you are marking fish higher in the water column, then continue the retrieve through these markings. And although these jigs are designed for larger pelagic species, it’s still possible to pull some reef fish on these heavy jigs when worked close to the bottom too.
Red snapper taken on Ocea Easy Pebble jig.
Ocea Easy Pebble jigs are offered in four sizes, which includes a 210g, 250g, 290g and 350g to cover a range of depths, and they are available in five colour schemes to mimic local baitfish presentations. The Ocea Easy Pebble jigs come pre rigged with a single assist hook, so they’re ready to use straight from the packet.
When rigging a heavy metal jig, I use a suitably sized ball bearing or crane swivel, with a heavy split ring off the bottom of the swivel to allow easy change of jigs, in case you need to swap jig size quickly or change to a different colour scheme. Always rig the jig with the assist hook at the top of the jig to improve the hook-up rate and reduce fouling if your jig hits the reef.
Samson fish taken on Ocea Easy Pebble jig.
Coltsniper Wonderfall are a variety of micro jigs, which are easier to use when compared to the higher-energy heavy metal jigging. Available in 30g, 40g, 60g and 80g, these small profile jigs are super versatile, and can be fished as a slow jig, a fast retrieve jig, or even cast at surface feeding pelagic species such as bonito, Australian salmon, tailor and mack tuna.
When fished in the bottom segment around reef and shoaly substrate with a slow fluttering retrieve, these jigs account for some nice pink snapper, golden snapper, pearl perch, along with a variety of other tasty reef species including emperor and coral trout. These jigs can also be worked quite quickly with a fast sustained retrieve, which accounts for a range of trevally species, along with mackerel (Spanish and spotted) in the upper column, and mid-sized kingfish, depending on your location.
The Coltsniper Wonderfall jigs are available in five colour schemes, and also feature Scale Boost technology; giving the jigs a realistic finish to help trigger a bite from wary species. These jigs come pre-rigged with fine gauge assist hooks, which offer a good hook-up rate, but I often switch them out for a heavier single assist hook when targeting larger species. And these jigs aren’t restricted to just offshore fishing either; they are also a very effective metal for land based fishing. In this situation I have swapped the assist hooks for a rear-rigged single in-line hook.
Big snapper taken on Coltsniper Wonderfall jig.
Ocea Wing Fall jigs are a slow pitch butterfly jig designed to be fished close to the reef with a slow-paced lift and flutter retrieve. These jigs are wider in profile than the previous two options, which slows the sink speed.
These jigs have been meticulously designed to offer plenty of action on the drop, and when combined with the Scale Boost finish, they represent an alluring jig for reef species right around the country, including red snapper, pink snapper, dhufish, coral trout, red emperor, large mouth and small mouth nannygai, along with other tasty bottom dwelling species.
Queen snapper respond well to micro jigging.
These jigs are available in 100g, 130g and 160g which are ideal for hitting reefs in the 20 to 70m depth range. There are five colour variations to choose from, one side of the jig offers a realistic baitfish profile, while the other side has proven designs for fish attraction which boast a glow finish for low light conditions.
Wing Fall jigs are super-easy to use, and can simply be slowly lifted and dropped over the reef, called tea-bagging. Alternatively these jigs can be fished with a rod in the holder, allowing the natural movement of the boat to lift and drop the jig.
I prefer to impart a bit more action by lifting the rod tip and allowing the jig to free-fall while some line is retrieved, before being repeated until the jig has been worked slowly around 5 metres off the reef, before being dropped to the bottom and repeated. This is typically done while drifting through a likely area, allowing plenty of ground to be covered. Wing Fall jigs come pre rigged with twin assist hooks.
Ocea Wing Fall jig.
Jigging is by no means a new style of fishing, but the design and intricate finish of metal jigs is miles ahead of the basic designs of yesteryear. And with the variation in jig size and design, there’s a style of jig to suit most predatory species and fishing abilities.
Trevally taken while micro jigging.