Blackfish Jigging

[reason162]

Let me try to explain the difference between rig fishing and jig fishing, from a blackfish's perspective

First, understand how a blackfish feeds (there are plenty of youtube videos showing both captive and wild blackfish attacking crabs): they will grab the crab in their grasping teeth (those are the teeth you can see), hang onto a claw/leg/half the crab and shake it like a dog's chew toy. Often they will spit it out, then pick it up again, breaking off a claw or leg in the process. Eventually they suck it down to their pharyngeal crushing teeth (located in the throat!) and then either swallow, or if the crab is large, spit out a cloud of crabby bits and then proceed to actually eat the crushed crab piece by piece.

The "right bite" is when a big tog sucks your crab into their crushing teeth...that's when you're supposed to swing for the fences, NOT when they are doing the tentative pecking with their grasping teeth.

(The above is paraphrased from another forum's excellent post on the subject)

So what's the difference between a rig and a jig as far as a feeding blackfish is concerned? We've discussed how much food manipulation a blackfish goes through before finally inhaling your crab. A sinker rig has 2 components --- a weight, and a hooked crab --- that is SEPARATED by a length of leader. When a blackfish picks up a crab that is tied to a rig, he will initially only experience the weight of the crab and hook, NOT the sinker. Only when he starts to shake/peck/wrestle with the crab, will he detect the weight of the sinker as a secondary (and inexplicable, to the tog's brain) tug.

A jig, on the other hand, is a weight and hook that is DIRECTLY CONNECTED. When a blackfish picks up a crab pinned to a jig, he is experiencing the entire mass of your offering from the initial contact. When he starts to shake and peck and suck in/spit out your crab, the weight of the jig and crab remains constant; there is no secondary tug of a disconnected sinker.

For a blackfish, especially one that is big and old and wary, these are two very different dining experiences! One crabby meal goes as expected...the other contains an element of surprise in the form of an unseen, unfelt weight, somehow tied to the crab he's munching on.

Does this always make a difference? No! But I am convinced that the weight dynamic outlined is THE reason sometimes, not always, light jigs will outfish rigs by wide margins, especially shallow, especially in fisheries where small asian crabs are the primary forage. It's not that a blackfish will ignore a crab on a rig vs. a crab on a jig: it's that under certain conditions a blackfish will be spooked by the disconnected weight of a sinker rig and never commit to eating a crab presented that way, he'll peck at your crab and drop it once he feels the sinker.

I hope that makes sense. It's a question I've mulled on for some time, and I believe that is the essential difference between rig and jig for tog. But...I could be wrong!

Originally Posted by O'Connor

I'm still confused as to the jigging part. It's nothing more than putting bait on a lead head. Correct? If you put bait on it your simply bait fishing. Just s different way of presenting a crab.

[TerriMc223]

Very informative! Thanks to Gerry and all the contributors

[Sparky4711]

That is y I fish a fishfinder rig for blackfish!!!!!

[Gerry Zagorski]

Originally Posted by Sparky4711

That is y I fish a fishfinder rig for blackfish!!!!!

That's interesting...... Never saw anyone using a fish finder rig for blackfish

[Chrisper4694]

i started using the jig for blackfish last year and i was totally sold almost immediately on it. like anything else in fishing there is a time and place for each tactic, but i personally always use the jig if i can! Being able to slowly walk that jig/crab around the boat to different areas every minute or so is a huge advantage over a bait rig imo and having a direct line contact to the hooked lure/bait is always an advantage as well.

If i do use a bait rig, i'll always use a break away so the weight will snap off if it's snagged and a nice fish hits it.

i've only been blackfishing about 4 years, but that's my two cents. Great post Gerry. I do believe it was a similar post from you that i read to get me started on tog jigs last year

[Gerry Zagorski]

Originally Posted by blynch

Thanks for all the info. Any idea as to why so many jiggers seem to use spinning gear?

My perspective is the jigs are usually very light so harder to cast with a conventional reel... I also like to put my pointer finger under the line to feel the bite... I can do this with one hand with a spinner, with conventionals you need 2 hands to do this...

One other important thing to remember if you choose to go with a spinner. Most come with a short fore-grip, you want a long for-grip. This really comes in handy when you want to lift the rod to put extra pressure on a fish that is digging to take you back into the rocks....You lift the rod with one hand and reel with the other.... This is a lot easier to do with a longer fore-grip.

[Gerry Zagorski]

Originally Posted by Chrisper4694

i started using the jig for blackfish last year and i was totally sold almost immediately on it. like anything else in fishing there is a time and place for each tactic, but i personally always use the jig if i can! Being able to slowly walk that jig/crab around the boat to different areas every minute or so is a huge advantage over a bait rig imo and having a direct line contact to the hooked lure/bait is always an advantage as well.

If i do use a bait rig, i'll always use a break away so the weight will snap off if it's snagged and a nice fish hits it.

i've only been blackfishing about 4 years, but that's my two cents. Great post Gerry. I do believe it was a similar post from you that i read to get me started on tog jigs last year

Great Chrisper, glad to hear it. It's a lot of fun fishing the jigs if the conditions are right...

[bulletbob]

meh,, use a 3 ounce sinker thats been painted, and keep the leader VERY short like 3 inches right above the sinker,, Did that for decades and hammered tog with it, way before people used $4 "blackfish jigs".. I see guys using 18 inch leaders for blackfish these days...Never understood that...
Also, try a 2-3 oz egg sinker , again painted, and simply let it butt against a long shank hook of appropriate size.. Cost- maybe a buck.. If anyone can explain how a jig would have better "feel for the hit" than that, I would love to hear it... bob

[reason162]

Originally Posted by bulletbob

Did that for decades and hammered tog with it, way before people used $4 "blackfish jigs"..

You don't need to use "blackfish jigs," any jig will work. Doesn't even have to be painted...they don't care about the jig. All they care about is the crab.

Curious: have you ever fished for tog with a jig? Perhaps more relevant: have you ever fished on a boat with a mix of jigger and riggers?

[bulletbob]

Originally Posted by reason162

You don't need to use "blackfish jigs," any jig will work. Doesn't even have to be painted...they don't care about the jig. All they care about is the crab.

Curious: have you ever fished for tog with a jig? Perhaps more relevant: have you ever fished on a boat with a mix of jigger and riggers?

Yes many times I have been around guys fishing tog with jigs... Typically in deeper water over 50 feet, wind, current, etc in late Nov intoDec.. Jigs caught some here and there, most were caught on rigs.. Never saw this killer bite on jigs personally, but by the time I usually go, the shallow water bite is dead or close to it.
I bought a few of the tog jigs, tried them last year, but the day i used them was dead for everyone.. Most guys got no keepers, and I was among that group.. I would certainly try it on a calm day in shallow water, and I am sure it would work fine. Guys fishing on LIS started using light jigs 20 years ago, in the shallow rocky, low current areas in the Sound

. I have yet to see them work very well in heavy seas, deep water, or strong currents.. I have caught tog on jigs, but that was on real jigs- Upperman bucktail type- years ago while fishing for other species, and I even caught a nice one many years ago on an AVA.... Look, I know the jigs will catch fish, but again, its simply a different way of presenting a crab.. As I said, a plain old hook with a painted 2 oz. egg sinker will do the exact same thing much cheaper.. bob