How Line-Through Jig Heads Outperform Ball Head Jigs

Last updated: 2024/02/05 at 8:50 AM

Afield Daily

Small to mid-sized paddle tail swimbaits are a bass fishing mainstay, but inconsistent hooking and retention had Bill Lowen looking for solutions. Enter the world of line-through jig heads. Lowen goes deep into the design, benefits, and how to use line-through jig heads with paddle tail swimbaits to improve your hooking and landing percentages.

INNOVATIVE RIGGING FOR OPTIMAL PERFORMANCE

Lowen highlights a unique approach to swimbait rigging using the Slip Shad Jig Head he helped design with Lure Parts Online. This innovative setup allows the swimbait to slide freely along the line during the fight — this reduces leverage and preserves your plastics simultaneously. Lowen emphasizes the effectiveness of this technique in consistently hooking bass in the roof of the mouth, fish after fish. He also feels that the single treble hook rigging allows swimbaits to swim more naturally than with a hook shank down its spine.

CHOOSING THE RIGHT GEAR

Admittedly, Lowen isn’t a fan of fishing big swimbaits. His confidence lies in using swimbaits 4 inches and under, perhaps a byproduct of his upbringing fishing the notoriously challenging Ohio River. Lowen provides detailed recommendations on rod choices (casting and spinning), line weights, and the versatility of the Slip Shad head across various swimbait sizes, from 1/8 to 1/2 ounce. From adapting line weights to achieve the desired swimbait depth to selecting the perfect rod, Lowen’s advice helps you adapt this versatile system to any situation, whether fishing the Great Lakes or targeting ledges on the TVA.

CASTING ROD SETUP

SPINNING ROD SETUP

FISH FINDER & BOAT SETUP

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Ryan DeChaine

Ryan began his fishing industry career with Lindner Media Productions, gaining nearly a decade of unparalleled experience creating dynamic and compelling television programming and video production promoting the sport fishing industry. DeChaine oversees the strategy, creation, and publishing of video content on the website and social media platforms. Outside of work, DeChaine and his wife Jillian raise their three children around an active outdoor lifestyle in the lake-rich and forested lands of northern Minnesota.

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