Gettin’ Jiggy With It
Strike King Lures 02.24.12
There are about 3712 different varieties of a bass jig on the market today. There are flipping jigs, football jigs, swim jigs, shakey jigs, finesse jigs, punch jigs, wacky jigs, stroking jigs, ballhead jigs, floating jigs, pitching jigs, hair jigs, and the list goes on. How are you supposed to know what style of jig is best suited for the situation and conditions that you are faced with? Well, short of having Denny Brauer and Greg Hackney on speed dial, you can use this as a generic reference.
Up front understand that this is by no means the gospel of jig applications. There are people who pitch football jigs and people who swim flipping jigs. It boils down to using what you have to get the job done. But, if you have all these aforementioned jig styles at your disposal, here is how each could be used.
Flipping/Pitching
These two are combined under one heading because they so often over-lap. For flipping in relatively normal conditions as far as water color, cover density and fish size, the Denny Brauer Premier Pro Model jig is a great choice. It comes in an array of colors to fit most water colors. It has a super sharp black nickel Mustad hook. It comes rigged with a loud rattle that doubles as chunk keeper. It is the workhorse of the Strike King jig line.
Now, when you plan on going into the bad stuff for big uns’, the Hack Attack jig is your huckleberry. It ranges in sizes from 3/8 for shallow water, to 1 ¼ for deep trees and thick grass. The most notable feature of Hack’s jig is its hook. It is an exclusive black nickel hook from Gamakatsu that in times of need could double as a gaff. This beast is not made for wimpy rods and light line. This jig is for when you are arming yourself with a shovel handle and rope.
The last tool in the flipping line of jigs from Strike King is the Bitsy Flip. Don’t let this jigs name or profile fool you. It is a small frame jig that is designed for more finesse applications. However, it features a full size flipping hook and it will handle the toads as well as its bigger brethren. Clear water, cold water, small fish and pressured fish are but a few of the conditions that could dictate that the Bitsy Flip is in order.
Swimming a Jig
There are two basic scenarios for swimming a jig. One is clear open water and the other is colored 
water with cover. Strike King has the prescription for both. Let’s say that you are on a deep clear lake and you want to cover water with a moving bait but a spinner bait is too flashy. Let us introduce you to the Tour Grade Swim Jig. It comes in several natural colors and features a medium wire, super sharp hook and light weed guard. This allows for solid hookups on the long casts that are necessary in clear water.
The best swim jig for the opposite situation to the one above would be the all new Hack Attack Heavy Cover Swim Jig. This bad boy features all the stuff you need to winch tournament winning bass out of the heaviest cover. A heavier weed guard and an exclusive Gamakatsu Siwash hook make this swim jig the mean big brother of the Tour Grade Swim Jig. You can wrestle a gorilla out of any kind of cover with this jig.
Football Jigs
Football jigs have been all the rage for about the last 5 to 7 years. Before that, we were all dragging around regular casting and flipping jigs. Then, someone said “Hey, if we’re fishing this jig on the bottom, a football head style jig will work a lot better. It’s wider so you can feel more. It makes your hook and trailer stand upright for a better look and better hookups. And, it hangs up less on the types of bottoms that dragging a jig is best on.” Football jigs took the nation by storm as the jig to cast and drag. Depending on geographic locale, there are a couple of preferences in this category. Some people are making long casts on hard bottoms and need a lighter hook for solid hookups on fish at the end of a cast using relatively average to light line. Others are dragging a football jig around heavy cover on heavy line and need a jig with a hook that can handle the force of big fish in nasty cover on heavy line. Well friends, Strike King has got you covered on either front.
The Strike King original Tour Grade Football Jig is an awesome jig at an incredible value. It comes in all the skirt and
matching weed guard colors for any water clarity. It features an extra sharp Gamakatsu black nickel hook that offers a 60 degree flat eye line tie which provides the proper pull point for knot protection and solid hooksets.
Strike King’s all new Tour Grade Heavy Hook Football Jig is a beefed up version of the popular Tour Grade Football Jig. It comes in most all of the same great colors and sizes as the original version but with a bigger hook. This Football jig comes equipped with a strong Gamakatsu black nickel hook versus the lighter wire hook of its Tour Grade counterpart. This is the Football jig for brush, trees, and other heavy cover.
Finesse Jigs
Strike King has two offerings in the finesse jig category. One has had the market cornered for years and the other is well on its way to becoming a staple as well.
The Bitsy Bug Jig from Strike King has been a mainstay for finesse jig fishermen since its inception. It comes in 4 lightweight sizes, 9 natural colors and a price that will make you want to buy several at a time. This little jig has accounted for a big number of wins in clear water, cold water, and smallmouth scenarios. It is legendary wherever finesse jigs are prevalent.
The newer Tour Grade Finesse Football Jig is fast becoming a favorite of finesse jig anglers from coast to coast. It is a newer, fancier finesse jig for Strike King that offers nothing but the most premium components. It all starts with a football style head for dragging around on the bottom of a deep, clear, cold lake. It features a fine wire Gamakatsu black nickel hook with a 60 degree flat eye because point blank, it’s the best hook on earth for this presentation. It comes dressed with a flared collar skirt that is available in the prettiest colors a fish has ever laid eyes on. This is the finesse jig of choice for our tour level pros.
So, there you have it. A comprehensive breakdown of the what, where and why of the Strike King jig line which was designed by legendary jig fishermen to help you become a legendary jig fisherman. Not every tool is designed for the same job. You don’t need a sledgehammer to drive a finishing nail, and you wouldn’t want to drive pole barn nails with a tack hammer. Pick the right tool for the job before you and put it where they live.
