Blade Jigs for Bass Fishing

In January 2006, blade jigs burst onto the bass fishing scene big time due to winning catches on blade jigs during the first few FLW tournaments of the 2006 season. Blade jigs certainly became the hot new must-have lure for the rest of 2006.

In 2007, the hubbub over blade jigs simmered down. The novelty of blade jigs wore off. However, 2007 was the year that many hometown anglers hit paydirt on team trails with blade jigs, leading to validation and acceptance of blade jigs as another lure type that will work everywhere when conditions for it are right.

Blade jigs again stepped into the spotlight in a big way in February 2008 when bass pro Brett Hite won the FLW Tour season opener on Lake Toho, Florida. He then crossed the country to win the next FLW event on the California Delta two weeks later. Hite won both FLW events back-to-back with a blade jig, earning Hite $125,000 times two for a total of $250,000.

Every lure has its place and it seems that blade jigs are at their best early in the season. Like Brett Hite found, they work exceptionally well when fish are hunkered down in dense cover. Many other bait styles won't get bass to come out of  where they're holed up under thick cover, but blade jigs do.

These blade jigs use the finest components, including premium VMC hooks and productive skirt color patterns.

People say the blade makes it like a spinnerbait or the vibration makes it like a crankbait, but fish may see it differently. You can throw spinnerbaits, crankbaits, and catch nothing. Then come down the same bank again with a blade bait, and do well. So blade jigs are not quite like any other reaction baits, since spinnerbaits, crankbaits and other lures don't work at times when blade jigs do.

A blade jig has the appearance of a skirted jig, with the the flash of a spinnerbait blade, and as much or more vibration than any crankbait.

A blade jig is not like a standard flipping or swimming jig either, and especially earlier in the season while the water is still cold, a blade jig will do better than standard jig styles. A blade jig is a little like a lipless rattling crankbait in that it gives off heavy vibrations and therefore works in dirtier water than standard jig styles. If you are in a situation where you are hitting fish on standard jigs, and the water dirties up, you can switch to a blade jig and expect to continue to do well in the dirty water.

A blade jig has a tremendous vibration and frantic action like a startled critter hightailing it. It is a more intense - yet natural-looking - action than you (or bass) usually see in a lure. The intense vibrating action is due to water pressure pushing the blade rapidly back and forth several times per second. The action starts in the blade which is almost a blur. As the blade oscillates rapidly side-to-side, it causes every strand in the skirt whip to frantically.

As with any jig, success is going to ride heavily on the kind of soft plastic trailer you use to go with a jig. Keep in mind that any and all jigs including blade jigs are poor producers without soft plastic trailers. Don't hesitate to experiment with any kind of soft bait as a trailer. Shown above are 4-inch (top) and 5-inch sizes of GYB's Swim Senko.

Brett Hite used primariy the 5" Swim Senko and also a double tail grub as trailers to win $250,000 in back-to-back FLW events on blade jigs in February 2008.

Blade jigs shown above with GYB's 3-1/2 inch swimbait (top) and GYB's 5-3/4 inch Kut Tail Worm. You can add a single tail grub, a double tail grub, a hula grub, a swimbait, a worm or any other soft bait is worth a try. You may surprise yourself over what soft baits work good as trailers on blade jigs. The trailers that work well on standard jigs are not necessarily the same ones that work on blade jigs - and vice versa. But as is the same with any jig, changing the trailer will change the action and alter the fish-catching potential dramatically. Do experiment and identify a few different trailers that work for you on blade jigs.

1/2 oz Blade Jig ~ Green Pumpkin Watermelon

1/2 oz Blade Jig ~ Green Pumpkin Gold

1/2 oz Blade Jig ~ Green Pumpkin Gold

1/4 oz Blade Jig ~ White Pearl

1/2 oz Blade Jig ~ White Pearl

1/2 oz Blade Jig ~ White Pearl

1/2 oz Blade Jig ~ Triple Chartreuse

3/8 oz Blade Jig ~ Triple Chartreuse

1/4 oz Blade Jig ~ Triple Chartreuse