The Ned rig has taken center stage recently, and the weedless net rig takes it to new levels. The ned rig has been fantastic for so simple a setup for bass fishing but it was frustrating to get hung up in certain conditions.
Why I have fallen in love with the weedless ned rig for bass fishing. I have always been a huge fan of the Texas rig, and still do amazing with it, but sometimes a different look and more finesse approach is needed. This used to mean a shaky head, but now the weedless ned rig is filling that gap more and more.
Weedless Ned Rig – My Favorite Hooks
A ned rig started out as a senko-style bait cut down and put on a mushroom jig head on a light wire hook. Since then it has morphed into many other styles of baits and jigheads. My favorite of these has been the Owner Ultrahead Blockhead offset hook. It comes in different weights and the little 1/0 hook is needle-sharp and the Z-Lock shoulder keeps the bait from sliding down the hook.
To rig the plastic bait on this hook, it is just like Texas rigging. When I thread the bait on, I like to texpose the tip of the hook back into the bait. You can see this in the picture when the tip of the hook is skin hooked back into the bait.
This keeps the bait more weedless and I typically like it better than a weed guard. It looks more streamlined and in my experience comes through the cover better. If I am fishing in heavy wood or cover, I will still Texas rig the bait with a bullet sinker and just peg it. This does change the action though.
If I am dragging the ned rig on a hard bottom I also like the Owner Ultrahead Football Finesse with the 2/0 hook and the VMC Rugby Head as well. These come through rock better than the traditional mushroom head that is on the Blockhead jighead. These are all great options for weedless ned rig bass fishing.
Weedless Ned Rig – Fishing Tips
One of my favorite ways to fish the weedless ned rig is to simply drag it like I would a football jig and when I feel it hit cover I twitch it or give it a little hop off of the bottom. Try both approaches and let the bass tell you what they like best by paying attention to which one gets more hits.
Another way to fish it is to hop it off of the bottom and let it pendulum back down on semi slack line. Get ready for the strikes on the fall. Pay close attention as the strike will sometimes just feel mushy, or too much slack in the line. This hop and fall can trigger reaction strikes and can be a great way to cover water.
The third way I will discuss, but not the only one is to almost swim it back slowly while bumping the bottom and barely twitching your rod tip. This can work for active bass that were chasing a crankbait but turned off and now need a more finesse approach.
These are not the only approaches so branch out from there. These are some great options to begin fishing the weedless ned rig and catching more bass. It can be a much less frustrating way to catch fish with the power of the “do nothing” ned rig with fewer snags.
Ned Rig Setup
The ned rig has traditionally fished on spinning tackle. I like a 7’ medium or medium light action rod. I fish the rig with a 6 – 10 pound test. An 8-pound test line is a good place to start.
With the new Bait Finesse System baitcasting reels, I am starting to transition to casting gear. This allows you to fish the light line and lighter ned rigs on casting gear with much less frustration than before. It is also just a super fun way to fish in my humble opinion.
Either way, ned rig fishing is a finesse tactic and typically calls for as light line size as you can get away with. Let your drag on your reel do a lot of the work to keep you from breaking off with the lighter lines.
Ned rigs can be amazing for bass fishing. The weedless options can take your fishing to a new level and give you the confidence to fish it where you would be scared to fish an open hook.
To your weedless ned rig fishing success,
Jonathan Burke
LiveBassFishing.com