Maneuvering the Ned Rig for River Bronzebacks

Fourteen-Inch Bronzeback

It's nice having a big river close to home, where I can go out an hour after noontime, get involved enough in the fishing to feel as if a full day was invested, and be home at 4:00 p.m. Catching some smallmouths. Soaking in the sun and the heat while wading nearly up to my waste, my mobile device on the bank with my other stuff. Never engaging with that thing. Only having it along in case of any emergency. Using my DSLR camera.  

I told Brenden Kuprel I'd really like him to show me how he fishes the Ned rig, and I followed his lead to various spots, watching how he does it, and figuring it out as I went. As I thought after trying the lure in the Delaware River a week or so ago, there is some maneuvering of it involved. It's not all letting the current take the rig as it ticks rocks and bottom. But I was much less certain on how to work the lure after fishing the Delaware, than I am now after fishing with Brenden. The jigging of it involves some wherewithal in trying to keep it from getting hung up, as well as keeping line straight enough to ensure a secure hookset, though not overdoing that, allowing for some bend because that's going to be inevitable. You will feel the Ned rig tick rocks and bottom, and sometimes you'll feel a knock as it wedges in-between stone from which you can't get it free. But it seems to be the case that when fishing a Senko-type worm rigged Wacky, more drifting with the current happens than when casting a Ned rig.

The jury's out as yet on whether the Ned rig is more effective than a Senko-type plastic rigged Wacky and unweighted. Or when one is better than the other.

Certainly, the Ned rig drops almost straight down to bottom, even with the 1/16-ounce jighead I used today. It takes a Senko-type worm a little while to touch down. Most fishermen seem to throw a 1/10- or 1/8-ounce Ned rig. As you can see in the photo, the plastic worm you use on such a standup jighead is short and stubby. About two or two-and-a-half inches long. Together with a mere 1/16-ounce jighead, it casts very far on six-pound-test mono and a medium power, five-and-a-half-foot rod. 

The only problem with long casts is the bow in the line, which the powerful river current develops. I lost a few bass because of it. By not getting a direct hookset. One of those bass was a really good one, though I believe it was more like 14 inches, rather than 16 or 18, though I'm not certain.

I did catch one 14 inches. From a lengthy cut of narrowed flow where I caught a nine-incher on a live goldfish 29 years ago. I have no idea why I didn't just fish plastics, as was my habit fishing smallmouths during my teens, but I wanted to use live shiners, though I couldn't find any for sale near North Plainfield. I'm sure Efinger in Bound Brook had some, but maybe not, although it seems more likely I just didn't think of them as having any, not being in the loop yet. So I bought some live goldfish from the pet shop on Highway 22 in North Plainfield. 

I caught three other smallmouths: 10 inches, eight inches, and about seven inches. Another one I had on besides the nice one I mentioned might have been a foot. 

"Slow day," Brenden said. He often catches a lot of smallmouths, and one occasion, caught 50 of them. His sole bass today wasn't a big one, though he's caught three-pounders on past occasions.  

I lost two Ned rigs today. I had lost a few of them when fishing the Delaware. Most of the time, I worked the rig free by wading in the opposite direction to which it got snagged. Obviously, that doesn't always work, and I believe fishing the Ned rig is more expensive than fishing Senko-type worms (unweighted), which I believe don't get lost to the river bottom as often.

I think the Ned rig is a valuable approach, but let's see how it pans out over the years.  

 

Brenden fishing from an old bridge stanchion.



Senko Bronzebacks