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Chalk Talk: Gluszek on hair jigs

Chalk Talk: Gluszek on hair jigs

(Editor's note: The following is the latest installment in a series of fishing tips presented by The Bass University. Check back each Friday for a new tip.)

It’s certainly not a secret that jigs produce big fish 12 months out of the year, from 6 inches of water to more than 60 feet deep – but even for most experienced and accomplished bass anglers the term “jig” connotes living rubber, flat rubber or silicone skirts.

That wasn’t always the case. The earliest jigs used all sorts of hair and feathers. Pete Gluszek isn’t a true “old-timer,” but when he started fishing competitively he used little hair jigs and only recently has he recalled what an incredible killer bait they can be.

Especially in the late fall, when the water starts to cool, he’ll pick up the hair jig when cold fronts roll through and he won’t put it down until fish leave their winter haunts.

“I’m relearning it because I stopped throwing it,” he said. When the temps get frigid at night, that and a blade bait like the old Silver Buddy are two of his favorite tools, although both have been modernized. His blades of choice include a newer version from Molix, and his favorite jigs include those from Andy’s Custom Bass Lures, the same company that made the Classic-winning jig used by Edwin Evers. The dark little hair jig resembles a crawfish or a baby catfish, and draws strikes when moving baits don’t.

He used to fish it with a trailer, most often an Uncle Josh 101 Pork Frog, and still does as the water temps get a little warmer, but when it’s chilly out most of the time he wants minimal action, so a “bare naked hook” is the deal. When bass are keyed in on crawfish he’ll add a rattle. He likes Gamma Torque 10-pound braid, which has no stretch and incredible sensitivity to detect light-biting cold-water fish.

The bucktail is another lure that’s been rediscovered in recent years. Sure, Bobby Padgett used it two decades ago to set a B.A.S.S. record on Lake Eufaula, but it gained additional traction more recently as the tours frequented the TVA lakes. When the current shuts off, it’s deadly cranking into the baitfish to trigger strikes. “It keeps ‘em biting,” Gluszek said.

It’s not just a Southern thing, though. “Guess what?” he asked. “It’s effective everywhere,” including on big Northern smallmouths. He’ll throw a shad-colored bucktail in the warmer months, not just on offshore structure, but also flipped to pilings and bulkheads. Not many lures resemble a dying shad more closely. He likes a 3/8-ounce model shallow, but will go to the larger “flying chicken” on structure.

There are two main retrieves. On structure, he’ll crank it up through the bait, then let it fall. Most bites come on the drop. With big smallmouths, though, he’ll use a stroking technique – a “snap, snap” that gets the visual feeders amped up. As with the hair jig, he wants a high-speed reel to keep the pressure on the fish, but now he’ll go up to baitcasting gear and 16- to 20-pound fluorocarbon. If it’s around barnacles or zebra mussels, he’ll often use a braided main line and a leader of 20- or even 30-pound test fluorocarbon. The heavier line is the only thing that will survive the mussels.

The third class of “forgotten” jig that Gluszek likes is a hybrid which combines a living rubber skirt with a hair inset. It falls slowly, makes a unique sound and holds scent better than any other jig. He fishes it on standard flipping gear, but the key is in the retrieve: he wants it to “scrape across those rocks and that wood.”

If you want to learn more of Gluszek's secrets for “specialty” jigs, including his favorite trailers for hybrids, check out his full video, available only by subscribing to The Bass University TV.

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