By Tim Carini
Special to BassFan



Mark Pack, a former FLW/BASS pro and Lake Fork guide, who started the once successful Lake Fork Tackle Company, is back at it again with his newest venture, M-Pack Lures.

Currently, the company is making football jigs, flipping jigs, and swim jigs, but other baits are in the process of being designed. All of the baits feature the new weed guard design called Structure Guard, which the company claims is nearly snag-free. I recently tested it out and here is what I found.

Since I’m not much of a deep-water ledge fisherman, I tested out the 1/2-ounce and 3/8-ounce Flipp'N Jig on nearby Weiss Lake in Alabama. Weiss Lake is known for its shallow fishing in the warmer months, particularly around its many docks with brush piles and main river drift wood.

It proved to be the perfect testing ground for this jig, which features a single long fiber guard that is attached to the hook bend with a rubber ring. The weed guard is thicker and stiffer than the conventional multi-strand fiber weed guards, helping it to deflect better off wood and keep the jig from snagging. Plus, the hook is fully enclosed by the weed guard, further preventing snags.

Watch the video for rigging the jig and setting the weed guard properly (www.mpacklures.com). It is important to have a bow in the weed guard, as that allows it to move more freely when a bass attacks the jig and not interfere with hookups.

The first spot to test this jig was a shallow bar off the main river channel where wood piles up, everything from small tree branches to 30-foot tall trees that have floated down the river. It is literally a jungle (check out the photo in the gallery below). Impressive is an understatement for how well this jig came through the maze of snag-rich cover, with no hang ups. It was like working a Texas-rigged worm through the cover, up and over branches with no issues at all.

While the Structure Guard is the main selling point for this jig, its other attributes would satisfy even the snobbiest jig aficionado. The head design, with a flat underside, makes this a great skipping jig.

Lake Weiss has many brush piles under the docks and this jig not only got into the hardest to reach places but also came through the brush piles, again with no hang ups. I also like the duel trailer keeper as well; a collar keeper on the topside of the hook shank and a wire keeper on the bottom side, kept the trailer in place even during the most forceful skips. The skirt is made of ultra-fine silicone strands, thinner than most jigs, giving the skirt a more fluid and lifelike motion. Also, the color patterns are top notch.

While the jig was virtually snagless, I did have concerns initially about the weed guard being pliable enough to not interfere with the hook penetration. The next weekend I caught numerous bass on the jig and I’m happy to say, no interference from the weed guard which easily moves to the side when a bass bites down, even for the ones that had it down in their throat.

The jig helped me win a small 20-boat tournament that weekend with more than 16 pounds. After several fish, the weed guard does get a little deformed but I found that if I unrigged it from the rubber collar keeper and pulled on it slightly, it would straighten back out and perform as normal.

In three days of fishing the M-Pack Lure Flipp’N jig, in the nastiest wood cover possible, I only lost one jig when it skipped too high and my line snagged something on the underside of a dock. This jig has certainly earned its place in my day box of lures that I use most often. It would be great if the company would make a 1/4-ounce version with a lighter wire hook as this would be a great option for catching spotted bass out of the deep brush at lakes like Lanier.

The Flipp’N Jig and Swim Jig both come in two sizes (1/2 ounce and 3/8 ounce) while the Football Jig is available in 3/4 ounce and 1 ounce models. Both are available at the BassFan Store.

Gear Used in Review

> 7' medium-heavy Quantum Smoke casting rod, Shimano Curado 201G6 casting reel, 17-pound Seaguar Red Label fluorocarbon line, 3/8- and 1/2-oz. M-Pack Lures Flipp'N Jig (Bama bug), 3" Berkley Havoc Pit Boss (trailer).