How to fish a texas rig?

Question

How do you fish a texas rig and what is the best way to make it?

Answer 1

Probably the most common method of rigging a plastic bait and the most familiar to fishermen is the Texas-rig. It is a quick and simple technique to fish one of the most productive bass lures; the plastic worm. In the original Texas-rig, the worm is rigged on the hook with the point of the hook pinned back into the body of the worm to make it weedless and a bullet weight is used on the line ahead of the hook. In recent years the term Texas-rig has come to mean the weedless method of putting the bait on the hook whether a weight is used or not. Thus, many anglers talk about Texas-rigging a Senko or other soft plastic stick baits, or Texas-rigging their drop shot bait on an offset hook to enable them to fish the drop shot around wood and other hook-snagging cover.

Every angler you talk to will have some variation of the basic Texas-rig and the description given here is certainly not the final word on this versatile technique. Everyone has their own favorite hook; straight shank, offset shank, round bend, O'Shaugnessy bend, Kahle bend, extra wide gap, and on and on. Which ever hook you prefer, the final product should offer the point of the hook stuck back into the body of the worm and the worm itself having a straight profile when laid on a flat surface or suspended in the water. If the worm has a big hump or bulge where the point is inserted or 'bunches up' on the front of the hook, it will not look like a natural presentation to a bass. If this happens, it will probably lessen the number of bites you'll get and will also increase line twist since the worm will tend to spin when retrieved. Neither of these are good scenarios. These days the preferred hook by most anglers is an offset shank, O'Shaugnessy bend, wide gap round bend, or extra wide gap hook. The common feature is the offset shank. *DIAGRAM OF THE SHANK*

The selection of the size of the hook should be determined by the size of the worm; the bigger the worm, the bigger the hook. Often the plastic bait being used is not a plastic worm but something thicker like a Brush Hog or other large creature bait, a Senko, Fat Ika, or other flip bait that is thick and heavy and requires a very large hook. The other criteria when selecting the hook is the weight of the line used. Heavy lines require heavy wire hooks since light wire hooks will straighten out before the line snaps, taking away the advantage of the strong line. Tackle Warehouse offers the two best hooks on the market today; Gamakatsu and Owner. Both of these manufacturers offer different gauges of wire in several models of hooks to accommodate the weight of the line used, even up to the super braid lines like Spider Wire and Power Pro. To determine the size hook that will be appropriate for each type of bait place the bait flat along the shank of the hook and see how much space there is between the back of the bait and the point of the hook. If it doesn't look like there is enough gap, use a bigger hook or go to an extra wide gap style. If the hook seems to overpower the bait you're using, downsize.

To start the Texas-rig, determine whether or not you will be using a weight, the type of weight, if you will peg the weight, and if you will be using a glass bead for more sound on the rig. First, insert the point of the hook into the front, or 'nose, of the worm. If you will be using a sliding weight and a glass bead, such as the Top Brass Brass n' Glass, push the point in only about 1/8 inch and circle it down and out the 'belly' of the bait (the flat side on a hand-poured worm) and slide the worm up the shank of the hook and onto the offset portion. If you will be pegging the weight or using no weight, push the point further into the nose of the worm before exiting the belly. *PHOTO* Hold the worm against the point of the hook to measure where the point will exit and just slightly further down the belly of the bait push the point in, angling toward the nose. If you've measured right the point will just exit the back of the bait without stretching the worm or creating a bend in the worm between the point and the eye. There are a variety of methods for making sure the point is not exposed. One method is to slide the point back into the worm and push it forward inside the worm just under the 'skin'. When the fish bites and you set the hook it should be easy for the point to exit and 'stick' the fish's mouth. Another method is to push the point into the belly of the bait further down the body than in the previous example, slide the hook out and leave the barb and about _-3/8 inch of the hook exposed and just insert the point under the skin of the worm. When done correctly the worm will be straight on the hook and just the point will be in the skin with a slight bulge where it inserts. Again, when you get bit the hook will break out easily and you will get a solid hookset.

Hope this helped :)

Answer 2

Here's a Texas rig article that might interest you

http://www.catcherman.com/features/riggi...