I am anything but an expert, but I have been tying jigs for about a year, not counting some minor experience MacGyvering a few leech patterns out of a crappie jig and a black wool glove when I lost my last store bought fly at Grimes Lake.

Here is a shot of my 8 cavity 1/8th oz mold I got from BassProShops.com. I use pure lead and Eagle Claw 630 O'Shaunesy jig hooks in sizes #2 and #4.


For simplicity sake I am showing you a powder coated jig head with the barb. This is for pink worms, but I didn't have any bare lead jigs.


I then trim off the barb with small wire clippers.


You can use Testors paints, the new powder coating products, nail polish, or other paints for the jighead color, if you want. Some folks said they leave the lead bare. I have found that Testors model paint chips and wears easily. Nail polish is pretty hardy, even the .99 cent stuff. The powder coat stuff is the best for wear, in my experience, but requires a bit more time. I usually lose jigs after an hour or two if I am lucky, so I tend to use nail polish. Easy, cheap, and a wide selection of colors.

Here is how to tie a chenile jig. First I attach a piece of glowbug yarn to the head with thread.


Now lay the yarn along the spine of the hook and wrap with thread.


Remove the first 1/8-1/4" inch of chenile "stuff" from the chenile, leaving just the string. Add a drop of head cement to the end of your thread wrap and place the string part of the chenile on the drop of head cement.


Now secure it with about 4-8 wraps of thread and wrap the thread towards the head.


I use two bobbins when tying jigs. One is for thread and one is for the chenile. I wrap the chenile around a used thread spool for easy of tying. Now you wrap the chenile around the yarn and thread towards the jighead and tie off with a half hitch. Tighten down tight and trim off close. I have double wrapped this jig for a larger profile, but you can just use one straight wrap for a smaller profile.


Continued next post.......

Now I add another drop of head cement near the base of the jighead, wrap 10 times, and tie off with two half hitches and another drop of head cement. Trim off the thread and trim off the yarn to length. I use a whole piece of yarn and only trim it at the end of tying each jig as the last step. This eliminates any waste of yarn.


Here is the finished jig.


You are looking at investing in about $100 or more in gear to tie jigs if you buy a lead melting pot, molds, bullet ladle, mid-range fly vise, and teh other necessary gear like scissors, bobbins and then the selection of cheniles, yarns, hooks and nail polish. If you fish a fair amount, one season will pay back the investment. After that, it's gravy.

I have more shades of nail polish than my wife. That is a sign you are a hard core jig fisherman.

There is a lot of satisfaction of catching fish on jigs you made, just like taking a deer with handloaded ammo. My jigs aren't as pretty as the pros, but they catch fish.

Have fun!

Andy

Hey Dogfish, way to go on a nice post detailing your method. Tying your own jigs is alot of fun and does save alot of money.... and when you catch that first fish on one, you'll be hooked!

Dogfish, That post was great. I tie my own jigs and use primarily marabou and flashabou. I am new to this and am still experimenting with colors. Thanks for the new ideas. I am reading the book "What fish see" by Colin Kageyama. Have you read it yet. The book states that chartruese and green or chartreus and flourescent pink are the dominant colors for jigs. What do you think?

Scott

Thanks for the post, it answered alot of questions. It is really no different than tying flies. How would you tie marabou jigs?

Where can you get the powder coating stuff?

Great post and nice pix!

Andy,

You're so close to the "dark side" and going over to tying flies it isn't funny.

See you soon and may the hackle be with you.

signed,

zen leecher

i come across alot of pure lead pipe booty's used in roofing. if anyone would like lead that melts it for jigs , i would love to trade for some unpainted jig heads.

Very nice post, wish we had some more post like this. GREAT WORK!!!!

andy,
what size chenille do you use and i see you thread it thru your bobbin? ive never done it that way, but however when i tie chenille and yarn i use jus a tad bit of yarn and tie it on the end instead of wrapping it all up and down the whole shank, saves alot of yarn, but to each his own..and do you buy the chenille in skeins or on cards?

SF- I have found that I get the best responses with different shades of pinks and oranges. I will be tying some chartruse jigs for chums this next fall, but I got my one and only springer in a chartruse jig right below the Bonneville dam MANY years ago. If the fish can see it, they will probably hit it. Thanks for the lead on the reading.

SS- I have tied a few jigs with maribou, but they are no where as nice as the professionally made jigs out there. Do a search at Ask.com using "palmering maribou" as your subject. You will find a few ideas. I have yet to perfect it, but I use maribou in place of the glow bug yarn.

Silver Hilton- How have you been? Hopefully well. Check out Sportco, but the brand name of the stuff I use is "Pro-tec powder paint". The company name is "Component Systems, Inc.", and their phone number is 714-845-3009. Hopefully this info will help you do a search to find other sources. First you heat the jighead and dip it into the powder. Let it solidify. Then bake at 350 F for 20 minutes AFTER popping the eye out. It is nearly bulletproof.

Chappy- I'd be happy to trade. Just let me know how much lead you have and how many jigs you want. I only have a 1/8th oz jig mold.

Jerry- I just buy the chenile on cards, usually about 3 feet at a time, but I have found red and white in about an 87 yard skein. I only use 2 inches of glow bug yarn per jig, and you get good uniformity in the body.

Thanks everybody else for the nice comments.

Andy

MOST EXCELLENT POST!!!!!!!!!!!!!

THANK YOU !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

tying a maribou jig is fairly easy, but placement of the feathers and also which part of the feather you use is the critical part..

Like I needed to learn something else to take up my time.

Good Post

... or a sign that your feminine side is getting more aggressive J/K I have a few myself . I sometimes wonder if the paint matters that much. I have to do some research. I don't make mine but I repaint if they survives the fishing trip. I usually manage to find a snag Good post!

Great post! Lots of info. Am not that good at putting on marabou, have pretty much come down to using it for tails and then using rabbit zonkers or cross-cut on the body. A little more forgiving and gives pretty much the same effect as marabou.

i'm going to be tying my own jigs soon and i would like to add a couple of beads to to the shank(like the beau-macs), any suggestions on that....great post dogfish!!

Philpac,

I've been making beaded jigs for almost 20 years! The process is a bit complicated to describe; and it can be done in more than one way. If I could do pictures it would be easier to show.

Basically, you need a loop of wire or mono to pull the tail material into the beads to hold it all together. You can also just slip a bead or two on, and then finish tying in the manner Dogfish described so well.

I did an article for STS (June-July 1998 if you can find one) that describes the process thoroughly.

Or you could do what I did when Leo jigs first came out; tear one apart and see how its put together.


One caveat to all the jig-making here: BE CAREFUL about the hooks you build them on. Nearly all of the mass-produced jig heads are on light wire hooks for warm-water fish. They will bend out! Like Dogfish, I like the Eagle Claw 630s, but only in the bigger sizes. I've had fish bend out everything under a 1/0.
Best are the Gammis in heavy wire, not regular!

GS