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View Full Version : Knife Jigs "Cheap or Expensive" ???



TimD
01-03-2010, 11:46 AM
Hi i'm just about to get into some knife jigging and i'm wondering if expensive jigs work better than cheap jig's, i would prefere to buy jigs that have no assist hooks and split rings as i will replace them with good quality strong ones.


cheers tim :)

Noelm
01-03-2010, 12:11 PM
never yet seen a fish that could read a price tag, but you never know, QLD fish could be a lot smarter, if you are changing hooks and split rings anyway, buy the cheap ones, I used to make my own (way back in the good old days) and all they were was a strip of stainless flat bar, about 1 1/2" by a 1/4 and about 6 to 10" long, a hole in each end and a treble on the bottom end via a split ring, and they worked a treat, and recently I found some old unused ones in the corner of the shed and rigged them with a single hook on the top like the latest fashion and used them, caught just as many fish as the $20 ones that my mate used, I might add, I also used them with a treble on the bottom and caught just as many too.

MattChew
01-03-2010, 12:31 PM
Go to the Scrapyard, find a Mk II Ford Cortina and then pull the door handles off ... has taken many a Fish over the years!!!!! There are some Saltiga jigs in the for sale section Tim ... I'll go you halves if you like!!!!

Ta
Matt

Marlin_Mike
01-03-2010, 12:44 PM
3 for 25 bucks delivered off ebay. bought three of each 200 300 and 400 grams. Changed the rings and hooks for good quality.

thats average 8 bucks each. including postage.

Mike

honda900
01-03-2010, 12:45 PM
Tim,

the surecatch cheapies work just as well as the rest, even tried a few from the bay of E that work quite well.

Lumo, and the red head lumo have worked for me.

Regards
HOnda.

metaloid
01-03-2010, 01:09 PM
i'm wondering if expensive jigs work better than cheap jig's

On average I'd say yes, but fortunately you don't have to stick to just expensive jigs. So you can start with a mix, e.g. 3 or 4 from the bargain box, plus 1 or 2 exxy ones. If you lose more than 6 jigs on a trip, you feel like using a stick of dynamite on the next drop anyway, so half a dozen jigs is enough to get started.

Then later on when you're really addicted, you can start ordering online and convince yourself that you're saving heaps of money!;D

Noelm
01-03-2010, 01:16 PM
so why exactly do you say that expensive jigs work better? I can see that the paint jobs are better, the hardware is better, but as far as catching fish goes, I personaly don't think so, now trolling lures can be a different kettle of fish, I have seen cheap skirts (not girls) spin hopelessly, but they can be fixed (most times) knife jigs, not so critical.

trueblue
01-03-2010, 01:46 PM
The Williamson Abyss and Benthos jigs work well. I have some where the paint is nearly worn off from heaps and heaps of fish.

Williamson assist hooks are good, never had them fail, but, assist hooks are easy to make. To make cheap assist hooks, use Hoodlum hooks, and dacron plus heat shrink. All you need is a dacron splicing needle to make the loop.

to make expensive assist hooks, just upgrade from dacron to spectra, upgrade the thickness and upgrade hooks to Duel or Owner jig hooks.

cheers

Mick

BarraBandit
01-03-2010, 01:49 PM
In the end it comes down to you get what you pay for. I have some Saltiga ones... small and big... and they are good. Most times you will upgrade the hooks and rings (unless you get good jap ones) no matter what. Alot of the jigs around that iv seen dont come with jigs or rings for that reason, that your going to take them off and throw them in the big anyway... and it helps them keep the price down I guess.

I got lucky at a sale day about 6months ago... They put jigs ($25ea or something?) in the $2 box!! I grabbed them all, even though I dont jig much :P Cant lose.

Good luck with choosing your jigs, hooks and rings... and may the fish shove them down the hatch very quickly!

trueblue
01-03-2010, 02:59 PM
I'm not so sure that expensive makes all that much difference with knife jigs. I've used Saltiga jigs next to a cheap Abyss jigs, the Abyss was full of tooth marks and had heaps of captures while the Saltiga only got a few by comparison.

just my own observation

cheers

Mick

banshee
01-03-2010, 05:27 PM
When the fish are 'on' literaly anything will work,have seen footage of a snapper lead and also a 12'' shifter riged with assist hooks pulling serriola,it's not till the fishing is hard or reefies are the target that your better quality jigs tend to produce.Having said that, there are some very accurate copies about,for example the Gladiator Head Bangers are a pretty good copy of the Jigs Ace.

TimD
01-03-2010, 09:11 PM
Just ordered some River2sea knife jigs -

2 x 230 gram jigs
3 x 300 gram jigs
1 x 230 gram spike jig

That will get me going for now


cheers tim :)

Horse
01-03-2010, 09:24 PM
I'm going to try the 12" shifter next time.... A cheap copy of course...;D

TimD
01-03-2010, 09:31 PM
I'm going to try the 12" shifter next time.... A cheap copy of course...;D

Horse i heard Snap-On shifters catch more fish than other cheap shifters :P


cheers tim :)

metaloid
01-03-2010, 10:23 PM
so why exactly do you say that expensive jigs work better? I can see that the paint jobs are better, the hardware is better, but as far as catching fish goes, I personaly don't think so, now trolling lures can be a different kettle of fish, I have seen cheap skirts (not girls) spin hopelessly, but they can be fixed (most times) knife jigs, not so critical.

Hi Noelm,

I fished with a guy from Perth once who had "kitchen" knife jigs, i.e. made from stainless steel kitchen knives, and he swore that he caught sambos with them... I digress, but just to point out that I do believe that nearly anything can catch fish, regardless of price.;)

My post was more in relation to Tim's question, which ones are "better". It's very subjective because I've only tested very few brands but on a couple of occasions, during hot sessions, when you expect to get a fish "very quickly", I noticed that some jigs just didn't generate instant bites (Daiwa Sacrifice Leaf, A with the Mart cheapie) but as soon as I put a quality jig back (Zest, Smith, Mangrove Studio), the fish were back also. It could be pure coincidence but I like the idea that some jigs are too good to resist. Also, it helps me concentrate during the first run when I know that I have a $35 bill dangling at the end of my line... I really want to get it back!!!;D

trueblue
01-03-2010, 11:02 PM
did you change colour / lumo / generic shape or anything else when you went to the expensive jig and got the hits?

I have found that colour and luminencence makes a lot of difference, at different times with different fish.

Its a tough call to say the expensive jig works better unless swapping cheap for expensive but in the same colour, general style etc. just the old apples and oranges thing with statistics.

cheers

Mick

BarraBandit
01-03-2010, 11:17 PM
I really say this too much but I think it is a good thing to keep in mind...

We spend big dollars on Rods, Reels, Line, Fuel, Boats... But your lure and hook are really the only thing that is the key to catching that fish of a lifetime... If you catch that fish of all fishes... isnt that $30 lure worth it? I think it is.

trueblue
02-03-2010, 12:05 AM
I really say this too much but I think it is a good thing to keep in mind...

We spend big dollars on Rods, Reels, Line, Fuel, Boats... But your lure and hook are really the only thing that is the key to catching that fish of a lifetime... If you catch that fish of all fishes... isnt that $30 lure worth it? I think it is.

I'm not arguing about spending money - I don't want to even contemplate how much money I have thrown at fishing gear etc.

My point is only that if cheaper gear works well, no need to spend a heap extra on more expensive gear that doesn't necessarily catch more fish. Spend money where there is proven value.

Proven value will be a personal thing, based on personal experience. And for me, I try and compare like for like, apples with apples and oranges with oranges, and chartruse coloured jigs with other chartruse coloured jigs.

cheers

Mick

metaloid
02-03-2010, 01:01 PM
did you change colour / lumo / generic shape or anything else when you went to the expensive jig and got the hits?

I have found that colour and luminencence makes a lot of difference, at different times with different fish.

Its a tough call to say the expensive jig works better unless swapping cheap for expensive but in the same colour, general style etc. just the old apples and oranges thing with statistics.

cheers

Mick


Hi Mick,

You're absolutely right, it is an apple to orange comparison. But the main reason is that I haven't yet found apples that look like oranges and cost the same... Believe me I am @#%$#% spewing when I lose a good jig, so it's not a game! In fact I probably spend more time preparing for a trip, making assist hooks and testing braid-leader knots that I spend connected to a fish.

Also, I have Japanese rellies, so I get to visit once in a while and re-stock at local prices...;D

Cheers,
Steve