Story by Sean Alvarez | Photos by Tanner & Travis Lyons
When someone mentions “Ned rig,” a few things come to mind: finesse, small plastic, and work it like a worm. What most do not realize is that the Ned rig is one of the most versatile, volume producing rigs an angler can deploy … if used unconventionally.
Several years ago, I took a buddy of mine out on Lake Hartwell for a day of fun fishing and laughs. We were having a good day with what had been a tough bite for the past few hot summer weeks. But on this day, he was on fire! He was catching about four fish to my one … from the back of the boat! It was a noticeable difference in both quantity and quality. So, I finally broke down and said, “What the heck are you throwing back there?” He just laughed, held up this little dumb looking 2.75-inch black stick threaded onto a small jig head and said, “It’s Little Ned—my new favorite friend.”
Admitting defeat, I tied one on that day and instantly started catching more … and some good ones too. Okay, this lure now has my attention. While I had previous experience with this Ned rig setup at that point, and had used it with some success, I just never really gained enough confidence in it to keep it as a mainstay on the front deck. After that day, I had that confidence.
Since then, I’ve spent a ton of time fine tuning, observing, and testing how fish react to this lure in clear water, on FFS, and under the green light on my home dock. What I discovered was eye opening. They didn’t prefer it falling to bottom and hopping it vertically like most of us work it. While they were slightly interested in the vertical or hopping presentation, and some would occasionally eat it off the bottom, the most aggressive and more frequent reactions came when it was moving continuously and horizontally through the zone. They would flat-out chase it down!
With that knowledge, I began to use little Ned as a search bait. Yes, that’s right—a search bait. I now fish a Ned like a jerkbait, a swimming worm, a swim jig, a minnow, a swimbait, a drifting drop shot, a crankbait, and even when the topwater bite takes off. If there are fish around, they will find Ned and attack.
I also really enjoy skipping Ned under docks as it tends to invoke a quick reaction strike right when you start it swimming back to the boat. There are so many more applications that it would boggle your mind.
My preferred combo for the Ned rig starts with a 7 foot medium-light spinning rod. I like the Dobyns DX 702SF. My line is 6- or 8-pound test fluorocarbon, and my bait is a Z-Man Finesse TRD on a 1/10-ounce Z-Man Finesse ShroomZ jighead.
My preferred approach to find fish using a Ned rig is to cast it out, let it fall to a desired depth, and then s-l-o-w-l-y reel it back in with only an occasional twitch. I can adjust jig weight, line weight (up to 10-pound test) and retrieve speed to suit whatever contour, current, or structure I am exploring, from a ledge in 25 feet to a shallow four-foot clay flat. My ideal depth to work the Ned is 4-12 feet. This gentle swimming motion with an occasional dart action produces a very natural look. Swimming it along instead of just hopping on the bottom also allows you to cover water more quickly with a proven lure that largemouth, smallmouth, and spotted bass absolutely love.
If I see some topwater action going on, there is no need to drop my rods and reach for a topwater bait. I can quickly cast my Ned just past the boils and, while keeping the rod tip high and reeling the bait slowly through the zone, or just kill it and let if fall slowly as if it’s an injured baitfish. This approach has a high probability of resulting in a hook up.
I can increase the jighead weight to 1/8- or 1/4-ounce and work it a little deeper, in current, or even snap it like a jerkbait during my retrieve.
If scoping is your thing, then the Ned plays right into that approach as well. There is really no need to constantly chase the hottest trending FFS minnow, just put a TRD onto a Ned jig no heavier than 1/4-ounce and go to town. The fish will be more than happy to chase and gulp little Ned just as eagerly as they do a fancy minnow.
Once hooked, you will find that fish seldom come unbuttoned with a Ned rig. I believe that the hook-to-land ratio for a Ned rig is higher than for most lures given that most hookups with a Ned are in the very top of the mouth or in the corner of the jaw. With that, there is very little jighead sticking out to allow leverage for a fish to throw it back at you.
As far as colors go, I stick with three basics in the Z-Man Finesse TRD: Yoga Pants, The Deal, and Goby Bryant (there’s something about gold flake that smallies just love), all on a black jig head. I also really like the Yamamoto Ned Senko in Electric Shad, the Yamamoto Yamatanuki in green pumpkin with blue flake. If I want to go just a little bit bigger profile, I will use the new 3 1/4-inch Yamamoto Slinko in black with blue flake.
Regardless of color or brand, I move all my Ned rigs constantly—no more hopping and hoping. Now I’m just swimming and grinning with my finesse power fishing setup.
If I was only allowed to have one rod setup on the boat, it would be a Ned rig. Simple as that. I’m a believer. Give it a try – you won’t be disappointed!
Sean Alvarez – Angler Profile
