Since being proven to catch fish year round and pretty much anywhere in the country, the Ned rig has gained a lot of popularity.
After its invention by Ned Kehde and introduction to the market in the early 2000's, many anglers around the world have deemed the Ned rig their go-to set up thanks to it's simplicity and effectiveness.
Whether you're a beginner, tour pro, or somewhere in between, the Ned rig can be easily tied on and fished with success.
Let's get started!
Ned Rig Basics
At its core, the Ned rig consists of two things; a small soft plastic and a jig head.
The key to a Ned rig is the type of jig head used.
Ned rigs use a mushroom or half-moon shaped jig head which allows the lure to remain nose down and thus keep a more vertical presentation.
Many anglers will often pair their jig heads with a floating soft plastic to ensure a near vertical presentation of the rig.
Most people who fish a Ned rig will shoot for a soft plastic in the 3-4 inch range.
Stick worms, crawfish and other creature baits are tough-to-beat choices when fishing this rig.
Gear Selection
Ned rigs are considered a finesse fishing technique and are fished more effectively when paired with lighter gear.
Most anglers opt for spinning tackle involving a lighter rod (medium-light to medium) with a fast action tip and pair it with light line in the 4-8 pound test range.
Terminal Tackle Options
This is the key component of the Ned rig.
Consider a mushroom or half-moon shaped jig head with a hook shank length that pairs well with the size soft plastic you plan to use.
For jig head weight, a common choice is something between 1/16 oz. - 1/4 oz.
The goal is to have a soft plastic that once it hits bottom will maintain a "head down, tail up" lure presentation.
Where to Fish a Ned Rig
Since most setups include an exposed hook and are prone to snags, the Ned rig works best in areas where fish are holding near specific pieces of structure.
Areas such as points, ledges, channel swings, or rip rap are great places to start.
Popular river targets include areas around riffles and eddies.
If you opt for a rigging option that allows the rig to be weedless (weed guards or wide gap hook jig heads), consider also targeting areas such as docks, brush piles, isolated chunk rock, and submerged vegetation.
Long story short, a Ned rig can successfully be fished anywhere with the only risk being a few snags here-and-there in places that include cover (rocks, timber, vegetation, etc.).
How to Fish a Ned Rig
The Ned rig is most commonly fished on the bottom but is versatile enough that it can be swam or hopped through a particular depth of the water column as well.
Many anglers opt for something similar to a worm retrieval and prefer slowly dragging the lure along the bottom with intermittent pauses.
Others will hop it around like one would a skirted jig.
Take note that your soft plastic selection may dictate how you choose to retrieve the lure.
Bites may come in different ways.
Be sure to pay close attention to your line and look for a subtle tick indicating that a fish took your lure.
Other bites may simply be a loading up of your fishing rod in which reeling the hook into the fishes lip is all that's needed for a good hookup.
Time to go catch em'!
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