NUTECH LURES NUJIG ELITE
THE SINGLE-STRAND
WEEDGUARD IS
CATCHING ON
The standard fiber weedguard is a
mainstay for bass jigs. It comes in vari-
ous colors, thicknesses and degrees of
flexibility, but the concept has remained
the same for years. Two companies in
the jig game are questioning the status
STRIKE KING HACK ATTACK FLUOROCARBON FLIPPING JIG
FITZGERALD RODS MEGA JIG
quo, however, with single-strand weed-
guards – paired together into dual
guards – that are made of unique plas-
tic-like materials. Theoretically, a single-
strand guard could be engineered with
just the right amount of flex or resist-
ance for any situation.
The double-guard design is said
to deflect snags without preventing
the hook from penetrating, while
FITZGERALD RODS TEXAS JIG
also keeping the jig from rolling
during the hookset for better hook
alignment.
NuTech Lures has adopted the
design on its series of jigs. Likewise,
Florida-based Fitzgerald Rods manu-
factures the MEGA JIG and Texas Jig
($8.99) for heavy-cover flipping. The
Fitzgerald weedguards are made of
twisted weed trimmer line.
NICHOLS JT KENNEY GRASS WIZARD NICHOLS LW FINESSE SWIM JIG
Z-MAN CROSSEYEZ POWER FINESSE JIG V&M PACEMAKER SKIPPING JIG
TECHNIQUE-SPECIFIC
JIGS EXPAND
Jigs have always been technique-
specific to a degree, but these days
the degree of specificity in jig design
has really improved.
For instance, Strike King designed
a new Hack Attack Fluorocarbon
Flipping Jig ($4.99) with a thinner-wire
hook for better penetration when
using fluorocarbon versus braided
line. It has the same head design as
the original and features a corkscrew
wire keeper to secure a trailer.
As its name suggests, the Nichols
JT Kenney Grass Wizard ($4.99) is for
fishing heavy grass. It has a unique
arrow-shaped belly on the jighead
and features Nichols’ toothpick keep-
er system to secure a trailer.
JANUARY 2018 I FLWFISHING.COM
“Finesse” is creeping into more tra-
ditional jig styles, too, so anglers can
entice fish with different sizes rather
than the traditional mouthfuls. The
Nichols LW Finesse Swim Jig ($4.99) is
a downsized version of the common
swim jig with a fine-cut skirt and light-
wire hook, and the Z-Man CrossEyeZ
Power Finesse Jig ($4.99) is small in
profile, but built tough like standard-
sized flipping and pitching jigs.
Finally, V&M expanded its
Pacemaker series with the new
Skipping Jig ($5.29), which is built on a
30-degree hook and features a larger
weedguard to protect it better when
fishing cover. The head of the jig is
broad for better skipping, too.
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