A DIAMOND IN THE ROUGH

What’s the hardest known natural material? I hope you said a diamond- despite the fact your significant other answered that it is your head! My next question, what do diamonds, and an eating utensil have in common?  Not sure? Well, the “Jig” is up! It really doesn’t get a lot simpler. You just take a slim piece of metal and attach a hook to it and you’re in business- you’ve made a Diamond Jig. Over the years the basic shape has been embellished and enhanced with everything from paint, hammered dimples, bucktail teaser hooks, to the addition of surgical rubber tubed “eels”. Some even have holographic stickers that mimic various baitfish.

Nevertheless, the basic chunk of metal with a treble hook standard has remained unchanged.  Old “Salts” call it an “Ava” jig and many call them jigging “spoons”, recalling a time when anglers used to take an actual spoon from the drawer, drill a couple of holes, and tie their line to one end and attach a hook on the other end. That was followed by a cast and often a hookset. Of course, stealing the family silverware and altering it for fishing was deeply frowned upon, pretty much curtailing that practice.

 Stripers love them, Blues go crazy for them, Fluke will give them a chase, and when the Albies show up, hold on, the speedster can’t resist them. They’re durable and inexpensive and should have some slots reserved in your plug bag. So, what do you really need to know about fishing them?

Styles and Sizes: The standard diamond jig comes in weights ranging from ½ oz. up to 8 oz. The lower weights are used when there is very little current and calm water. The more you need to hold bottom or make sure you get to the bottom or the farther you need to cast, the heavier the weight of jig you will need to throw. Common weights for surfcasting range from approx. 1 ½ oz up to almost 5 oz.. It also depends on where the fish are in the water column. Lighter jigs will retrieve higher in the water column requiring the fish to be feeding not far under the surface or be looking up and chasing. Heavier jigs will sit deeper in the water column during the retrieve. If you are jigging offshore and want to rip it off the bottom to attract fluke and black sea bass, make sure you have enough weight to feel the bottom when you begin your retrieve. If there is wind or if you need to really chuck it to get it over the sandbar, a heavier weight will also help.

The shape and hook style should match the hatch. Stripers like the rubber eel or a single hook with a trailer “rind” type bait like Fat Cow jigging strips. Fluke like a Gulp grub style trailer. Blues and Albies love the flash and dash of hammered metal dimples and silvery teaser hooks.

Always check the local tackle shops to find out what the local preferences are. Color-wise the three basics are red, white, and green that applies to the rubber tube. Red, when slowly dragged on the bottom, will mimic a sand or bloodworm, a Striper delicacy. Bluefish can’t seem to stay away. When it comes to the painted jigging spoons, mackerel colors and combinations with chartreuse are favorites. Again, make sure you check in with your local experts at the tackle shop.

As mentioned previously, there are a lot of styles and shapes. The Ava are long and angular. The Hopkins are chunkier, dimpled and rounded. Some are flashy and dressed up more than others. Whether you are fishing from the beach, a jetty or offshore you will definitely want to have a few different options in your bag, including color and size variations on standards like the rubber tubed version. I would be remiss if I did not recommend one of the Long Island favorites, Charlie Graves Tins, made by West End Fishing Tackle Inc., made locally by one of our own LIBBA members. A version or two of the Deadly Dick is also a personal favorite, especially when the Albies make their way to our shores. I also highly recommend buying from your local tackle shop. You definitely want to pick their brains as to what’s working best, where and when, and if you don’t buy locally, this great resource won’t be available for long.

A Method to the Madness: These “Diamond Jigs” or “Jigging Spoons” are one of the better choices to throw from the beach or jig from a boat. Two reasons come immediately to mind: First they’re effective in targeting multiple species and second, is their castability.  Because of their weight and relatively streamlined shape, they cut through the wind with ease allowing you to cast quite a distance. This is a big perk if you’re trying to land it over a sand bar. They’re also excellent if you’re in the middle of a blitz. The straightforward one hook design combined with its flash give you an efficient “turnaround” to quickly unhook and send another

cast into the boil. As compared to other baits, the metal jig is Bluefish tooth proof which also allows you to unhook and get to casting again without the need to swap out damaged plugs or “mauled” plastics. What’s the best color? Should you use a slow bottom-dragging retrieve, a ripping jigging motion or a crazy fast retrieve? There is only one way to find out- get out there and get busy chucking and winding.  As I said earlier, these are basic lures that work- that is, ones that catch more fish than fishermen.

EDITOR'S NOTE: iBass360 has teamed up with the Long Island Beach Buggy Association to promote fishing and coastal conservation along the Striper Bass Coast. Blog authorJoe Pellegrini is an avid Long Island surfcaster and Officer of the Association. He writes a column for the members called "Tackle Tuesday". iBass360 is pleased to be able to share Joe's work with the 360Nation