The art of freestyle jigging is a relatively new concept and technique brought to North America by the anglers of Japan where the concept originated. Simply put they wanted a rod that would alleviate the strain put on the forearm that occurs with traditionally designed jigging rods, grouped with a jig that produces a higher hooking ratio. The freestyle revolution was born.

This is one system need to put through its paces. At first glance the rod looks quite ordinary. But the real meat and potatoes of this apparatus can be found in the butt section. Similar in nature to the trigger handle of a flipping stick, the freestyle rod has an extendable butt end that can be shortened or elongated with a simple twist herein lies the secret of the system.

Butt end of a freestyle jigging rod is to be tucked up tight and under the shoulder. Depend on how stocky your body is or the length of your arms, adjustments can be made until you get the most comfortable fit. Where in the past you relied on your wrist or forearms to give action to a spoon, this new system imparts jigging motion simply through the action of your body mainly shoulder and arm working in unison. Not only is it less stressful to jig a spoon this way, but you also have direct contact with the blank, allowing you to feel every line bump, hit or fouled hook. Hook sets are more easily accomplished with this posture, and the leverage your body can generate by bypassing the forearm is phenomenal.

The rod it self is light and powerful, with some give in the tip end for those bone-jarring hits that are common during vertical jigging situations. At first use, I was amazed at the broader range of motion I could achieve in my jigging, all without the exaggerated forearm exercises. I was used to performing.

Of course, the freestyle rod can be worked in conjunction with any vertical spoon and still produce great results. In fact for those situations that don’t call for a freestyle jig, this stick definitely gets the rod.

Hunting & Fishing Tackle Tip

Everyone will have an outfit or two that will do the job. It doesn’t have to be a specialist outfit. Soft plastic fishing is finesse fishing, but his doesn’t mean light in all cases. You will need a powerful outfit for bigger fish but it should still be well balanced, as light as possible and still possess that all important feel.

I’m going to describe just two outfits that will cover 90% of your soft plastics fishing in both fresh and salt. Both are spinning outfits because of their ability to cast both unweighted and weighted plastics. Baitcasting outfits will work with weighted plastics fished with medium to heavy jig heads, but they are not as versatile as the spinning outfits. When you get going on soft plastics fishing, like most anglers you will add to your inventory. The first outfit is the light one.

This system will cover the finesse end of the spectrum and will fish the tiniest of weightless soft plastics and is great for the weightless techniques. It should be a light, sensitive, fast action, 6 ½ to 7ft spinning outfit rated somewhere around the 4lb to 10lb class. This should be teamed with a 1500 to 2500 sized spinning reel and will carry 4lb or 6lb fireline.

It will cast up to around ¼ oz or 8-10gms maximum. It can also have a small handle or one handed grip, and I like cork for the feel it transmits. It’s the sort of outfit you’d use on Peacock Bass or Sebarau in the fresh and on small GT’s or Tapon in the salt. You might even use it for Haruan in some fairly snaggy country.

I know I press mine into action in conditions that are possibly a little risky but it will knock over some good sized fish. It is also a superb outfit for casting hardbody minnows for the same types of fish and it will, in open water, tackle hefty Toman and some surprisingly large fish as long as there isn’t anything to snag you up in. The second outfit is a beefed up version of the first. A 7ft spinning rod rated for somewhere around 10-17lb line and casting up to 1 oz or 28gms. This will be matched with a 4000 sized spinning reel and loaded with 10 or 14lb Fireline.

This outfit will be used for casting to Toman and Haruan in the snags, barramundi and jacks in the estuaries and saltwater, but also makes a superb offshore casting outfit for small tuna and other smaller pelagic species. It will knock over some really big fish when used with skill. If you really could only have one outfit for soft plastics fishing, this one would be it. Again, I like my outfits to be light, powerful and fast action. The handle on this one can be a little longer than the lighter outfit since you’ll be fishing heavier drags, so you can rest the longer handle under your forearm while fighting a fish.

It pays to get a rod that “fits” you and remember you’ll be doing lots of casting so a heavy rod gets tiring pretty quickly. Leaders on this outfit can be as light as you need to go, but more commonly 20lb to 30lb leaders are used with this middleweight. If you do most of your fishing from the shore, a longer rod is advantageous. 7ft spinning outfits are ideal, but you can go longer if you prefer. If you fish from a boat (or a floaty ring), 6ft spinning outfits are easier to handle.

There is clearly a great deal of personal preference in choosing an outfit. The outfits I have suggested are adaptable and can be used in a variety of situations, not just fishing soft plastics. I’m sure most of you will have gear already in your inventory that will do the job. If you have not yet made a change to Fireline or GSP, this is about the only change you’ll probably need to make from your existing tackle systems. Fishing soft plastics and GSP lines really do go hand in hand, so if you’re going to give soft plastics a proper trial, make the change! Time to put some of this stuff into practise and go do some fishing!