ChrisD46

Thanks Mike for the update - always interested to see the advances in skirt colors and the like to give us new jig color options !

+1 ... What Scarborough817 says !

Thanks for the replies - I would like to think that the thin braid + FC leader would be a good line option in winter as well as not impede any action to the Ned bait combo ?

*Glenn mentions a straight #6lb. co-poly line for the Ned Rig - for those that have replied , what is your choice of line ?

Yes , I vow to learn this technique over winter when the bite can be a little tough after fronts , etc. so a few different retrieves to learn are in order ... On deck are a new 7' ML fast action rod , 2000 series spinning reel with #10 lb. braid + #6 lb. FC leader . Today while visiting my favorite local tackle shop to wish them a Merry Christmas - they just got in the new Roboworm 3" Ned Worm so I picked up a pack of a green pumpkin variant to have along with some 3" TRD's I recently bought .

What is your favorite way to fish a Ned Rig ? ... Do you fish it on the bottom like a shakey head by dragging or hopping it ? ... Or do you swim it ? ... Another method ? ... Thanks in advance !

Quick Drop makes a quality DS weight - what do readers think about tungsten DS weights which seem to be on the rise in popularity ?

Valid , practical replies Tom & Dink - just what I'm looking for ! I'm would be more in the camp of the "cast and retrieve" drop shot approach blind casting in shallower water less than 15 foot deep ...

Siebert Outdoors newer designed football jigs (also a sponsor) - once you try there is little reason to use anything else !

Good points Tom ! ... Just trying to stimulate conversation for cold water bass fishing - as always , keep your comments coming !

Only just a few years ago it seems the norm was to throw lighter drop shot weights (down in the 1/16th oz. , 3/32nd oz. & 1/8th oz. range) for various small worms and shad type soft plastics . Now I see the trend is to often use heavier drop shot weights of 3/16th oz. , 1/4 oz. , 3/8th oz. and above with the same baits - even in shallower water . I'm not sure I understand the theory behind the move to heavier drop shot weights - unless we are talking deeper water tactics ? Is it a case of absolutely making sure that drop shot weight does NOT come up off of the bottom while working a drop shot soft plastic ? Previously you would see guys using the lighter 1/8th oz. drop shot weights and it would be ok to more often come up off the bottom a bit as they are working the drop shot baits . *With the above said , what determines the drop shot weight you use with soft plastics (outside of water depth) ? Is it just enough drop shot weight to work a drop shot bait without the weight coming up off the bottom OR are you in the newer camp of: "I want that drop shot weight more firmly planted on the bottom while working a drop shot bait" thus moving to the heavier drop shot weights of 1/4th oz. and above ? Lastly , if you have moved to heavier drop shot weights in general - have you noticed any difference in hook up percentage ? ... Thanks in advance !

As the title states - today (Dec. 21st.) is the first day of Winter ... *What are your favorite Winter baits you will be throwing this year ?

I should have refined my post to say water above 50° degrees is Winter here in Georgia , certainly above the Mason Dixon line is another story as smalljaw67 was nice enough to point out .

Good suggestions Flatcreek ! ... A ball head jig , under spin and probably even a scrounger near the bottom could prove deadly !

You hear a lot about fishing hard bodied jerk baits in the winter (or cold water conditions ) - but what about a soft plastic jerk bait such as a Zoom Super Fluke (or similar) ? The disadvantage of the soft plastic jerk bait is it won't suspend like a hard bodied jerk bait and it contains no rattles for attracting bass . However , you can kill a soft plastic jerk bait and let it spiral down through the water column like a dying shad which a hard bodied jerk bait can't duplicate ... So , for you soft plastic jerk bait lovers - do you put your super flukes , etc. away for the winter or continue fishing them (perhaps just more slowly) ?

+1 ... Watch the C-XX line diameters - Big Game Mono readily available , great value with very good performance .

+1 , a 1/4th oz. football jig is a little light - go with 3/8th or 1/2 oz. models instead to better maintain bottom contact .

Mike = #awesomesponsor !!

Adding Zoom Magnum Finesse Worm too - very good also !

Pitching into grass or weeds = straight braid . Everything else = braid + leader.

Color suggestions above are good - for Fall it's all about the shad bite so go with white and I suggest Zoom The Fluke (regular or Super Fluke Jr. ) in Pearl or Albino colors . I believe a boot tail trailer competes with the action of the chatterbait too much , so I tend to stay away from those .

About as good as it gets - a true main stay ...

Worth while advice ...

The last 3 months at the assisted living facility (Pleasant Meadows ) I have made great progress where I have under gone intensive one-on-one and group therapy sessions daily which has worked wonders warding off the bait monkey ... Unbeknownst to me involved a final test celebration cake and buried inside were a burner phone , a catalog of new arrivals from TW and a 15% off coupon ... In less than 10 minutes I racked up over $1,400 with TW and that was just for soft plastics !! ... I have now been transferred to: Secondary Point Maximum Security Prison for repeat bait monkey offenders where I have been given a six month sentence to think about my transgressions - the bait monkey continues to be crafty and oh so powerful !!

Lots of good answers here , whether you call it a nail rig or Neko rig - the absolute best I have found is a Zoom Magnum Finesse Worm in Watermelon Candy color , VMC 1/0 Neko hook and a VMC 1/16th oz. VMC Half Moon Wacky Weight , #8 lb. FC leader , #15 lb. braid main line ... I would enter this set up on: "Dancing With The Stars" !