The Texas rig simply may be a bass angler’s most suitable choice for early summer time motion. There are limitless choices of bait types you’ll be able to put in your hook, and relying on the scale of your bullet weight, there are countless methods to fish it.
Most bass anglers be taught the Texas rig as one among their first bass-specific methods, and for a superb purpose. It’s an extremely versatile rig that tips each aggressive and torpid bass. It’s additionally simple to rig up, making it a go-to for newbie anglers.
You’ll be able to fish a Texas rig wherever, nevertheless it really shines in and round underwater vegetation or in laydowns alongside the financial institution. In any case, for those who’re headed out for a day of early summer time bass fishing, don’t sleep on the Texas rig. Right here’s the whole lot it is advisable know to catch bass on this method.
Matters Coated
The Texas Rig
Picture by Derek Horner
The usual Texas rig consists of a bullet weight and an EWG hook with a smooth plastic rigged onto the hook to make it weedless. Should you’re fishing in thicker grass, generally it may assist so as to add a small rubber peg, often known as a bobber stopper, on the road above the bullet weight to maintain the burden and bait involved to scale back the quantity of weeds that might get caught in your line. In most eventualities, nonetheless, I want to go together with an unpegged Texas rig to maximise the motion of my smooth plastic.
As for the smooth plastic you select, your choices actually are countless. To make your life a bit simpler, I like to recommend utilizing a stick bait, a ribbontail worm, a creature bait, or a crawfish imitator. These 4 smooth plastics are my go-to choices once I’m rigging up for some early summer time post-spawn motion.
Methods to Rig a Texas Rig
Picture by Derek Horner
A Texas rig ought to take not more than a minute to be able to fish. The toughest half might be rigging your smooth plastic straight and weedless on the hook. Beneath is a step-by-step information.
Step 1: Choose your Texas rig hook. Usually, an 2/0 or 30/0 EWG hook.
Step 2: Choose your bullet weight. Usually a lead or tungsten bullet weight from ⅛-ounce to ½-ounce.
Step 3: Thread your bullet weight onto your line. Then, utilizing a Palomar knot, tie your line to the Texas rig hook. (Should you’re utilizing a bobber stopper, thread that onto your line previous to including the bullet weight.)
Step 4: Choose your smooth plastic and rig it onto the hook weedless. For additional clarification, right here’s a quick tutorial.
What Makes the Texas Rig so Efficient?
The Texas rig has caught bass in each state the place bass exist. It’s not only a newbie’s method, {many professional} anglers depend on the Texas rig to supply bites when it issues most. However why?
The flexibility of a Texas rig is what makes it so efficient. Being able to place virtually any smooth plastic bait in your hook and fish it successfully can’t be understated. Most different methods gained’t be very efficient for those who’re not utilizing the appropriate kind of sentimental plastic. However the Texas rig appears to shine it doesn’t matter what you need to throw. Swimbaits, stick baits, creature baits, crawfish imitators, and large ribbontail worms will all catch fish on a Texas rig. Having a banner day merely requires determining the place and the way you’re going to fish this weedless rig.
Furthering a Texas rig’s versatility is controlling your bait’s fall fee. Fall fee could also be a bit extra of a sophisticated time period, nevertheless it’s fairly self explanatory. With the flexibility to pick any measurement bullet weight, you’ve gotten the entire energy to have your smooth plastic slowly sink by means of the water column, or have it rocket to the underside. Relying on the temper of the bass and the climate situations, these choices may make the entire distinction in getting a chunk or getting skunked.
Picture by Derek Horner
The autumn fee may also be affected by way of a bobber stopper. Placing a bobber stopper above your bullet weight can hold the complete rig collectively, permitting it to slide out and in of holes within the grass extra simply. The draw back is that you simply don’t get practically as a lot motion out of your smooth plastic. With out a bobber stopper, on a slack line, your bullet weight will sink to the underside, however your smooth plastic will slowly glide in direction of the underside whereas attractive hungry bass into biting. As you hop the burden alongside, the smooth plastic will dance behind it, leaving house between the burden and the bait, inflicting motion within the smooth plastic that’s onerous to duplicate utilizing every other method.
Nevertheless, my favourite a part of this method is that it catches each largemouth and smallmouth the identical. Within the early summer time, each bass species congregate in and round grass traces to feed. As ambush predators, the aquatic vegetation gives the right spot to take a seat and look forward to an unsuspecting baitfish or crawfish to meander by. When that baitfish or crawfish is your Texas rig, they gained’t know the distinction.
For my part, in the case of fishing for springtime or early summertime bass, there’s no higher method than a Texas rig.
For a deep dive video on the Texas rig, take a look at this nice video from my pal TylersReelFishing.
When to Throw a Texas Rig
Usually, fishing a Texas rig round aquatic vegetation within the early summer time is a surefire strategy to get a couple of bites. By the early summer time, a lot of the bass have completed spawning within the shallows and have now pushed again to deeper water to seek out their summer time haunts. Grass traces in 8 to fifteen toes of water make an ideal location for ambushing their prey and hiding from different predatory fish like muskies.
I’ve discovered through the years that the very best grass line or weed mattress consists of two varieties of grass converging collectively. Whether or not that’s milfoil and hydrilla, eelgrass and waterweed, or every other mixture you’ll be able to dream up, discovering these areas can result in among the finest days you’ll have fishing a Texas rig.
Picture by Derek Horner
I wouldn’t suggest utilizing a bobber stopper if you’re fishing youthful, emergent grasses. You’ll see rather more profit having the elevated motion in your bait and also you shouldn’t reel again too many weeds. However because the summer time wanes on and the grass will get thicker, a bobber stopper may be essential to get your bait by means of the holes within the grass and to the underside the place the bass lie in wait.
As you fish in and round grass, you’ll be taught that shedding fish within the grass is simply part of the sport. Not each hooked fish will find yourself in your fingers, they’re fairly good at digging into the thickest weed patch they’ll discover to keep away from seize. The Texas rig, nonetheless, appears to be a way that results in fewer misplaced fish than different fashionable grass fishing choices.
The rationale why boils all the way down to how the fish are usually hooked on a Texas rig. It looks as if 9 out of ten instances, if you set the hook with a Texas rig, the hook is buried proper the place you need it, within the roof of their mouth. This location permits you essentially the most management over the bass through the struggle, and as soon as the hook is in there, it’s not straightforward for the bass to shake it. Having the appropriate rod, reel, and line setup will solely enhance your probability of success and cut back the quantity of fish you lose to the grass. Right here’s the gear you want.
Texas Rig Setups, Baits, Hooks, and Weights
Selecting the Proper Texas Rig Rod
Because of the versatility of the Texas rig, choosing the right rod really comes down to non-public desire and realizing the place you’ll be fishing a Texas rig more often than not. For me, that’s in emergent or medium-density grass traces, so my rod of selection will replicate that. However, for those who plan to fish in heavier grass, a heavier motion rod will all the time be a safer wager.
You’ll be able to fish a Texas rig on a spinning rod, however I nearly all the time attain for a baitcasting rod because it offers me extra management when casting and combating the bass again to the boat. Usually, I’ll choose up a 7 foot, medium motion with a average tip. My favourite rod for that is the Shimano Zodias. The flexibility of this rod selection matches the flexibility of the Texas rig fantastically.
Selecting the Proper Texas Rig Reel
Since I’ve beneficial fishing your Texas rig on a baitcasting reel, we’ll stick in that vein, however if you wish to fish it on a spinning rod, take a look at the best spinning reels to make use of with it. As for the baitcasting reel, I want a low-profile reel with a stable drag. The low-profile reel offers me much more management once I’m casting or pitching the Texas rig in and across the grass. My favourite reel for these Texas rig eventualities is the Daiwa Tatula Elite 100HSL. It presents an extremely easy casting expertise, and the draw works flawlessly, even when the bass digs into thick grass, which requires some persistence and pulling to get them out.
The Greatest Texas Rig Baits
As I’ve talked about earlier than, you’ll be able to fish virtually any smooth plastic on a Texas rig. However, for the sake of brevity, I’m going to checklist out three of my favorites.
When fishing round laydowns within the early summer time, I usually discover myself reaching for some kind of creature bait like a Zoom Baby Brush Hog. The Child Brush Hog presents simply sufficient motion to entice bass holding tight to the tree limbs into biting.
When fishing in youthful, emergent grasses, I are inclined to rig up a 7-inch Berkley PowerBait Power Worm. The motion within the tail is unbeatable, and once I placed on a smaller bullet weight, this worm dances by means of the water column simply above the grass and drives bass nuts.
If I discover myself fishing a Texas rig in thicker grasses like milfoil or hydrilla, I wish to go together with a beaver model creature bait. My favourite is the Reaction Innovations Sweet Beaver. This streamlined bait paired with a bobber stopper and heavier bullet weight permits the Texas rig to slide by means of thicker grass and discover its strategy to the underside the place hungry bass are ready to ambush.
The Greatest Texas Rig Hooks
When deciding on which hook to throw in your Texas rig, don’t stress over it an excessive amount of. So long as your hook is sharp and isn’t going to interrupt on you, any EWG hook will do. My selection is nearly all the time a 3/0 Berkley Fusion19 Superline EWG Hook. These hooks are sharp and have by no means let me down.
Bullet Weights for Texas Rigs
The bullet weight you select in your Texas rig is without doubt one of the most essential items of the puzzle. Choosing the right weight for every scenario is paramount. Fortunate for you, bullet weights are provided in practically any measurement you’ll be able to think about. Usually, I keep inside ⅛-ounce to ½-ounce for my bullet weights.
As for the fabric the weights are made from, you’ve gotten choices there too. For the typical angler, lead weights ought to be simply tremendous, however for those who’re seeking to up your Texas rig to the following degree, a tungsten bullet weight will give you extra sensitivity and suggestions as you’re employed your bait alongside the underside. Beneath are my favourite choices for lead and tungsten bullet weights.
Line for Texas Rigs
When it comes time to spool up your Texas rigging baitcasting reel, look no additional than 12-pound Sunline Super FC Sniper Fluorocarbon Line. The fluorocarbon line would be the most suitable choice in your Texas rig as the road is sluggish sinking in and of itself, serving to the motion of your bait because it falls by means of the water column.
Last Ideas and Tips about Methods to Fish a Texas Rig
As you’ll be able to see, there are one million and one methods to rig up a Texas rig. From weight choice to deciding the appropriate smooth plastic, rigging a Texas rig might be daunting for those who let it. As an alternative, I’d suggest selecting a 1/4-ounce weight and your favourite smooth plastic bait and heading to the water. Greater than probably, you’ll get a couple of bites earlier than the day is over and your confidence will skyrocket.
From there, experiment with completely different baits and weight mixtures. Every weight and bait mixture may have a unique fall fee and motion. Determining a couple of favorites will allow you to slim down the gear you actually need in your subsequent fishing journey.
