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[GENERAL-SHERMAN]

don't get how someone can say fishing a jig is a waste of money or time.  I often use the same jig all day...how is that expensive?

i said fishing them early season is not going to give an advantage when the fish are hitting everything..... it can be expensive in the early season when you don't know runs well and you have to second guess yourself about fishing too deep(like throwing that expensive 7 dollar drennan near a snag pile) you will be fishing to shallow allot of the time worrying about losing your jig. my post was not to detour fisherman from using them but to give advise on fishing them later in the year when their presence is more effective.

if people are telling you to not fish jigs because they are way to expensive then they most likely don't fish jigs

hue nut i do fish jigs on occasion(mostly in the later months) I was stating this because i figured riverbum101 was buying them Pre tied and losing allot of gear which will inevitably frustrate a beginner stealheader (not stating that he is because i don't know who riverbum101 is) turning them completely off jig fishing altogether.

I had a day 2 years ago when my buddy landed 8 steelies to my 0

like I said fish them in the later months and you will be rewarded because this surely wasn't in dec jan or probably even feb unless hue nut was fishing the canal again. was this from kwb down?

[milo]

personally if I was fishing 6' of water, I'd have a 3-3.5 foot leader.

That's a bloody long leader for steelhead...are you sure you didn't mean "I'd have the weight 3-3.5 feet under the float"?
That, plus a 1.5 foot leader would get you right in the zone.

[wizard]

milo, i meant that if in 6' of water, I'd present jig at 3.5'.  things change according to conditions, ie, colored water; obviously would try to put jig closer to bottom as the lack of vis will deter a fish sitting on the bottom from seeing jig...clear water with high vis, not important at all to be near the bottom...fish will easily see and attack a properly presented jig 3 ' and more above them.  plus if your jig is 5' from your float in 6' of water, snagging on bottom debris is likely.  if you feel there is no danger of snagging, lengthen leader.  imo unless conditions require it, being on the bottom foot of water column with a jig is unnecessary, perhaps counter productive as fish holding in any other areas of the river will not be able to see the jig at all.  for example, a fish 10 feet away for example from your drift's track will easily see a jig that is higher in the column.

[therise]

I often use jigs and fish them AT LEAST 2 feet off of the bottom. This is partly because I hate snagging and leaving junk at the bottom of the river, but mainly because I have never found a difference getting them down that extra foot.
A couple of the old timers I have fished with over the years fish them even higher with great success, not to be bothered with height adjustments.

[GENERAL-SHERMAN]

I often use jigs and fish them AT LEAST 2 feet off of the bottom. This is partly because I hate snagging and leaving junk at the bottom of the river, but mainly because I have never found a difference getting them down that extra foot.
A couple of the old timers I have fished with over the years fish them even higher with great success, not to be bothered with height adjustments.

ill fish behind you any day

[Dennis.t]

Not worth the bother...I catch fish alot of steel in skinny water and the last thing i need is a jig to constantly hang up on the bottom.  And i dont fish the stack holes in the Canal  I cover all kinds of water in a day and dont worry about finding the "right" water in order to use a jig.The great thing about these higher water levels this yr is it keeps the fish moving through the canal  Cheers

[bigblue]

Keeping jigs off the bottom to prevent snags does makes sense, but what about effectiveness of this method in cold water?
In winter, water temperature is very low, it's like 3 degrees at my local river and steelheads are sluggish.
Would keeping it 2~3 feet off the bottom still be effective in cold water?

[Dennis.t]

Steel get lethargic in colder water and try to conserve energy.They wont go out of there way to bite something thats not right in front of them.A fresh piece of bait drifted in front of thier nose in colder temps is the ticket to steelhead success.

[skaha]

--adjust jig weight sometimes overlooked.
--Not all but some I just buy the bent 90 degree  jig hook or Matzuo about 60 degree bend.
--Instead of using Jig molded weight I just squeeze on lead or now I guess non toxic soft weights.. I sometimes even squeeze them flat in a vise... rather than leave round... then paint an eye or single colour.

--This allows tying same jig fly with several different head weights... thus allowing you to adjust the terminal  weight to dial in the jig presentation.

--People often tell you what won't work rather than how you can change your presentation to make it work..
--I use jigs down to 1/48th oz...(0bviously not for steelhead but good for whitefish . ) probably less weight than some flies on larger hooks.

--Like many have said when fish are biting you don't need to be as dialed in as on a day when you can bounce off their head and they won't even notice. 

[bigblue]

Skaha, the idea of an interchangeable jig head is really appealing to me.
I mostly use 1/8 oz jigs, but sometimes find the weight to be not suitable to water condition.
If the jig is too light, I can add a split shot on the leader, but this is not an ideal solution to the problem.
If the jig is too heavy, then it is a hmmmmm..... situation.
Would be good if someone can introduce this kind of jig to the market.

[skaha]

Bigblue; Lindy jigs exchange system can change colour and weight size. Not sure if they have a steelhead quality hook in this system but if enough people wanted it I'm sure it would happen.

[GENERAL-SHERMAN]

waste of time i would sooner tie a 30 minute intruder on  a jig hook with very lightly weighted eyes. fish way more water. 2-3 feet is not effective period. 1 to 2 tops. especially in the water we will be seeing in the next week(very colored ) or so.

[wizard]

2-3 feet is not effective period.

  I couldn't disagree more.

[bigblue]

How do you guys scent your jigs?
Or, is scent not necessary in good viz water?

[Danube Boy]

How do you guys scent your jigs?
Or, is scent not necessary in good viz water?

You can scent them by adding a piece of prawn/shrimp, just make sure there is no oil based scent on the bait or it will get on the feathers making them all stuck together.