Favorite Umbrell Rig and tips

[6 lb Smallmouth]

Just curious what your guys' best producing A-Rig for our Great Lakes smallies.  What kind of swimbaits are you putting on it?  When have you found it to be most successful?  What is the law for Michigan and number of hooks on the rig?  Thanks for any advice. 

[Firefighter Jeff]

  I would like to know also.   

[djkimmel]

The law is up to 6 hooks at one time based on 3 hooks with 2 rods max. So 5 hook rigs that dominate the market are legal in Michigan. I have enjoyed fishing the Kustom Kicker Jigs Reaper Rig and the Titanium Strike King Rig like the one Zona used. They are best in the spring and fall for me. I didn't catch a lot on them over the summer though I could have tried them more.

I used all kinds of bodies on them. Money minnows, Case Plastics minnows, some BPS shops imitators. Bass seem to like the swimming tails the most often. I have a lot more experimenting to do with them.

[thedude]

Titanium are worth the money. Make sure to get them with and without blades.  I use 5 and 7 wire w dummies

[Waterfoul]

I've had good luck with the Booyah 5 wire baits.  The Flash Mob Jr. with the willow leave blades on sunny days and without the blades on cloudy days.  Usually run Reaction Innovations little dippers when the water is pretty cold and switch to Kietech baits once the water starts to warm up, they have more swimming action.

[Firefighter Jeff]

   Thanks guys !!   

[6 lb Smallmouth]

   Thanks guys !!   

Agreed.  I appreciate the advice.   

[Hooksetter]

So...what rods and reels are you using? What power and action? What retrieve speed? Does it really matter that much? I am thinking of trying this. Better in the spring, summer or fall, or might it work all year?

Thanks.

Willie

[djkimmel]

A-rigs are heavy so heavy action rods to make casting them easy with a loop-lob cast to avoid tangles. 7 or 7 1/2 foot rod to handle casting and retrieving better.

Better in the spring and fall but anytime bass are feeding on schools of minnows it could produce.

Slow to medium retrieve. Make the lures jumps every once in awhile by popping the handle a little. Can turn followers into biters.

[Mojo]

We covered this when the A rig came out a few years ago, and I found the most effective A-rig on LSC was the Kustom Kicker Reaper. It is a much smaller set up than other rigs, with smaller wires that keeps the baits tighter. It makes sense that smallies whacked em ! I only got 1 double, but it was fun. A bunch of single fish too !

I used small 1/4 oz 2K jig heads on the bottom 2 wires (to prevent twirling and line twist), regular 1/0 or 2/0 hooks on the top 2 - and the very center top one I put a #5 chrome willow. I used 2.5 or 3 inch white paddle tails - sometimes made one of them pink to see if that one got slammed ... it didn't seem to matter.

I ran braid to a swivel and ran about a foot of 10 lb floro - used a 7'0" or 7'6"Med Heavy glass rod (Razr Rods work awesome). You want some flex in the rod so I wouldn't go with heavy, if you get a double you'll want this.



I did best in shallower weed edges, where current was moving the weeds. Didn't do as well out deeper. I thought I'd do better post spawn but it didn't really become productive until August. I'll keep experimenting, deeper, because I think it should get bit when they tickle the weed tops in 12 - 16 fow. Anyway - good luck out there, and get to the Kustom Kicker website and order because I believe this "Tight Ball" Reaper smaller A rig is limited in quantity.

[TCook]

Don't put much stock into guys who are pushing there sponsors products, its just them doing there job and not necessarily the best tool for the job. I am not one of those guys and have tried many different rigs and the best for our clear waters of Michigan is the titanium ones by strike king. I'm not going to give everything away but the reason why this is the most effective rig is the flex of the titanium wire which allows you to flare your swimbaits with a quick hard turn of the handle followed with a pause. This is when you will get 90% of your strikes in clear water. Make sure you keep the tip of your rod pointed directly towards where your reeling your bait, there should be no bend in your rod. This way your rod is not absorbing the quick hard flare you are trying to impart into your rig.  If you just reel it back you may only get a couple bites that day instead of 20. With colors just stick with pearl and whites but put chartreuse or a different colored swimbait on the middle trailing arm or the bottom arm. They will almost always eat one of those two and the different color gives them a target to key in on. Depending on the depth you are going to fish and speed is what determines how heavy you want to go with your jigheads. Very the weights with the lightest on top, heavier on the three middle wires, and heaviest on the bottom. I use lightwire ball heads on the 3 arms that rarely get bit and Jwill jigheads with bigger hooks on the two that will get hammered. Another important trick since these A-rigs can fowl often, the time this occurs the most is when your rig hits the water. To prevent this right before they enter the water thumb your spool quicker than normal to stop and straighten the rig out before entry. Hope this was helpful and you can find more success with this technique.

[djkimmel]

I don't know what the 'tight ball' is (did they change the name?) but mentioned earlier about the Kustom Kicker Reaper Rig that is smaller, light wire so it also flares when you stop and start it somewhat like the Titanium umbrella rig which I also own. I'm still experimenting with both of them to see what works best when. Always need more experimenting.

[Mojo]

Dan - It is the Reaper, but goes by either name or even called their 'perch rig'. Either ways its a smaller, tighter ball of fish presentation. So even though you aren't pushing your sponsor products, its good to know other folks have noticed that the bigger longer A-rigs don't seem terribly effective on LSC. Otherwise you would have seen FLW and Bassmaster folks clamoring about it like they did when the Duo Realis spy bait started elevating people up the boards.

Anyway - about putting a different color for the fish to key on, I almost always get bit on the bottom or center baits by smallies regardless of color. But heck ! try it !

Lastly - I try to add pictures when possible as proof something works, and I won't rep a product that doesn't flat out work.  Nemesis gobies, Xtreme Tubes, 2K products, Razr Rods, Sportsmen's Direct, GLB -A) are good people, B) their products catch ALOT of fish or are significantly useful ..... Moving on.

[dartag]

Watched Zona's show yesterday.  He and KVD were up north fishing.  He started using the Titanium rig.  They had a camera in front of the rig and had a great photo of it in action.  They got a great photo of a smallie biting the center bait.  Check it out.

[TCook]

Did you use Razr rods with great success before you decided to rep there product?

[Hooksetter]

 Thanks to everyone for all the info on umbrella rigs, different ways to fish them and the equipment to consider.

Willie

[Mojo]

Did you use Razr rods with great success before you decided to rep there product?

ITs the reason I went there. Bought one once from David Wagonsomer for spinnerbait a several years ago. Was so impressed - got a jerkbait, and then a crankbait rod BEFORE I got on staff. Rick Lapointe (owner of Razr) is stand up, product made in USA, $29 unconditional warranty and they seriously upgraded my fish catching. Anyway,  Lets go off line if you have any other 'non-A rig' questions and I'd be happy 'chat' some more.

[djkimmel]

We're not supposed to make this personal. We're all entitled to our various opinions but keep it about the opinions and share your's without attacking anyone else's please.

[djkimmel]

The Reaper Rig I have is light wire but not Titanium. I can bend it all over the place and usually do to make the baits flair out or get closer together. Because the wire is much lighter the baits flex quite a bit though don't bounce around quite as much as the Strike King Titanium rig I have.

There would be times when I don't believe I want that much bouncing around and flex but I have some regular heavy wire A-rigs for that like the ones I took to the Amazon.

I haven't experimented enough yet to know if one or the other always outproduces the others. I think, like any lures such as crankbaits, there are times when one outproduces the other, and times when that will flip flop the other way too. I would need to fish more diverse places more often with them for awhile yet to figure that out but I like the Reaper Rig so far and will probably use the Strike King Titanium one more as I start getting back up north more often, though I'd also like to try some of the ones with spinner blades because some anglers have told me those produce well on Northern Michigan smallies.

[djkimmel]

I confirmed that the Kustom Kicker Jigs Reaper Rig is made out of light stainless steel wire. Works for me...