By: Michelle Armstrong, Professional Angler
Here we go again, another year has escaped us. That one flew by faster than the last so I’m certain this one is going to go by even faster. With that being said, on this year’s resolution list, it would be in all of our best interest to plan on more time on the water, and more fish caught.
This month, I’m going to dedicate my time to catching more fish… at once. My plan is to achieve that with a blast from my past, the “A” rig. I was not allowed to use the “A” rig in any tournament setting last year so I didn’t get to show it much love. The reason for that rule in most professional tournament circuits is that this lure is simply deemed unfair. Not to the fish, to the other competitors. If you get on the right bite, you can literally catch a limit in one cast. Yes, it’s that good. Needless to say, I’ve missed my long lost buddy. But that perfect time of the year is upon us, and it’s time to bring it out of it’s tangled resting place.
I’ve learned and changed a few things over the years about how I like to use the “A” rig. The first time one found its way into my arsenal, I, like many others, depending on which rig, used 5 to 9 – ¼ oz jig heads and 55lb braided line. I used 3″ swimbaits on the outer arms, with a slightly larger swimbait on the middle arm. Usually, I’m pretty tough, but at the end of the day, I was whooped. It was fun catching numerous fish at a time, but it definitely took its toll on my body for three days after. I likened the experience to over hand throwing a frozen ham repetitively, all day. But, it was super effective for catching deep suspended Bass so I endured the pain. When the deep bite would slow, I’d pick up a shallow(ish) crankbait and continue on, one fish at a time.
I realized, I was missing something. I know, they don’t go far, they are still eating, somewhere, but where. Fish suspend at various depths, but they are constantly going with the flow, literally. When the bite slows, they don’t just disappear, they just simply suspend at a different depth. I knew that if I was catching fish on any other moving bait, I would simply use my rod tip to adjust to the depth of where I got bites. That was really difficult with the “A” rig because it was such a heavy rig.
So I changed things up a little. I rigged 1/16oz jig heads and spooled on 20lb fluorocarbon line. I used the same size swimbaits as before. What a difference in a lot of ways. It’s still a beefy rig, but it’s not nearly as hard on a girl. Most importantly though, I can adjust the depth of the rig much easier. As a result, I can more efficiently, follow and find suspended Bass.
For this beefy bait, you’re gonna need a beefy rod that does most of the work for you. Not all rods can handle the size of this lure. Add two or three fish to the fight and you’d better have the right equipment. My preferred rod is the Powell Endurance 795cf. I can get great lure distance with little effort on my part and it can definitely handle the job of fighting and landing multiple fish. My bait scenario consists of Keitech’s 3.3 Swing Impact FAT swimbaits on the outer arms and a 4.8 on the middle arm. The “rings” on these swimbaits hold air that create bubbles, that often entice fish to strike. I like to stick with natural colors like Electric Shad or Black Shad, depending on the water color. This is truly a bait you can use all day.
Happy New Year, now go catch (multiple) fish.