The main reason that lots of fisherman don’t use the ned rig is because of the exposed hook.
Especially when shallow water or ponds, there is almost always grass and wood that limit how effective the ned rig is.
But, if you know how to make them weedless, you can use a ned rig just about anywhere.
These are the 3 best ways to fish a weedless ned rig.
These are the 3 most prominent and effective ways to rig your ned style baits weedless.
All of them work very well and have small pros and cons. Whichever looks the best to you is the best choice.
I just made up this name because there doesn’t seem to be a name out there for it.
But you are essentially dropping the down about 30 degrees, so I thought the name worked well.
This way of hooking the Ned rig doesn’t require any extra jig heads or gear.
You just take the standard ned rig hooks and thread them Texas style onto the ned baits.
It will feel, and look, a bit awkward while rigging it, but is the simplest and easiest way to make your ned rig weedless.
This rigging style also keeps the ned rig very finesse because the hook point is hidden in the plastic, and the bend of the hook is on the bottom, where it is a bit more out of sight from the fish.
Although it seems like a DIY rig, this is actually how I fish my own ned rigs weedless more often than not.
It is very easy and doesn’t require me to buy some specialized hooks or jig heads for it.
These style of ned heads are probably the most popular weedless options commercially.
They have thin wire weed guards that work pretty nicely. These jig heads aren’t for heavy cover or flipping.
But they do a great job of deflecting sparse cover and vegetation. I don’t usually use them because I feel like they subtract from the simplistic, finesse presentation of the ned rig.
The extra wire and point metal make the ned rig look a bit more threatening and unnatural to bass.
In muddy or stained water, you can definitely get away with using these weed guard ned heads, but in clear water, I prefer to stay away from them.
The wire can also get all bent and twisted after catching a couple bass, which is very annoying.
But overall, these are great options, especially because they keep the ned bait flat on the ground.
The other two rigs here cause the bait to fall over on its side when sitting still.
These specialized ned heads have an extra wide gap design that allows you to Texas rig the baits exactly the same as you would any other worm.
The bait will sit on the hook nice and straight and look very natural.
The two downsides to these hooks are that they make the bait fall over, and they are a bit bulky.
Since the bend of the hook is underneath the bait, when it is still on the bottom, they bait will fall over on its side.
And with a bigger, EWG hook, there is a lot more metal on the bait.
This can slightly inhibit the action of your ned baits, or scare off finicky bass in clear water.
As with any weedless baits or lures, your hook up ratio is slightly decreased.
That is just the reality of fishing in and around cover. However, without these rigging styles, you are completely unable to fish certain areas of the lake.
So hook up ratio is not something you should worry about or factor in to fishing a weedless ned rig.
To combat this slight decrease in hook up ratio, you need to set the hook a bit harder than you normally would.
Now this doesn’t mean you need to hammer the fish with a frog style hook set or upsize to a baitcasting setup.
Just add 15-20% extra power into your hook sets and you will be totally fine.
Your ned rig gear will be about the same as normal finesse fishing. A 6’6″-7′, medium action spinning rod works just fine.
Since you are setting the hook a bit harder, you can increase your line from 6-10 lb test up to 8-12 lb test.
This isn’t a big increase, but it definitely helps when driving the hooks in.
Each method has its advantages and disadvantages, but ultimately, the best choice depends on personal preference and fishing conditions.
While using weedless rigs may slightly decrease hook-up ratios, they allow anglers to fish in areas with cover that would otherwise be inaccessible.
To compensate for this, anglers should apply slightly more power when setting the hook.
Overall, the gear setup for fishing weedless Ned rigs remains similar to traditional finesse fishing, with slight adjustments to accommodate the weedless rigging.
By choosing the right weedless rig and technique, anglers can effectively target bass in various environments with confidence.
