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Charted WatersCoastal Virginia
Sheet 06 of 28

beginner rig

Lure presentation

Jig head and soft plastic

One of the single most versatile inshore presentations in this whole guide

Water
baymarshinletriverlakebridge
Jig head and soft plastic schematicTop to bottom: main line, hook, bait.

Schematic, not to scale. Hover, tap, or tab through the parts; the drawing isolates each one.

Terms usedMain lineHook sizes

Components

As listed in the rig record, top to bottom.

  1. Main line or leader tied directly to a jig head
  2. Soft-plastic paddle tail, jerk shad, or curly-tail grub threaded onto the hook

Setup

Hook
The jig head's built-in hook does the work — match jig weight to depth/current, not hook size to bait.
Weight
Just enough jig-head weight to reach and hold the strike zone — too heavy sinks and drags unnaturally fast, too light never reaches bottom or holds position in current.

How to fish it

One of the single most versatile inshore presentations in this whole guide — cast out, let it sink, and retrieve with a lift-and-drop or steady swim depending on the soft plastic's own action.

When to use it

  • Grass edges, creek mouths, and channel edges on a moving tide
  • Dawn, dusk, and low light, when trout and drum are shallow
  • Any time you want to cover water quickly and feel the bottom

Variations

Jig heads and bucktails: the same idea, adjusted

Rigs drawn from the same schematic family — heavier, lighter, or with one part changed for a different fish or water.

All lure rigs

Where to use it

Water this rig is documented for

All fishing spots