Thread: Slow Jigging with Inchiku and Kabura style jigs

Hey all. Who's fishing these types of jigging styles? I tried them for the first time in the Hauraki plus had a good day out in the Eastern BOP on snapper. I'm "hooked" now. It was more than as good at delivering hookups as bait, plus was a lot more active than just waiting for a nibble.
I just bought a JigStar Slow Jerk PE1-2 rod which does well and the last Inchiku jig I had the best success on was a 80g SLow Jay by Zest that was an impulse buy on the way in. I've an old Calcuttta 250 with PE2 braid and about 2m of 20lb Fluorocarbon trace.
I'd be keen to hear anyone else's successes with this style of fishing and any pointers for a beginner. I think the exciting bit was how many times we got hit on the drop after the first lift, plus the way in which the pressure just comes on. It's a lot different from bait fishing and not striking is a hard habit to get over.

The Kabura work a treat on Cod and lately on Gurnard
Local charter guy catches near all fish now on them – some huge Snapper and I think even Hapuku
My accountant went out on a boat with 6 guys on board and there was not one bit of bait on board
Came back with a great variety of fish

Deff a technique to it
I have a Graphite rod that would feel a Whitebait nibble
Reel is prob more important as needs to be very slow retrieve and - yes - as you say hard not to strike

@stingray

I use them in preference to bait. I like the Storm Gomoku rods.

Kaburas with a sliver (think little finger to first knuckle sizelof squid, on top hook. Wind slow for 10 turns then free spool drop and repeat. Don't strike if getting hit, just keep same speed of wind. Deadly.
I find orange or pink plastic and orange or lumo heads the best.
I use them on all kind of rods and reels. Normally 20 or 40 pound trace, maybe 2m, and braid. Snapper, JDs, kingfish, all seem to like.
In the h gulf.

Bait free also work bloody well, but I generally fish with bait guys, so just up the % by adding some.

Originally Posted by Shearer

@stingray

Piss off @Shearer ....Let the metal manaics enjoy themselves


Mumble mumble ..everything still eats Pilchards ..Mumble mumble ...$20 barracouta bait ..mumble mumble ..still use burley don’t ya ..mumble mumble..

I'm buggered from a day of slow jigging and filleting a metric ton of fish today, so yes it works! Slow jigging has been 90% of my fishing over the last 7 years, the remaining time mainly spent soft baiting. Aside from hapuka/bluenose fishing (yes, have caught hapuka on a slow jig!), haven't put bait on a hook for more than 8 years. It's bloody awesome. As far as snapper go, it makes fishing too easy sometimes. Today I caught snapper, golden snapper, blue mackerel (yum), kingfish, gurnard, trevally and barracouta (boo) on the same 60g unbranded jig from our friends in China. My main piece of advice is if you're going to do it, commit fully. It doesn't mean spending a lot of money, it means leaving stink bait at home and changing fishing style. No more anchoring and cracking open a beer waiting for the fish to bite. It means being constantly on the move, finding the fish and getting your jig down to them. It's more like hunting rather than trapping. You don't need a super flash fishfinder, but it should be good enough to show fish in up to 100 metres of water and learn how to use it to get the best pictures. Mark the spot on a chart plotter when you catch a decent fish and you'll soon build up a knowledge base of where the fish feed. Don't get obsessed with finding structure, most of the snapper I take are caught over sand. It's amazing how you can catch fish in the same spot trip after trip with no visible structure on the sounder. Lastly, we all know change of light is the best time to be fishing, more so for jigging in my experience.

Originally Posted by MB

I'm buggered from a day of slow jigging and filleting a metric ton of fish today, so yes it works! Slow jigging has been 90% of my fishing over the last 7 years, the remaining time mainly spent soft baiting. Aside from hapuka/bluenose fishing (yes, have caught hapuka on a slow jig!), haven't put bait on a hook for more than 8 years. It's bloody awesome. As far as snapper go, it makes fishing too easy sometimes. Today I caught snapper, golden snapper, blue mackerel (yum), kingfish, gurnard, trevally and barracouta (boo) on the same 60g unbranded jig from our friends in China. My main piece of advice is if you're going to do it, commit fully. It doesn't mean spending a lot of money, it means leaving stink bait at home and changing fishing style. No more anchoring and cracking open a beer waiting for the fish to bite. It means being constantly on the move, finding the fish and getting your jig down to them. It's more like hunting rather than trapping. You don't need a super flash fishfinder, but it should be good enough to show fish in up to 100 metres of water and learn how to use it to get the best pictures. Mark the spot on a chart plotter when you catch a decent fish and you'll soon build up a knowledge base of where the fish feed. Don't get obsessed with finding structure, most of the snapper I take are caught over sand. It's amazing how you can catch fish in the same spot trip after trip with no visible structure on the sounder. Lastly, we all know change of light is the best time to be fishing, more so for jigging in my experience.

Any particular jig styles you use especially on snapper?
Great information by all.


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Originally Posted by Danny

Any particular jig styles you use especially on snapper?

Summer/actively feeding fish - Slow pitch-style jigs.

Winter/lethargic fish - Inchiku worked really slow. Kaburas work too, but they are a hassle on the ski because you can't just clip them on/off. I also find that kaburas catch more fish, but average weight is lower.

Not hard and fast rules, just a guide. Fishing is fishing and there are always exceptions. Whatever style, I use orange/lumo all the time. Undecided on Glowbites, they have saved the day on occasion, so worth carrying a couple.

Do you need a special set up for slow pitch? I have a softbaiting set and a daiwa overhead with 30 pound braid on a longish rod.
Would they do?

I use a standard softbait rod for slow pitch jigging with jigs up to 100g. That sounds heavy, but I am not casting them. If my inchiku rod is in my hand (Ocean Angler Bender), I'll happily use that too, but find the tip a bit soft to get the action I want.

Originally Posted by Danny

Any particular jig styles you use especially on snapper?
Great information by all.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

My limited testing had more strikes on the inchiku jigs than the kabura but, my brother in-law was keeping up with me using a Shimano Lucanis. One option I would definitely use is adding assist hooks to each lure. More hooks the better is my thinking. This is the guy that worked for me best (until I lost it over the side). https://www.saltwaterconnection.co.nz/product/1803-zest-slow-jay-100g-jig-green-zebra

Everything loves a kabura

Even got the volleys on