Fur-Fish-Game

FUR-FISH-GAME MAGAZINE

Jersey Riggs for Bass

Savy anglers have learned to do a lot with the stubby little rubber worms

By Oliver Shapiro

Most bass anglers have at least heard of Jersey Riggs. And these unobtrusive little bass killers have proven themselves far more effective and versatile than their creator ever envisioned.

Jeff Cammerino noticed that when a Gypsy moth larva fell into the water, with its characteristically slow fall and occasional twitch, a bass would nail it. Intrigued, he started experimenting with different materials and shapes to imitate this natural bait.

By the late 1980s, the Essex County Bassmasters’ soon-to-be-famous member was winning bass tournaments with a prototype models. Other anglers started to take notice, especially when he placed as high as third in the New Jersey B.A.S.S. Chapter Federation.

Not being a secretive person, Cammerino gave some of the unusual lure to his buddies. The irony occurred when his competitors started beating him in tournaments, using the ten embryonic Jersey Riggs.

“They were simply better anglers than I was,” Cammerino recalled with a smile.

Besides heavy use among anglers in the mid-Atlantic area, such famous bass anglers as Tommy Martin and 1996 BassMaster Classic champion George Cochran started using Jersey Riggs.

Light and bright: Cammerino said bright and flashy colors are best when the bass’ holding locations aren’t well defined or when their lateral line detection system is compromised by fast-flowing water. He suggested gold, silver, chartreuse and bubble gum shades for these situations, which include the pre- and post-spawn. Light, bright colors are best for stained water, as well.

During the spawn, when bass are easier to locate, he tones down the presentation, switching to hues like pumpkin seed and motor oil.

The original technique hooked the lure in the middle with a No. 1 or 1/0 hook. Anything larger, and the fall rate increased too much (Although, as we shall see, some innovators have turned this into an advantage.) Cammerino said he prefers 6-pound monofilament but will go as high as 8 pound, as long as it is high quality.

He also stressed the importance of the proper rod. In order to cast and work the light offering, the rod should be light and at least 5 feet, 9-inches long. A quality one-piece rod makes it easier to feel light strikes, which is especially important for larger bass. Finally, he said he favors the Palomar knot for tying the hook on.

Unlike most other bass baits, the Jersey Rigg (in its original presentation) is nearly weightless, conferring upon it some restrictions as well as some advantages. The lethargic descent discourages use in water deeper than 12 feet, and even that requires patience. This weightlessness, however, prevents the initial splashdown from spooking nearby bass, and when they circle back to investigate, the lure is still there.

The Jersey Rigg is not a cranking or jigging lure; it’s a twitching lure. Cast and let it rest. After an appropriate pause, twitch once, gently, to invoke the lure’s odd scissors action (reminiscent of those twitching caterpillars).

Take up slack line with a turn of the reel handle and pause again. This sequence is repeated until a fish nails it.

Go heavy, go deep: Tinkerers on the various bass tournament circuits have found ways to increase the rig’s effectiveness and range of applications.

Pennsylvania resident Brian Bylotas credits a 1997 tournament win to the blunt little worms, but with one addition. Fishing New York’s Cayuga Lake in late June during a Northeast Division Red Man event, he added weight to the worms, thereby getting them down to bedded bass more quickly. Indeed, by the end of the day he and his boat partner had caught more than 40 fish, including enough big bass for Brian to win the event. His partner finished sixth.

“The weather conditions were windy and sunny,” said Bylotas, “and we were fishing the bass on their beds in the deeper, southern part of the lake. We were working water 5 to 6 feet deep, using gold Jersey Riggs with nail weights; one in each end of the worm.”

Unlike Cammerino’s original conception of a nearly weightless bait, Bylotas found that by adding the weight he could get the worm to the bass more quickly, thereby covering water more efficiently - apparently without the worm losing any of its bass appeal.

Connecticut pro Lee Bailey, already a familiar figure in the bass angling world and a locally known outdoors television personality, skyrocketed to national prominence with his 1997 spring win at the three-day Missouri BassMaster Central Invitational Tournament, held at Table Rock in Missouri.

His victory was nothing short of phenomenal, considering he had wrecked his van and boat just before the tournament and had to compete in a borrowed vessel. “The accident cut my practice time down to a day and a half,” Bailey recalled. “I had to concentrate on what I knew, namely, that the bass were spawning. On the first three casts, I had bites. But then I saw that I had only 18 Jersey Riggs to last me the whole tournament. By the end, I only had one left.”

Bailey also uses a weighted approach, but instead of weighting both ends like Bylotas, Bailey inserts a weight in just one end. “I put a No. 2 Gamakatsu hook in the worm’s middle,” Bailey continued, “and one half of a Lunker City insert into one end of the worm. This doesn’t allow it to fall evenly, and that seems to work better for me. When it hits bottom, it practically stands up.”

Once the weighted worm is on the bottom, both bassmen entice strikes by moving the bait slowly but keeping it in place as much as possible. “I shake the rod,” said Bylotas, “to make it look like...I don’t know what. The hit isn’t always on the fall. Sometimes you need to tease the fish into hitting it.”

Bailey, for the most part, concurs with this method. “Just shake it, and don’t stop shaking it,” he said. “Keep it in front to the fish. Actually, you can sometimes make it move backwards a little. It aggravates them into striking. I use it primarily as a sight-fishing tool,” Bailey continues. “But there are a wide range of things you can do with it. It’s perfect for skipping under docks, and allowing it to fall slowly. I also have friends who Carolina-rig it, split-shot it, and Texas-rig it like a regular plastic worm.”

Bylotas prefers clear, calm water as the optimal condition for fishing with Jersey Riggs. “The clearer the better,” he said. “When it gets windy it’s more difficult, but I’ll use them in waves up to 2- and 3-feet, as long as I’ve pinpointed the fish first.” He adapts to current conditions by adjusting the weight as he goes, keeping 1/2-, 3/4- and 1-inch nail weights on hand to add or remove as the situation warrants. Color preferences vary, but both Bylotas and Bailey named gold as their first choice.

“I’m not sure why it works,” said Bylotas. “It’s more flashy; maybe it look more like a baitfish? Certainly it’s more irritating. Purple flake is also good; as well as watermelon seed, a greenish tint with flecks. I use smoke sometimes, also, but it’s not as good.”

Bailey mentioned clear flake and chartreuse flake as colors of choice, using the latter for stubborn fish. “To give them something to look at,” he said.

Both men have been using the lure about seven years and have no intention of letting up. Bailey recalled meeting Cammerino at a sports show and seeing Jersey Riggs for the first time.

“I kind of laughed, but Jeff invited me over to the bass casting pool, and we immediately caught two or three - right there at the casting pool. I started fishing with it, and now I use it at my own shows and seminars.”

A big part of the lure’s success is its profile. For finicky fish, a very small-profile lure is always a good choice, and anything that keeps that lure in front of the fish is a better choice. Most other lures keep running or moving, resulting in a short time in the fish’s strike zone.

“It’s a great bait,” Bailey concluded. “It allows me to catch fish that I would normally pass it up.”

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