Choosing jigging rods are very subjective as you choose cars.
My criteria are 1) how big the average fish you are targeting
2) how deep you are fishing
3) how stick the area you fish.
4) what kind of jigging style you use.
1) When If I target big fish like tuna, the minum g rod is 300g.
If tuna in 100 plus lbs are frequent, I use 400g and up.
If fish are small under 20 lbs, 150g - 200g rods are used.
If fish are inbetween 30 - 60 lbs, 250g-350g rods are used.
2) It is said 100g for 100' and 200g for 200'. But the determining factors are wind and current. I used 250g jigs in 600' for snowy grouper in Panama as there was little current and wind.
I usually start with 200 - 250g jigs to fish shallow than 300' and adjust after the first drop. Normally you can use jigs upto 110 - 120 percent of rod ratings.
3) You have to use heavier rods when fishing around oil rigs or sticky bottom than open bottom.
4) There are two distinctive jigging styles.
One is yo-yo style jigging by moving your rod up and down. This techniques are very effective for tuna, cod, grouper or halibut. For this purpose, you need longer rods in 6' - 8' range.
The other is Japanese style jigging which requires fast cranking. For this purpose, shorter rods in 5' - 6' have advantage.
Even in Japanese style jigging, you need shorter rods for jiging with short jerk and a little longer rods to use long jigs by sliding.
The general rule is the bigger the fish you target/ the heavier the jigs you use, the shorter the rods are.
Personally, I like 5' - 5'2" for 450g rods and up, 5'2" - 5'4" for 350g rods and 5'4" - 5'6" for 250g rods.
But it is just my opinion and don't be regarded as a guideline.
However, there are always exceptions to the rules. We usually use pretty small jigs in 200g - 250g range no matter how big tuna are. To be succeeful jigger, you need to develop to read ever changing jigging situations quickly and adopt accordingly instead of sticking to fixed ideas.
My criteria are 1) how big the average fish you are targeting
2) how deep you are fishing
3) how stick the area you fish.
4) what kind of jigging style you use.
1) When If I target big fish like tuna, the minum g rod is 300g.
If tuna in 100 plus lbs are frequent, I use 400g and up.
If fish are small under 20 lbs, 150g - 200g rods are used.
If fish are inbetween 30 - 60 lbs, 250g-350g rods are used.
2) It is said 100g for 100' and 200g for 200'. But the determining factors are wind and current. I used 250g jigs in 600' for snowy grouper in Panama as there was little current and wind.
I usually start with 200 - 250g jigs to fish shallow than 300' and adjust after the first drop. Normally you can use jigs upto 110 - 120 percent of rod ratings.
3) You have to use heavier rods when fishing around oil rigs or sticky bottom than open bottom.
4) There are two distinctive jigging styles.
One is yo-yo style jigging by moving your rod up and down. This techniques are very effective for tuna, cod, grouper or halibut. For this purpose, you need longer rods in 6' - 8' range.
The other is Japanese style jigging which requires fast cranking. For this purpose, shorter rods in 5' - 6' have advantage.
Even in Japanese style jigging, you need shorter rods for jiging with short jerk and a little longer rods to use long jigs by sliding.
The general rule is the bigger the fish you target/ the heavier the jigs you use, the shorter the rods are.
Personally, I like 5' - 5'2" for 450g rods and up, 5'2" - 5'4" for 350g rods and 5'4" - 5'6" for 250g rods.
But it is just my opinion and don't be regarded as a guideline.
However, there are always exceptions to the rules. We usually use pretty small jigs in 200g - 250g range no matter how big tuna are. To be succeeful jigger, you need to develop to read ever changing jigging situations quickly and adopt accordingly instead of sticking to fixed ideas.
