I started fishing riggies 3 years ago on a trip to MV. I had read so much about there effectiveness but figured they were too hard to rig and that I was doing well with plugs and live eels, why bother? Anyway, I rigged a few and first cast at the Edgartown opening on South Beach I get solid hit/hookup that turns out to be about a 3# shad, with the 8/0 siwash front hook firmly in the mouth. Hmm....not what I was expecting but at least it proved that I could catch fish with these things. Few casts later and I had a 20 and since then I have been in love with these things:love:

How many of you feel the same way I felt and have not used riggies yet?

I have been doing a bit of an unscientific experiment to get a feel for their effectiveness. One of the spots that I fish usually has a pretty good SW in your face. I used to start with needles/darters and could usually scare up a fish or 2. About a month ago, we were getting some half hearted hits but nothing solid. After an hour or so, I switched to the riggie. BAM....first cast(and not a long one) Few casts later I get another, both 20# class fish. We had been dragging plugs over these fish for an hour without a fish. My buddy stayed with a needle and couldn't buy a fish. Somewhat reluctantly I admit, I gave him my only other riggie and he was on within a few casts. Makes me wonder how many other nights I left thinking there were no fish around when they may have been at my feet.

I have also had riggies outfish live eels on quite a few ocassions. Many reasons for this including distance with the riggie, more solid hookups, varied retrieves and also the fact that I am spending much more time with a bait in the water.

I would like to hear some thoughts from you other riggie guru's about some tricks and tips that have worked for you. For those of you that think that plugs or sluggo's are just as good, give it a try and report back :uhuh:

I just got into these this spring and I have yet to dial in the right size... long and skinny, thick ones, smallish ones, etc. I have a variety... I am going to convince myself to start fishing these exclusively so I stop thinking a fresh live eel on my hook is catching me more fish... daily information comes in to debunk that myth..

Good thread

I have been fishing dead/rigged eels since I was a kid, about 40 years now. My father and grandfather always fished with eels, my Dad caught his 60 on a live eel. I was not worthy to use live eels as a kid, so dead or rigged was the bait I used. I do fish live eels and they end up rigged after they expire. My 1st wife hated the mason jars in the fridge or bags of half frozen sludge brine in the freezer, however, she did like eating bass so she put up with it.
My grandfather made his own lead-head rigs and I used those until I lost the last one some 15 years ago. I now use the Point Jude Eel bobs and love them in deep water, heavy surf or in a fast rip.

My favorite technique is using a floating or slow sinking needle rigged with a skin. For floaters, I use a Gibbs needle w/ a notch cut into the head to tie the skin to w/Dacron. Sinking, I use a Super Strike needle and zip tie the skin to the square head. The Super Strike eel rigs cast a country mile and they are super sexy in the water. When I am done for the night, the plug and skin go back into the brine.
I also brine whole eels. They cast a hell of a lot better than live and the brine really toughens them up. I hook them under the jaw and up through the scull and then tie them w/Dacron. I use 9/0 live bait hooks, they are very thick and the weight of the hooks works like a keel.

So 90% of the time, my surf bag has a zip lock w/rigged eels, dead eels or eel needle plugs.

Unfortunately, the last month of fishing has been less than stellar. I have been throwing plugs, live, rigged and dead eels to no avail. I have caught some bass, but size wise it has been frustrating. My usual July spots are dead on the nights I fish. I still enjoy being on the water with the wash at my feet, but it is times like this that I wish I commissioned the boat this year.

So that is my take on the dead eel gig.

Hey Parker thanks for the reply. Great stuff there. What do you use for a brine and do you feel that it stiffens up the riggie? I freeze them with a little water in a ziplock and take 3 or 4 for a night. They thaw by the time I get to the water. No problem re-freezing them. I used to keep some salted with a thick slurry of water and kosher salt but I think freezing them may be working better for me.

Parker, do you feel that the skin covered needles outfish standard needle? Have you done any "experiments"? For me, confidence is key and if you feel like something with catch, it will. Happens alot that people will ask me what the best color plug is and my answer is always the one that you think will catch the best because you will fish it harder, pay more attention, etc..

I don't think a riggie will ever out fish a live eel but I still think it's more productive if that makes sense.

1. as you mentioned above you can cast further and you can vary the retrieve. Important.
2. Crazy to believe...but a lot of times on hot nights a fish will double tap a live eel but not take it? Why? no clue, but I would have already went tight with a rigged eel as I could already set the hook.
3. Any little fish get caught and release and sent on their way as oppose to loosing a live eel missing micro-bass (thinking maybe its a bigger fish just tapping it, never happens) or burning my eel fast 5 feet away from them only to have them follow up and still try to get it.
4. My biggest reason - Sometimes on hot nights the bite will light up for 15 minutes out of a hour and with a riggie you can get several fish ASAP while I feel like I get half as many with a live eel because of changing, checking, and taking some life out of a new eel to get him 'fish ready'.
5. No dogfish :)

I am not reel scientific when it comes to plugs vs eels. I fish needles a lot both with and without skin. Skin adds scent and life to a needle. But both are productive. As far as brine, I just use sea salt and water slurry in freezer. Enough salt that it stays slushy and doesn't freeze.
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Big riggie fan Rick. Haven't fished them this year, primarily due to time restraints. I ain't got any!

For reasons already listed above, I prefer riggies over live eels. Honestly, I get bored fishing live eels. Riggies are heavier, cast better, last longer, hookup better (no bowing to the cow), and store easily.

Like you, there have been nights when I would fish plugs for an hour or so without a touch, and hook up as soon as switching over to the riggie. There is no mistaking when you get hit, and you can setup immediately on the fish. You can also work more of the water column with a riggie. I typically cast them out, let them sink for a varying time depending on water depth, and retrieve at a moderate pace while lifting and dropping the rod slowly with an occasional twitch.

Time to rig is the only negative I can see with riggies, but the more you do, the easier it gets. They don't have to be pretty to catch either.

I was convinced they work one night while fishing the sod. I got a wind knot on a cast, I cradled my rod under my arm trying to pick out the knot. The riggie was in the water about a foot away from the sod bank. When the bass hit it almost pulled the rod into the water with it.

As great as rigged eels work, and work they do, concluding that your experience catching fish with a rigged eel after failing with a plug means that rigged eels (or live eels for that matter) typically work 'better' than plugs is a mistake that may close your mind to what is possible and cost you lots of fish over the years (particularly if you lose or never gain confidence with plugs).

Some things for people to consider.

First, staying with a single plug too long is a mistake.
There are many times I'll make 10 (or less) casts with a needle and do nothing, then hook up on the next cast with a darter or swimmer (or vice versa).

Next realize that is important with plugs to vary the depth you fish, which is hard to do since most plugs start and stay near the top. A rigged eel (like a jig or rubber) is much easier to fish deeper (and a live eel easier yet again).

Retrieve speed is also an issue. Dogma is that slow is best. Dogma is often right but often also wrong. The experience with sluggos, multi-segmented swim baits, stick shads, and even buck tails shows that bass often prefer faster moving offerings. Rigged eels are usually retrieved faster than plugs and I'm sure that is a big factor in their success.

No question there are situations where something that gets deep and works fast will outfish a needle. That is what your experience is telling you. Rigged eels are a good way to accomplish that. There are lots of other ways as well.

I also felt live eels would outfish riggies untill about 8 years ago at Black Point in Narr. Typical slow night in July. Hot, humid and no wind. Bottom of the tide at around 1 AM and I had been throwing live all night. One last cast with a riggie and WHAM! About 25#. 3 more fish in the 20s and I never moved off the rock that I had been throwing live from all night. I became a believer!!! Since then, they are my go to when the fishing is tough.
RIRockhound wrote an article about rigging with plastic wire ties and with his system you can rig an eel in about 10 minutes. Plus they last a lot longer.

Riggies definitely have their time and place. I used to fish them a lot more than I would fish live eels but this year live eels have been getting the nod on most trips. Rigged eels could never replace live eels for me because I feel that each excels in certain spots and under certain conditions. As a general rule I like riggies in water that has some depth and doesn't feature a lot of current and I feel live eels work better when you have some current to work with.
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my obsession with rigged eels started 3 or 4 seasons ago.

after hearing all the good things about them i rigged up 3 eels, two normal size and one jumbo.

first time i fished them i brought my usually plugs and the 3 eels in a ziplock, started with plugs and no love, 2nd cast with the rigged eel in the same spot produced a solid 20lb fish, and it continued 4 or 5 solid mid 20lb fish on one eel and i understood the appeal.

i rigged mine with small zipties, ive never used dacron or rigging floss and have never seen the difference, you can rig an eel in under 7 minutes.

that first big eel i rigged caught 9 fish according to my log, from 18 to 27lbs, until it had its tail bitten off by a blue, it was so beat up, blue skin, guts starting to fall out and it stunk, but it keep producing.

the first year i fished them they were my number 1 producer, and i always brought plugs with me too.

Ive had a few nights were i start with a rigged eel and nothing, then go to a needle or darter and fish on right away, go back to the riggie and nothing. those fish are keyed on the action or profile vs. the scent and appeal of a big rigged eel.

If i have a solid bite in front of me i like to switch plugs out and try and see if its action, color, profile, etc so my findings are based on a lot of experimenting

i always carry a few on me, i rig them up, a little water in a heavy ziplock and freeze up, usually 2 or 3 in a bag, grab a bag and by the time i get to my spot they are almost good to go, if they are little frozen i just soak em in the sea water and start with plugs then switch over to riggies. Having them frozen and ready to go is one of the biggest appeals for me.

for me this season has been the slowest ive seen on rigged eels, just not getting the love from them, but darters have been slaying fish like its going out of style.

eelbobs and skin plugs are a most too, skin needles slay.

great thread, especially for august!

Fish the Canal usually 2x weekly... Been a down year there for me.... but riggies saved me from the skunk a couple of times. I throw them at slack into lite current.
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And yes, very worthwhile and timely thread !

Starting to feel drawn into the "dark side"......
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Starting to feel drawn into the "dark side"......
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C: We may need a "session" in your basement rigging.

Rigged eels have two hooks! That's a big advantage. They can be cast viciously without casting off. You can set the hook as soon as you feel anything so better when fish are finicky. You can freeze them , thaw them , over and over.

Live eels easier. Rigged eels better all around. Just another opinion.

I choose not to fish bait myself but can attest to their effectiveness. Zeno totally schooled Ray and myself one night on Cutty. Were fishing plugs and he was fishing riggies- he caught 6 between 30 and 40 while we caught one at 38.

Don't overlook smaller eels w/ a single hook... put a sluggo weight in the vent if you want to balance it out some...

This thread is great. Thank you for sharing!

I am dying to catch fish on them. Unfortunately, I have only been
out about a dozen times since my block trip in June, but have been
throwing them.

Usually my goto has been bucktails and darters, but I have noticed
in those dozen times, I have had strikes on the rigged when nothing else was
getting their attention. Even during a worm hatch....which is pretty
impressive. That outing the bass were batting the eel around like a
rag doll, but I couldn't convert any. I saw a few following and they
seemed to be school sized bass to about 28".



Just the other night I rigged up 6 more....getting ready for my fall.
I am so slow rigging them....even using zips. Even with the hooks,
floss, and dacron prepped....dang....15-20 minutes per/riggie.

What I find most tedious is the head floss. I had one of my first
riggies come untied and the front hook slid...so I migrated to an
epoxied copper wire wrap on the hook with a sewn/wrapped floss
on the snout to keep it from sliding. I am wondering if anyone has
tried a crimped ring or some other method on the snout so there is
zero sewing. Seems like the sew method on the snout is the best,
as all demos seem to use it...but just thought i would ask.

One mod that the guys at river's end suggested was putting a ring
on the front hook prior to closing the eye on the siwash. I really
like this modification....as I use links. In the end...these riggies are
pretty expensive lures, after factoring the hardware and time. I
really cannot wait for them to pay off.

This thread is great. Thank you for sharing!

I am dying to catch fish on them. Unfortunately, I have only been
out about a dozen times since my block trip in June, but have been
throwing them.

Usually my goto has been bucktails and darters, but I have noticed
in those dozen times, I have had strikes on the rigged when nothing else was
getting their attention. Even during a worm hatch....which is pretty
impressive. That outing the bass were batting the eel around like a
rag doll, but I couldn't convert any. I saw a few following and they
seemed to be school sized bass to about 28".



Just the other night I rigged up 6 more....getting ready for my fall.
I am so slow rigging them....even using zips. Even with the hooks,
floss, and dacron prepped....dang....15-20 minutes per/riggie.

What I find most tedious is the head floss. I had one of my first
riggies come untied and the front hook slid...so I migrated to an
epoxied copper wire wrap on the hook with a sewn/wrapped floss
on the snout to keep it from sliding. I am wondering if anyone has
tried a crimped ring or some other method on the snout so there is
zero sewing. Seems like the sew method on the snout is the best,
as all demos seem to use it...but just thought i would ask.

One mod that the guys at river's end suggested was putting a ring
on the front hook prior to closing the eye on the siwash. I really
like this modification....as I use links. In the end...these riggies are
pretty expensive lures, after factoring the hardware and time. I
really cannot wait for them to pay off.

Forget the floss and use plastic wire ties like RIRockhound wrote in his article in OTW

For securing the head hook, I have modified my method a little bit. After I have completed 2 or 3 half-hitches on the head hook (6.24 into this video), I add a small zip-tie right in line on the hook and then half-hitch a few times in front and in back of the tie. When the tag end of the zip-tie is clipped off it leaves a nub. Then when the head is secured either with large zip-ties or Dacron (8.40 into this video) in front of the internal zip-tie, the eel is locked in place and will not move. This was an addition I began trying after I made this video but one which is done on all my eels now.
www.thefisherman.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=feature.display&feature_ID=282&ParentCat=9

I take a rigging needle and make a hole through the eyes and push a zip tie through and wrap around the whole eel. Then use a lock loop of rigging floss to close the remainder of the mouth thats open. Nice and clean and will never slide back.

I like this one...cuts down on the hook prep....hmmmm....gonna try it next time.

thanks!

For securing the head hook, I have modified my method a little bit. After I have completed 2 or 3 half-hitches on the head hook (6.24 into this video), I add a small zip-tie right in line on the hook and then half-hitch a few times in front and in back of the tie. When the tag end of the zip-tie is clipped off it leaves a nub. Then when the head is secured either with large zip-ties or Dacron (8.40 into this video) in front of the internal zip-tie, the eel is locked in place and will not move. This was an addition I began trying after I made this video but one which is done on all my eels now.
www.thefisherman.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=feature.display&feature_ID=282&ParentCat=9

Rigged up a few eels last week and took a picture of how I add the zip-tie to the front hook to hold the head in place. Works like a charm and I haven't had any eels slip since I started doing it this way.

Great Tutorial Toby.
Very nice

Rick, you asked about the effectiveness of skins on a needle. Friday night I was fishing with a friend. he was using a skinned needle and I was throwing plugs, dannys darters and needles. he kept hooking and landing decent fish, while the only thing I was getting was an occasional bump when my plugs hit a rock. could have been that I suck at fishing, but i think the skin was definitely giving him an advantage. After a while, I tied on a very large riggie and got a few major hits but didn't hook up.

So, at least where and when we were, the skinned needle worked batter than the plain one, and if your riggie and it's hooks are too big, you might miss a few. :wall:

What happens with the tie offs on the riggies is when you freeze them the ice pulls the knots loose. Never seems to happen fresh rigged ones.

Rick, you asked about the effectiveness of skins on a needle. Friday night I was fishing with a friend. he was using a skinned needle and I was throwing plugs, dannys darters and needles. he kept hooking and landing decent fish, while the only thing I was getting was an occasional bump when my plugs hit a rock........
..........So, at least where and when we were, the skinned needle worked batter than the plain one

Not unusual on a big moon particularly in the dead of summer, and even more so if calm. When it gets darker, windier, and colder things change. I have had many nights where a darter or a plain needle outfished a skinned needle....and vice versa. All I can say is that it is a mistake to put too much faith in one method.

Rick, you asked about the effectiveness of skins on a needle. Friday night I was fishing with a friend. he was using a skinned needle and I was throwing plugs, dannys darters and needles. he kept hooking and landing decent fish, while the only thing I was getting was an occasional bump when my plugs hit a rock. could have been that I suck at fishing, but i think the skin was definitely giving him an advantage. After a while, I tied on a very large riggie and got a few major hits but didn't hook up.

So, at least where and when we were, the skinned needle worked batter than the plain one, and if your riggie and it's hooks are too big, you might miss a few. :wall:

Thanks Stewie, that's the stuff I like hearing about.

Just spent about an hour and a half on 3 using the floss/needle method. Time to investigate the zip tie.