Some thoughts on Riggies

[parker23]

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.

[rickhern]

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.

[rickhern]

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..

[eskimo]

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