Skirted jig tying

[GKWadeW]

I lack any crafty skills but I want a specific color jig tied and prefer not to pay $5 a jig or more because the lakes I fish are all rock and I’ll loose 5+ jigs a trip. So I decided to try my hand at tying my own. I was going to order material from barlows but not exactly sure what materials I’ll need besides the jig was and skirt? Is there a good video for an idiot like me who has zero knowledge on tying a jig to get started? Thanks!

[21XDC]

Look at fishing skirts dot com.

[purple_champ193]

There are videos on youtube to help you out but when I do the following. Buy a skirt tool and some o-rings from Lowes/Home Depot to help yourself out. The orings need to be just tight enough to hold the skirt together but still slide around. Build skirt, slide o-ring on skirt, snip ends and install on jig. Give yourself a small amount of room between the jig head and the oring and tie the skirt on using copper wire. Once the copper wire is tied on, slide the oring off and start over. Please keep in mind I make jigs for only myself and it really doesn't take along time once you get the hand of it.

I have also invested in a jig tying vise and ended up not using it. I do think you will want a pair of dedicated sharp scissors. Wire cutters to snip the copper wire help also.

[apdriver]

+1 on fishing skirts for your silicone skirt material. Depending on how you want to tie, maybe some bands. When starting out, a band tool and bands may be how you want to approach it. You can get the skirt in place and then wire tie it on top or bottom of band then cut the band off. That’s how I started using wire. After awhile I just started holding my material and wire tying it. You have to develop a feel and dexterity for it. I’ll share a link with some great videos published by on of the best jig Tyers I know and a member here and just a great guy. He uses traditional thread and bobbin. Flat waxed denier 210 thread,I think. He ties all manner of jigs. Smalljaw is his handle.

https://www.youtube.com/results?sear...+jaw+jig+tying

[dwiebenga]

If you want to hand tie, my friend Smalljaws has a great YouTube Page.

[Squire]

Ok, to make a joke. If for one second you think this is going to save you money.....well, its addictive and now I have skirt material and jig heads from fishingskirts.com to last me a lifetime. They have a video section on the website that is very good. BTW, I have evolved in the way I take jigs out on the water. I just carry the jig heads in one box (many shapes and sizes), and a box of skirts in a variety of colors, strand count, material, cut, and bands (noise/no noise). If I want to skip jigs, I carry some thread and red wire to more permanently attach the skirt to the jig head as I don't like to use glue on the plastic trailer. its quick with a couple wraps. This way, I can adjust to what I find in my livewell from bass I have caught, or base my colors on my seasonal and location knowledge of crayfish colors, or baitfish if I am swimming one, etc.

[GKWadeW]

Lol thanks man! I bought 50 jigs from a guy in the spring and I have less than 10 left. I’m sure once (If) I start tying I’ll be in a similar situation as you. Thank you for the reply guys!

[East TN.Hunt-n-Fish]

I agree with the above.... It becomes an addiction. I started with trying to repair some baits with fingernail polish..... Now I have an entire room dedicated to airbrushing my own baits and tying my own jigs. I have a woodworking shop and I may end up converting it to a custom bait shop!!

[Munkin]

20200929_225420_resized.jpg

This is one of my 2 66 quart tubes of skirt tabs.

Allen

[cubswin]

fishingskirts.com for skirts
I buy from lurepartsonline.com for heads and like their lunker skirt collar, thick enough to last longer than the jigs.

I don't bother pouring my own heads or painting, mainly because I like the brush puppy head they sell. I don't do it to save money, though it does cost a little less per jig. I do it because I like that head style, and I like colors I can't buy.

[fr8dog]

If you keep it simple and don’t buy every color made you can save a ton of money. I poured several hundred a long time ago, painted and stored them. My basic colors are black, blue, purple, pumpkin, root beer, and a little red. When I run low, I make a few more skirts for my needs. When you keep them cheap you don’t worry about losing them. I toss them into places that would never see a $5-7 jig.