What this rig is all about:
Umbrella rigs, also known as Alabama rigs or A-rigs, upended the fishing community at one point with its great success at catching largemouth and smallmouth bass. Read on to learn how an effective rig of this type can be set up and how it is used.
Here is a list of materials/items that you will need to make this rig:
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– 40-50 pound braid for your main line
– 5 4 inch Reaction Strike thin shads
Optional Tackle:
– 7-8 foot heavy fast action rod
Tips when using this rig:
It’s important to NOT add any monofilament or leaders to the wires! Doing so will make the rig super prone to tangling into a mess. Try to keep the wires close together as you can but not too close for them to tangle with each other.
Make sure the jig heads and willows are balanced on the umbrella wire. According to many anglers that have used this rig, most fish are caught either on the middle jig-head or one of the two bottom jig-heads so it is important that their orientation in the water is correct and the behavior of the rig mimics bait fish adequately.
Some states, like California, do NOT allow all 5 wires to have hooks on them. In California, you are only allowed 3 hooks. In this case, I would recommend replacing the top two jig heads with willow blades. This will give the setup some flash and will help attract the attention of the unsuspecting bass.
To maximize your chances of landing a fish, the umbrella rig is meant to be in motion all the time however you can shake or jerk the rig from time to time to attract fish while reeling continuously.
Setup guide:
- Starting with the 5 wire empty rig, directly hinge on the 1/8 ounce jig heads on the top two wires and hinge the remaining 3 wires with your choice of ¼ to ½ ounce jig heads.
- Rig on the 5 4 inch Reaction Strike thin shads to each of the jig heads.
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- Tie the rig to your main line, which is the 40-50 braid, using a palomar knot. Follow the instructions in the following video for guidance.
And that’s pretty much the setup guide. If you are having success with this rig and catching some nice bass with it, let us know and rate it at the top of this article. Thanks!