We've
made a lot of bait in Baja over the years using a lot of different bait
rigs, and we've learned a few things along the way:
- The
little plastic squid rigs with lures that look like tiny hoochies don't
work very well. Lures with glittery tinsel, a "wing" made of some kind
of luminous film, and little glowing beads are by far the most
productive.
- Six
hooks is too many. Yes, you will very rarely hooks six bait at once,
but you almost certainly won't get them all into the tank. Six-hook rigs are
harder to store and more prone to tangling. They're also longer from
top to bottom, which makes them harder to manage while fishing. The
shorter the rig, the easier it is to handle in a small boat with three
or four baits attached.
- Bait
rigs don't last long. Lots of people (who probably have a lot more
money than we do) just throw bait rigs away after the first use. That
seems silly, but no matter how careful you are, don't plan on getting
more than maybe half a dozen uses out of a rig. Two to four is probably
more realistic. Baitfish aren't the only thing down there, and bigger
fish will often bite bait rigs. Branch lines break, hooks straighten,
lures get torn up. Mexican barracuda are the worst; they roll when
hooked and can usually manage to get every single hook buried somewhere
on their slimy bodies by the time you get them to the boat. At any
rate, cheaper is better. A $5 bait rig won't last any longer than a $2
bait rig.
- Figuring
out the right size when ordering from a catalog or the internet is a
pain in the ass. Some brands use American hook sizes, some use Japanese
hook sizes (which go the other way) and some use both. Plus, even an
American #4, for example, varies widely in size from brand to brand.
- If
there's a decent amount of bait around, de-barb your rigs. You won't
get quite as many baits to the boat, but they'll be a lot easier to
shake off into the tank with injuring them (or yourself). If you're not
scratching for every piece, better to take a few more minutes filling
your tank and have cleaner, healthier baits for the day. Also, you will
eventually bury a bait-rig hook in yourself or your buddy, and the
removeal process will be much more pleasant without that barb.
- Don't
spend money on a bait de-hooker. A plain old butter knife is the best
bait de-hooker there is. More on that later.
We've settled on the Lucky Lura
Premium rigs imported by Izorline. They have exactly the lure type we
think is most effective, they're plenty strong (30-lb. main line and
20-lb. branch lines), and they're cheap. Incidentally, they do come
with a barrel swivel at the top and a snap-swivel at the bottom. We've
bought a few bargain bait rigs in the past that had no swivels or
snaps. And finally, they come only in a single size, which is
perfect for mackerel and caballitos.
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