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What jig-heads for Zman Heroz/10 inch jerk shadz
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heroz are really difficult to rig compared to the normal zman jerk shads. I have tried mustad jig heads and a few other brands but none work too well. I use OA lightbulbs on all my smaller softbaits, but they dont make em big enough for a 10" softbait. Anyone tried the TT Lures Headlockz? they look like they might work well
Yip, I'm a big fan of those Aussie hooks. They use very sharp and durable hooks (Mustad) which seem to stay sharper longer than the Lightbulbs (which I assume are on a no-brand hook as the don't state the manufacturer).
The Headlockz gap design does seem to keep the Z Mans in place (which is what they claim they are made for).
The main difference with the Lightbulbs is that the Headlockz go up in hook size as the weight of the jighead increases, which for what you're after seems to be an advantage.
The Extreme range goes up as high as 9/0 I think, for the guys chasing GTs and pelagics in Oz. I have some in 4/0, 5/0 and go up to 7/0 for the 8" Z Man Mag Swimz (no fish hooked yet, though!).
Some experts say the bigger hooks don't penetrate a fish's mouth as easily as, say, a 3/0, on a jighead.
So it's a trade off.
Last weekend I used a 3/4oz 5/0 and caught plenty on a 7" Z Man Jerk Shadz. As usual, the bigger fish just enveloped the whole thing, and the small ones nipped away at the tail but only one or two got hooked. After a morning, the hook was still very sharp.
Im guessing the 7/0 1.5 ounce headlockz will be a good match for the heroz?
The main reason i use light bulbs is because of the short hook shank on all weight ranges. I never use softbaits larger than 7" on them though. They say the uv coating helps to catch more fish too but who knows if it actually makes any difference.
A Heroz is a big chunk of buoyant rubber to sink, so you would obviously need a heavier weight to get the same sink rate as the much smaller profile of say a 7" jerk shadz.
Some guys in the shallow reefy areas use only 1/4 oz with a 7" to get the slow waft down. So 1.5oz would logically be too heavy in the 5-10m zone, but good from 15-20m or so over sand.
A lot depends on whether you cast a long way ahead or are more of a 'lobber'.
In terms of the UV 'eyes' on the Lightbulbs, after you catch a couple of fish the coating gets worn off. And my thinking is if the whole body is UV impregnated - e.g. Motor Oil, Atomic Sunrise - then a couple of little eyes probably won't make a difference in terms of attraction. I think heads which have lumo - e.g. the Nitro elevator heads in pale green - would be an advantage over about 25-30m, though.
I've been trying some of the Z Man Redfish eye jigheads from the US which have chartreuse or glow eyes, with a black dot in the middle. They look really good and have a nice Mustad 4/0 hook. I like the effect. Not as easy to attach the bodies to, though.
I bought some 10" heroz and paired them with the berkley nitro 7/0 1oz. They worked very well together in 25m of water. Caught plenty of snapper and kings on the combo. A mate was using the headlock tts and also had good results.
The headlock tts are probably the better jighead but the berkley nitro is what I had at the time.
I have some of the nitro 7/0 in 2oz too for deeper water.
Very interesting. Good intel, Riga.
What cast and retrieve method did you use in that depth?
I didn't really change my normal approach much at all. Cast ahead of the drift as much as possible and then lifted and worked it back to the boat staying in touch with the bottom but trying to get as much free fall as possible.
Once under the boat I then let line out as required as the lure got further out the back. At the point where it feels like you aren't reaching the bottom anymore I would crank it back and go again. A couple of times fish nailed the baits when cranking back to the boat.
Pretty even spread of fish from ahead and behind the boat.
Sounds like the TTS headlocks are the go. Does anyone know who stocks them in NZ? Sounds like 7/0 is the right size. Anyone have a photo with one rigged?
 out2sea wrote:Sounds like the TTS headlocks are the go. Does anyone know who stocks them in NZ? Sounds like 7/0 is the right size. Anyone have a photo with one rigged? |
They are on marine deals they have them up to 9/0 also
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