Have you ever met Ned?
I’m of course referring to the Ned rig. When the Ned rig came out, it quickly became a hot technique, and when I saw it, I knew it was going to be a fish producer. That little head and small worms really had that finesse appeal, and I wanted to try it.
I picked up a few baits and heads, and I caught a few fish on the thing. My whole approach was to basically use it like a smaller shaky-head type of approach. I would cast it out and let it sink to the bottom and drag it along with a few pauses and some shaking.
Then, I was doing an article with Ned Kehde, the guy who basically invented the technique, for a product we at Missile Baits were releasing at the time. After the interview, I asked him to explain the Ned rig — which he calls a “Midwest Finesse Rig.”
I asked him how he fishes the technique, and I found out I was doing it all wrong. I was using it as a bottom crawling, dragging presentation. The whole effectiveness of the technique is it just kind of hovers over the bottom, barely contacting the lakebed.
I also found out I was using tackle that was too light. Because it is a midwater column technique, Kehde uses fairly heavy line. He typically chooses 15-pound-test braided line and a 10-pound-test fluorocarbon leader for his fishing. He told me the line size doesn’t matter because it hardly ever touches the bottom so fish react to it differently.
He described the retrieve as more of a “gliding retrieve.” He makes his cast and lifts the rod tip and allows the lure to pendulum back to the bottom on semi slack line until it hits bottom, reels up the slack and begins the whole process over again. The whole key is to allow the lure to fall on the semi-slack line, it gives it a natural appeal and fall. Because of the presentation, it’s a technique that is deadly around gravel and around sparse grass and is excellent for post-front bluebird sky days as a result.
His system makes all the sense in the world, and it also makes sense why Z-Man’s Super Plastic helped the technique because it’s more buoyant and helps the drift of the lure. That’s the reason I designed the Missile Baits Ned Bomb with the flat tail on it — to help duplicate that glide action in the retrieve.
Kehde likes a short rod for the technique, but I prefer to use a medium-fast action 7-foot, 3-inch Cashion Icon series spinning rod because it allows me to pick up line faster on the hookset and control fish better during the fight. I use 16-pound-test Sunline AMZ Braided line and a 15-foot leader of 8- to 10-pound-test Sunline FC Sniper Super Fluorocarbon as a leader.
I use our Missile Baits Nedball Head and the Ned Bomb most of the time, but I have also found out that the Bomba 3.5 “Poop Style” Bait gives me a similar presentation around weeds and cover. The Bomba is heavier, so casting it on a Gamakatsu Worm 34R Hydroll hook with the swivel on the front helps make a great presentation. I can fish the Bomba in a “Midwest Finesse” approach and maintain the weedless presentation in grass.
The Ned rig is a very effective approach, and I think if you took the time to learn to fish it the way it was intended, you’ll see even better results with it.
