How To Use A Sabiki Rig

A Sabiki Rig is, most usually, one line with a heavy weight attached to the bottom. Above the weight is somewhere between 6 and 10 hooks with a shiny piece of metal attached. The metal sways and swerves in water while the weight is lowered, driving baitfish to strike! The Sabiki Rig is one of the best ways to load up on baitfish you can spin into your next big snapper, redfish, or even a grouper!

Sabiki Rig: Learning The Basics

Sabiki Rigs offer tons of opportunity for variations, just in their natural makeup with all those hooks! The shiny piece of metal which comes standard on most sabiki rigs is usually enough to trigger a strike from a baitfish. When you can locate a condensed school, they compete so fiercely for food they’ll bite just enough everything. One thing to keep note of while fishing a Sabiki Rig is to not jig too hard or rip the line up too quickly. Once you feel a bite, allow more baitfish to fill those hooks for a few seconds before you pull up. Ripping it up will only cause commotion, which will only draw in predators, which will only scare away the school of baitfish. They travel in the hundreds. When one bites, more will follow.

Sabiki Rig Tip: Bring Your Fishing Buddies

Another Sabiki Rig tip is to bring a friend. De-hooking baitfish can be a two man job, or at least a meticulous one person job. There are hooks everywhere, small fish flailing everywhere, and a recipe for injured fish or hooked hands. Move carefully, and switch your baitfish straight from the hook to the livewell to avoid unnecessary injuries. Not only is it inhumane to injure baitfish for no reason, but they won’t do their jobs as well. A paralyzed baitfish doesn’t quite have the action most predators are looking for.

Chuming With A Sabiki Rig

Finally, if the metal shine on the hook isn’t garnering enough strikes, try adding some chum. Tiny pieces of other baitfish or shrimp (even thawed out, store bought, frozen shrimp) can add to your likelihood of catching fish. It also increases the size of the fish looking to strike! As mentioned, competition in schools of baitfish is intense, so the big boys may only come out for big bait!Header Image Via: The Online Fisherman