How to Tie Hair Jigs for Crappie

Crappie is a type of small game-fish common in bodies of fresh water throughout North America, including ponds, rivers, streams and lakes. Crappie are popular as a sport fish, in part, because of their aggressive temperament: despite their small size, they put up a very good fight on the line. One of the most popular and effective kinds of bait for fishing crappie are hand-tied hair jigs, which work particularly well in clear water.

Things You'll Need

• Scissors
• Animal hairs (rabbit or bucktail)
• Crappie jig hook
• Sewing thread
• Fly tying vise
• Clear nail polish

Instructions

1. Clamp the jaws of your fly-tying vise around the bend of the crappie jig hook, with the point and the barb pointing downward.

2. Wrap the thread around the neck of the hook (just below the eye of the hook) several times, wrapping over the end so that it is secure.

3. Take a pinch of animal hair between your thumb and forefinger and trim the ends so that they are even.

4. Place the even ends of the thread against the neck of the hook, where you have wrapped it in thread already and wrap the thread around the even ends to secure them around the neck of the hook.The threads will form a sort of "body" with the hairs sticking out pointing downward, toward the bend of the hook.

5. Apply nail polish to the hairs to seal them against water.

References

• Video Jug: How To Tie A Simple Crappie Jig For Fly Fishing
• Dedfish: Crappie Jig Tying