rigs.

[rayner]

I'm not what you would call experienced fishing for predators bar for the trips on the local canal for small perch drop shotting.
I have an idea to fish a feeder with groundbait and worm, that is sorted. I was also thinking of setting up a rubber lure for jig fishing. Would a Cheb outscore a jig?
Preferably I would love to steer clear of pike. The water is a 65 acre Cumbrian Tarn with shallow margins, the only fish in the water from what I have read is perch and pike.

 

[David Gane]

I have to admit that I had no idea what a cheb rig is, so I Googled it and watched a video on YouTube.

By and large, I think that too much gets made of rigs and rig styles. It always feels a bit like emperor's new clothes to me. My personal preference is for something simple that works. You kind of develop your preferred way of doing things over time. Certainly I can't see anything wrong with the method but equally there is nothing wrong with a standard jig. I'd say to try both and see what you prefer.

As to steering clear of pike, I don't see how that is possible. If they're there you'll catch them from time to time. For that reason my own preferred jigging and drop-shotting rigs (in waters with pike) have been developed using light wire traces. Granted that makes them less subtle, but it does avoid being bitten-off regularly.

If your reason for not wanting pike is that you aren't comfortable handling them, then my advice is to watch some YouTube videos on that and go equipped with what you need to unhook safely - or to get someone who knows what they are doing to show you the ropes. Once you know what to do it really isn't difficult. By and large, when fishing with a jig and a single hook the key thing to have is long forceps (in case of a deep hooking) and an unhooking mat. For other kinds of pike fishing I'd also advise pliers and wire cutters, but here that is less likely to be needed.

 

[rayner]

I know how to handle pike, my limitations make it impossible for me to unhook with the pike's safety in mind. It would be impossible for me to unhook on my own.
I think my only option would be for me to chin the pike then my son in law (who does not fish) to do the unhooking with a pair of pliers. Or the other way around.

 

[Keep]

honestly not much difference between cheburashka and jighead

I will only use cheb rig on special occasions and favour jigheads the majority of the time. Cheb is used alongside a weedless hook soft lure when the weed gets really bad in summer, or when I want to crawl the lure along the bottom in winter and avoid getting snags, the articulation of chebs play well here compared to jigheads, see also carolina and texan rig methods. you can buy tungsten cheb weights off ebay which are half the size of lead cheb weights at the same gram weight.

jigheads give a superior hookup rate and stay on the fish better, but are much easier to snag

 

[Keep]

I should also say it's folly to think small perch lures won't catch pike, i've had plenty of 8lbish pike on tiny 3cm perch lures, i have caught pike that have coughed up roach fry the size of my fingernail!

 

[rayner]

Thanks, Keep. I think I'll drop the Cheb idea. Just as well I think I'll stick with drop S and jigs until I get an idea of how things go.
I glad to see so many votes on the poll, I get how this corner of the site rolls. thanks, chaps.

 

[Mark_Leathwood]

Cheb rigs do have another advantage, which I don't think anyone else has mentioned. There is an extra degree of versatility in having hooks and weights as separate items - so you can mix and match according to conditions. For example, I might find a 1 gram cheb weight with a size 1/0 hook is perfect in a particular situation - but I haven't got a jig head of a corresponding size in my box. As 'Keep' says, the ability to use weedless hooks is also a big advantage when fishing on, or close to the bottom.