Meet the Nedster from Northland Tackle – Elite Series, Weedless & More
Eugene L. 11.11.22
One of the biggest things to blow up in the world of fishing lures in recent memory is the Ned Rig. The same as in pole vaulting where Dick Fosbury changed the sport with the Fosbury Flop and in ice skating Olympian Dorothy Hamill with the Hamill Camel, Ned Kehde did the same. A fisherman, writer, and innovator he developed a finesse bass fishing bait that now is used throughout the whole country. By combining a mushroom-style jig head with a small buoyant plastic worm, Kehde’s brainchild rig is responsible for so many catches in recent memory. Now Northland has come to add onto this with their new Elite Series Nedster Jigs.
The new Northland Elite Series Nedster Jig and Weedless Nedster Jig both feature the signature mushroom-shaped head, designed to stand up when paired with the right bait. All of these jigs of both models come with incredibly sharp and strong 1/0 Gamakatsu hooks. Northland worked with pro anglers to select the perfect gauge wire for the hooks, thin enough for finesse hooksets while still strong enough to not disappoint when fighting a fish through heavy cover. To help with the rigging, the jigs have a cleverly designed wire bait keeper. The keeper had its placement chosen with precision and supreme design to keep you from tearing up your baits.
When fish are moody and unwilling to hit the usuals history has shown that a ned rig can get those tight-lipped fish to strike, often inhaling the jigs all the way down. To fish a ned rig its super straight forward, cast it out and let it hit bottom. The just slowly hop and pause the rig along the bottom, sometimes just letting the lure sit for 10 seconds or longer. Adjust your cadence depending on how active the fish are, but make sure to stay connected to the bottom.
Nedster Jigs are best fished on spinning gear. Choose a medium-light spinning rod in the 7-foot range. Pair it with a 2000 or 2500 size reel spooled with 8- to 10-pound braid finished with a fluorocarbon leader to promote invisibility.
The new Nedster Jig and Weedless Nedster Jig are available in 4 sizes (1/8-, 3/16-, ¼-, and 5/16-ounce) and 4 colors (Black, Chartreuse, Green Pumpkin, and Rusty Craw). Nedster Jigs come 3 per pack, Nedster Weedless Jigs 2 per pack. MSRP for both is $5.99.
Both models will be available in late 2022.
