Capt. Mike Hogan shows us how to utilize the fast sinking & erratic twitch action of the Heavy Minnow Jig for targeting shallow water Seabass.
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"The Wind Beater. The Distance Driver. The Albie Panic Button."
The Heavy Minnow Jig:
With inline single hooks for solid hook-ups and healthy releases, the Hogy Heavy Minnow is perfect for anglers who need distance, depth, and versatility in a compact package. Plus, it stores easily in small or medium roll-up bags, making it an efficient tool for light-tackle fishing.
Key Features & Benefits
Compact,
Thick-Profile Body for Maximum Casting Distance: Packs serious weight into a small body, cutting through wind for exceptional long-range casting. Allows anglers to reach distant fish with small profile lures.
Small Profile for Matching Tiny Bait: Mimics juvenile baitfish like anchovies, silversides, and sand eels. Perfect for finicky fish feeding on micro forage but staying far away.
High Flutter Action: Unique Dual-Taper design offers erratic flutter action to mimic the appearance and movement of small crab, shrimp or squid, common prey for bottom-dwelling species.
How To Use:
Long-Distance Surf Casting: Cast far beyond the breakers, let it sink briefly, then retrieve at a steady to fast pace. Creates a flashy, erratic motion that mimics small bait fleeing predators.
Shallow-Water Jigging Technique: Drop to the bottom, then hop it up with short rod lifts, allowing it to flutter down. Triggers reaction strikes from sea
bass, porgies, and other structure-oriented fish.
High-Speed Albie Retrieve Technique: Cast beyond the school and
retrieve as fast as possible, keeping the lure near the surface. Mimics a panicked baitfish, a proven method for triggering albies and bonito.
8 products
“These things cast way out to wherever you aim. Especially great in cross currents and wind. Been a late summer confidence lure for me, in every color too. The single VMC hooks hold up very well.” Hogy Customer Andrew C.
FAQ
Quick answers for most commonly asked questions about the Heavy Minnow Jigs and fishing applications.
How does the Heavy Minnow compare to the Epoxy Jig?
What size for albies?
Can I jig it vertically?
Inline single or treble?
Best retrieve speed?
What species beyond albies and stripers?
Salty Cape System
How To Fish The Heavy Minnow Jig
Environmental Factors (E):
- Heavy Wind: This is where the Heavy Minnow owns the day. Compact and dense, it punches through wind with minimal deflection. When the Epoxy gets blown off course and the Peanut can’t reach, the Heavy Minnow still launches.
- Chop / Rough Water: Tracks clean through turbulence. Ideal for rough surface conditions where lighter jigs get tossed around. Rides just below the chaos and stays in the strike zone.
- Strong Current: The dense, compact body holds position in moving water. Gets deep fast on a vertical drop and stays pinned to your line on a horizontal retrieve.
- Choppy Surface: Holds true during fast retrieves across broken water. The compact shape doesn’t catch surface turbulence the way wider profiles do.
- Big Water: Stable over distance. Gets deep fast and holds course in open ocean conditions. The default metal when conditions are too rough for finesse.
Observational Factors (O):
Distance Blitzes: Launches far, tracks clean. Perfect for covering water without crowding fish. When albies pop up 80 yards out and vanish in seconds, the Heavy Minnow gets there on the first shot.
- Distance Feeds: Your furthest-casting metal with a clean flight path and quiet entry for its weight class.
- Aggressive Behavior: When fish are moving with intent — slashing, chasing, crashing bait — burn the Heavy Minnow at speed. Let the weight and flash do the work.
- Mixed Column Activity: Drop it through the chaos with a Kerplunk. The fast sink gets past surface feeders to bigger fish holding below the blitz.
Structure + Approach (S + A):
- Open Beach: Distance and tracking in the wind. The Heavy Minnow punches through surf and current, giving you long casts and a stable retrieve even in rough water.
- Jetties & Corners: Fire long across current seams and let it sweep back. The compact body drives through chop and crosswind without losing track.
- Inlets: High-energy zones with complex flow. The Heavy Minnow stays pinned in turbulent water and casts into crosswinds.
- From a Boat — Distance Rotation: When you need to reach far or burn fast. The default casting jig when distance or speed is the primary requirement.
- Shallow Jigging Crossover: Drop and hop for sea bass, cod, porgies. Slow jig over structure for stripers. Fish the mid-column for suspended fish on sonar.
TIPS & TECHNIQUE
HEAVY MINNOW JIG
Simple Sea Bass Fishing
Heavy MInnow Jig - Cape Cod Sea Bass + Blues
Florida Keys Patch Reef Snapper Fishing
Spanish Mackerel Fishing - Exciting Fall Run Action
How To: Jigging Artifical Reefs For Snapper
How To Clinic: Fishing Public Artifical Reefs
Heavy Minnow Jig Storage
Keep all your Heavy Minnow Jigs carefully stored in one place with easy to rinse and store marine grade mesh storage bags.
- Easy-rinse marine grade mesh.
- Holds up to 12 Heavy Minnow Jigs
- Hassle free multi-pouch storage.
- Sturdy and durable locking wrap.
Heavy Minnow Jig Rods
Built with a soft, yet sensitive blank, these rods resist accidental breakage due to high sticking but still offer high sensitivity to light bites on smaller presentations, plus they have plenty of backbone in the blank to apply added pressure for larger inshore species. Paired with an appropriately sized reel, these are a pleasure to fish for daily applications.
- Mod-Fast Action Black For Increased Sensitivity.
- Premium Grade Cork Grip
- Heavy Duty Locking Aluminum Reel Seat
- Premium Ceramic Guides
