# Alabama Rig



## AllEyezOnMe (Apr 22, 2012)

Fished a small bass tournament on salt fork yesterday. Probably about 12 boats. 1st place was almost 8 pds and I know that team was throwing the Alabama rig. I tried everything yesterday and managed one dink. Pretty frustrating, I'm going to get some Alabama rigs this week. Is anyone else using these things and having some success?


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## chopper (May 15, 2004)

I think that it looks like the perfect idea. However, I threw a couple of different combos last year at different times and never caught a bass. Don't forget in Ohio, you can only have three hooks. I bought a 5 way and put spinner blades on, and nothing. I tryed two white baits and one a diffent color, nothing. If anyone has an idea, please let us know, I still believe in this bait.


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## RJohnson442 (May 14, 2013)

I tried a 3 arm one today with no luck but it didn't seem like anyone else was having luck today either. I can be a pain when it gets snagged up on itself every other cast. At least its fun to throw a coat hanger in the water and see if you get it back


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## JShort (Sep 16, 2011)

I've used it a little bit. Nothing on it yet


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## Bad Bub (Jan 17, 2006)

I've caught a few on it last year. But definitely didn't set the world on fire. I run 5 baits with the hooks cut off of 2 of them, all 5 identical. Only threw it 1 trip so far this year. Now that the spawn is mostly done, I'll start playing with it again.... but its gonna have to start doing something quick...

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## Mr. A (Apr 23, 2012)

I have not used one primarily because I'm land locked. What I do know From asking others and reading up on them is that they are not as effective compared to a single bait until the bass are schooling, then they can really pay off. 

I'd love to test them personally but am not buying a boat just to try them out

Mr. A


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## Jmsteele187 (Dec 22, 2011)

I have two of them, a 5 arm rig from Manns and a smaller 3 arm model from Yum. I haven't had much luck with them though. It's kind of a pain when you're pulling salad off the rig after every cast. With many of the weeds gone at my "after work spot" and the spawn pretty much done, I might try it again. Now that I think of it, if I would have tied one on tonight it probably have worked pretty well. I could see quite a few bass flashing and rolling on the surface just off shore.


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## sporto (Jun 7, 2005)

I've had a lot of success on them in the right situations. I throw them on braid and tie directly to bait which seems to help with the bait fouling up. Most guys that throw them reguarly work them in tight parallel to the bank or around bridge pilings, I have also done well pitching them and running down parallel to a downed tree.....hold on cause they will kill it!


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## jonnythfisherteen2 (Mar 5, 2011)

I have a small 3 arm. no fish but got quite a few bass smashing it.


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## ranger175a (Apr 20, 2011)

I've never been bit at salt fork using an alabama rig. Come to think of it I haven't been bit anywhere with it. Frustrating!


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## Shaggy (Oct 24, 2008)

I think most anglers consider a lot of things about the way they fish. Can fish actually see the line and does it spook them if they can? Does using a snap or swivel instead of tying affect the action of a bait enough to make a difference? If any of these things matter then why would anyone throw something like an Alabama rig? To me it defies logic.


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## FL-boy (Feb 12, 2013)

Take a look at the rig on Big Joshy's website. Lighter, 3-arm only, and made to be less visible. Also cheaper I think than the Yum ones.


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## Bassbme (Mar 11, 2012)

I'll let you know tomorrow. I'll be in a tournament tomorrow and I plan on throwing one of the 3 arm rigs that Yum makes. I'm not sure if a tournament is the best place to throw it for the first time though, I probably won't stick with it too long if I'm not getting anything on it. 

I'm with Shaggy as far as the visibility of the rig goes though. I'm always pretty cautious when it comes line visibility and stuff like that. But with all the rain we've had lately I'm figuring the water is going to be dirtied up a bit is some places. That's where I plan on throwing it. I'll be running 3 fire tiger Berkley Ripple Shads on it.


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## ostbucks98 (Apr 14, 2004)

I fished my 3 arm regular and a 3 arm spinner a-rig for about 2 hours yesterday at paint creek...no fish....i was on a big school of fish in 20 feet of water...caught 6 from same place on carolina rig...nothing would hit the a-rig.

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## MassillonBuckeye (May 3, 2010)

Shaggy said:


> I think most anglers consider a lot of things about the way they fish. Can fish actually see the line and does it spook them if they can? Does using a snap or swivel instead of tying affect the action of a bait enough to make a difference? If any of these things matter then why would anyone throw something like an Alabama rig? To me it defies logic.


Thats the thing, I don't think any of that matters much if any. I mean hell, how many baitfish have you ever seen that looks like a clown colored or Chartreuse colored bait? Firetiger?? That don't scare fish but a tiny diameter line or slightly less wobble will? Talk about defying logic! People catch fish on all different kinds of rigs. Only the most anal of us do the Only flouro or flouro leaders no snaps etc and I doubt they catch many more fish than the next.


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## ostbucks98 (Apr 14, 2004)

The biggest factor is not tackle but confidence in what your doing and fimding active fish.

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## Bassbme (Mar 11, 2012)

First I have to report that I have no report on how I did on my Alabama rig..... I didn't throw it mostly because it was a tournament day. I surely will on my next fun fishing day though.

As far as there effectiveness goes...... They're not a magic lure, and I know nobody has said they are. I think they are very situational. This is just me postulating ...... but I think you see them being so effective on other bodies of water because those lakes have more bass. The schools of bass are larger in number so the competition for food is more fierce. I would think if you ran into a situation where there is a large fairly tightly bunched school of bass..... then your chances of success with an Alabama rig would go way up. They just don't seem like an individual or bass scattered here or there kind of bait to me. 

The next lake I'll be fishing is Mosquito, and I will be sure to try it there...... if I can't get fish on it at Mosquito, I'll be taking it out of the boat and relegating it to the green container for pick up on Tuesday mornings. lol


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## Bad Bub (Jan 17, 2006)

Bassbme said:


> First I have to report that I have no report on how I did on my Alabama rig..... I didn't throw it mostly because it was a tournament day. I surely will on my next fun fishing day though.
> 
> As far as there effectiveness goes...... They're not a magic lure, and I know nobody has said they are. I think they are very situational. This is just me postulating ...... but I think you see them being so effective on other bodies of water because those lakes have more bass. The schools of bass are larger in number so the competition for food is more fierce. I would think if you ran into a situation where there is a large fairly tightly bunched school of bass..... then your chances of success with an Alabama rig would go way up. They just don't seem like an individual or bass scattered here or there kind of bait to me.
> 
> The next lake I'll be fishing is Mosquito, and I will be sure to try it there...... if I can't get fish on it at Mosquito, I'll be taking it out of the boat and relegating it to the green container for pick up on Tuesday mornings. lol


Feel free to send it to my mailbox instead of that green container. Lol! (I'm still determined to figure it out)

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## tadluvadd (Feb 19, 2012)

two words for them---OVERRATED,OVER PRICED.


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## Bad Bub (Jan 17, 2006)

tadluvadd said:


> two words for them---OVERRATED,OVER PRICED.


That's a pretty strong statement considering the amount of money that has been won with them... not to mention the possible WR stripped bass....

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## tadluvadd (Feb 19, 2012)

dident say they wouldent work,i said overrated.there are tons of baits that have won more money then the bamma rig.just dont get the publicity cause they are nothing new.and $20 for a bait that hangs up like a anchor is the over priced part.no doubt they have their place,but the overrated part is allot of folks thinking it is a go to bait and its not.


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## Bad Bub (Jan 17, 2006)

tadluvadd said:


> dident say they wouldent work,i said overrated.there are tons of baits that have won more money then the bamma rig.just dont get the publicity cause they are nothing new.and $20 for a bait that hangs up like a anchor is the over priced part.no doubt they have their place,but the overrated part is allot of folks thinking it is a go to bait and its not.


O.k. I'll give you that.

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## Bassbme (Mar 11, 2012)

Bad Bub said:


> Feel free to send it to my mailbox instead of that green container. Lol! (I'm still determined to figure it out)
> 
> Sent from my DROID RAZR using Ohub Campfire mobile app


LOL Only if you pay the postage.


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## Big Joshy (Apr 26, 2004)

I have been playing with my 3 arm unweighted rig since last summer.

There is no doubt that there are times you will get 10 times the bites just throwing a single swimbait. I was on some bass that were at the mouth of a shallow bay in paint creek lake last fall. The visibility was about 1 ft. They were there eating 3-4 inch shad. Seemed like the perfect scenario for the rig. Never had a bump. Switched to a single swimbait and caught over 20 bass in an hour. Seemed to me in that scenario there was tons of bait in the water and the fish were trying to only go after the single stragglers. Easy meals. Then I caught a couple scattered bass on the rig down the bank away from the bait and boiling bass. Tried the rig again at paint creek last week. Not a bump. Fish wanted craws hopped off bottom though. Im learning paint creek bass like craws alot.

Last fall the same day the bass were at paint creek not hitting the 3 arm rig, I went over to Rocky fork and fished a rocky windblow shoreline. Visibility about 4-5 ft. I caught 5 bass in about 10 minutes up to about 19 inches. You could see the fish come up, track the baits and see the flash when they hit the trailing center bait. Who knows if they were just keyed up of if they were keyed up because of the rig. 

Fishing a point at Rocky Fork last fall I hit about 25 big white bass on about 30 casts with 3 over 16 Fish Ohios. They were not breaking or anything just laying out on a gradual point with some wind on it ready to eat.

Crappie at alum like it too but its much more effective when the water is warmer after the spawn and through the summer into fall.

I think the biggest miss conception of the a-rig and similar rigs is that its sole purpose is to catch multiple fish at once. To me its more about getting the fishes attention with several baits and then giving them a straggler bait that looks like an easy meal.


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## Matt Hougan (Aug 19, 2008)

Yum's Flash mob jr won three consecutive majors this season already. They are not over rated


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

There are situations, major situations, where nothing can touch it... And I'm not talking about having everything perfect either... It's the real deal, I hope all of you give up on it...


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## rustyhooks42 (Aug 22, 2011)

tadluvadd said:


> dident say they wouldent work,i said overrated.there are tons of baits that have won more money then the bamma rig.just dont get the publicity cause they are nothing new.and $20 for a bait that hangs up like a anchor is the over priced part.no doubt they have their place,but the overrated part is allot of folks thinking it is a go to bait and its not.


The pre-spawn, post-summer, and fall turnover are supposed to be the ideal times to fish the rig. In Ohio, and other northern states, these are shorter periods than in the southern states by 1-2 months. I've learned that anything that is working for anglers in the south needs to be modified or adjusted for anglers in the north. Basically, I think there is a really narrow window in the north to fish the a-rig for optimal performance compared to the south.


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## tadluvadd (Feb 19, 2012)

WadeontheWater said:


> The pre-spawn, post-summer, and fall turnover are supposed to be the ideal times to fish the rig. In Ohio, and other northern states, these are shorter periods than in the southern states by 1-2 months. I've learned that anything that is working for anglers in the south needs to be modified or adjusted for anglers in the north. Basically, I think there is a really narrow window in the north to fish the a-rig for optimal performance compared to the south.


Agreed,thats what i ment by they have a place.most places i fish,you have to use a chain saw to catch fish.if your getting sponsorship then you can afford to loose a few.but most people wont chance loosing a $20 plus rig.if they made one that wouldent hang up on everything in the lake,id use it more often.furthermore,billy bob may have won the texas inv. on it,but I have given it a fair chance at all times of the year here,and wasent impressed for 20 bucks.for that money,i can buy a bait that is weedless,and will out fish the brella rig 7 ways to sunday at almost anytime of the year.


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## BMustang (Jul 27, 2004)

tadluvadd said:


> two words for them---OVERRATED,OVER PRICED.


Totally agree!!!

*Some baits catch fish, and others catch fishermen*. 
I have not thrown one nor will I in this lifetime. Am 66 and do just fine with what I throw.

I do know that they have some success with them at Pickwick Lake, Tn in the wintertime.

A buddy of mine threw one in Canada this spring, and didn't get a hit, and as you know, Canadian fish will hit nearly anything in the spring. When the guys around him were catching fish and he wasn't, he subtly took off the Alabama rig, replaced it with our old standby conventional baits, and started catching fish again.


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## ostbucks98 (Apr 14, 2004)

Top 10 finishers on last flw all threw this overrated bait...

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## avantifishski (Apr 8, 2012)

Hmm

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## Bad Bub (Jan 17, 2006)

avantifishski said:


> Why not make legal,and throw a cast net on ur lines? Is that where bass fishing is headed?
> 
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Dude? 7 months ago? Let it go! It's nowhere near a cast net, or everything would have been cleaned out by now...

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## avantifishski (Apr 8, 2012)

Its just different i guess

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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

I'm not jumping into this conversation because it behoovs me to allow people like avantski to stop/quit/hate the a-rig.... I hope everyone feels the same way as he does come spring...


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