Using the Poc'it Fry on a NED Rig

By: Josh Schwartz , MisterTwister.com

I tried the Mister Twister Poc'it Fry on a NED rig during two separate fishing outings and it's a great fit for the NED rig. This summer was the first time I had fished with the NED rig and everything I had read and watched about the NED rig beforehand came to life, I was a believer.

Why The Poc'it Fry Works On A NED Rig

Two reasons I've found why the Poc'it Fry works on a NED rig:

1. The Poc'it Fry floats and will offer a more consistent presentation during a hop and bounce or deadstick presentation. This is because when on a jig head, the buoyancy of the Poc'it Fry causes it to stand up, instead of laying on its side.
2. Length. Out of the package the Poc'it Fry is 4 ½ inches long. Cutting the Poc'it Fry rig to 2-2 ¾ inches works great for the NED rig, and you can use the reminder of the Poc'it Fry for another NED rig option. You can make two NED rig options with one Mister Twister Poc'it Fry.

Preparing For NED Rig Test

There's two things I wanted to find out:  How well the Poc'it Fry works on a NED rig. Will a round jig head work, all I had were round jig heads and I read that round jig heads can work on a NED rig.

Fishing can be about using what's in your tackle box at the given moment. For the first trip, I spent the night before cutting the Mister Twister Poc'it Fry into different lengths and tested those lengths on various jig heads. I choose to go with a 2 ½ piece of the Poc'it Fry on a 1/8 ounce jig head for my first NED rig test.

Note: I used a round jig head as I did not have a mushroom shaped jig head in my tackle box and wanted to experiment with a round jig head. I found the round jig head to work well. A mushroom shaped jig head is the popular jig head for NED rigs. Key point: Use the lightest jig head you can get away with.

Trip One
At lunchtime I headed out to a fishing spot and I dropped the bait down to the gravel bottom and worked it slowly back to the dock I was standing on. Bluegills began nipping at the bait as it fell to the bottom.

A couple casts later I spotted a bass and casted near it, and as my NED rig was falling, the bass swam towards the bait.

Once on the bottom, I gave it three hops and then let it sit, the Poc'it Fry was standing straight up and the bass bit and slurped the bait in. I set the hook and cracked a smile as I reeled in my first NED rig catch.

Trip Two
A few weeks passed I went back to the same spot to fish after work. This time I went with multiple rods with different baits.

I started out with top water lures then moved to spinners and curly tail grubs. A few of those casts were by a bass I had spotted and the bass ignored the presentations.

Finally, I tied on the NED rig, using the Poc'it Fry on a 1/8 ounce jig head and hooked up with the bass that refused the other lures.

The Poc'it Fry Works On A NED Rig

As with other fishing rigs, experiment with your presentation. The Poc'it Fry is a versatile bait, excelling at specific applications.