A Complete Guide to Texas Rig Fishing

Anglers and fishermen have been Texas Rig Fishing for many years and swear that it’s one of the highest performing methods for catching bass. New anglers joining in the excitement of bass fishing often wonder how to fish a Texas Rig.

A Texas rig is a soft-plastic bait that can be used in many different water types and conditions, making it one of the most versatile options out there.

If you’re interested in learning how to catch hog sized bass, using a Texas rig can help you no matter what the season.

Here’s everything you need to know to use it like a pro! 

Texas Rig Fishing: All You Need to Know

Before you can opt for a Texas rig, it’s important to understand exactly what it is, and all that makes it unique.

What is a Texas Rig?

A Texas rig is a common rigging method that features a soft plastic bait, a hook, and a bullet-shaped weight.

Because of it’s snag-less design, It performs the best in areas of dense cover and can manage around weeds, brush, and rocks. It’s essentially snag-proof and helps you work your baits in and amongst crowded structures, heavy weed beds, or lily pad fields – which are where the big bass play!

It’s simple to attach a range of different live baits to the Texas rig, including worms and lizards, and it’s a really simple way to get a soft bait connecting with large fish.

How to Set Up a Basic Texas Rig

Setting up a Texas rig is quick and easy. You need 3 components and a little knot tying skill. Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you figure out how to prepare a Texas rig during your next trip to the lake. 

1. Choose Your Fishing Rod 

Texas rigs make excellent partners to all types of fishing equipment. Whether you prefer a light fishing rod and a light line, or a stiffer fishing rod with a heavy braided line, the Texas rig is great for you. Texas fishing setups can be used just as well with monofilament or braided line.

The Texas Rigs tend to be fairly heavy. Weight, hook, and plastic together can be a lot for a light line. We recommend at least an 8lb line if your fishing a decent sized rig. I prefer a stranded line with an even heavier test rating to make sure I can pull everything through those weeds, once I’ve got a large mouth bass on the other end.

2. Thread in the Weight

One of the first things you need to do is to thread in the bullet weight by putting a line through its pointed end. The weight will slide freely up the line and come back to the hook end as you cast and jig. 

Bullet weights are available in the market in various different materials such as Tungsten and Lead. Most people opt for Tungsten as it has a smaller size and a weight that harmonizes well with the rest of the equipment.

A soft bait generally is pretty heavy by itself, so you don’t normally need a large weight. Just enough to get the nose of the bait to drop when jigging.

3. Tie the Hook on the Line 

There are many sizes and shapes of hooks available readily in the bait and tackle shop nearest to you.

Many anglers prefer the “offset wide gap” type of hook, which can easily secure all soft plastic baits, while also being strong enough to manage any type of bass or about any type of freshwater game fish around. 

The off-set hook can turn on a 90 degrees angle, holding a soft plastic offering that prevents it from getting entangled in weeds and in underwater structures.

4. Attach the Bait

Bait and presentation is the essence of fishing! A Texas fishing rig is so versatile that it really can fish most any type of bait. Live baits like worms, small fish, or frogs work really well. Soft baits of about any kind can also be easily attached to this setup.

In order to attach a piece of bait to the Texas rig, you need to insert the hook into the front end of the bait. Push the hook into and through the head of whatever bait you are using an pop the hook out on the bottom of the head about a half inch or so back.

From there, pull the head of the bait all the way to the front eyelet of the hook where your line is attached.

5. Reinsert the Hook in Bait

The last thing to do is to take the sharp end of the hook and run it back through the body of your bait until the point just sticks out the top. This connects the bait fully to the hook and the small exposed part is ready to grab that big fish when it strikes.

Remember to put the hook through the skin of the bait so that the bait can hang straight. Adjust the position so that the weight of the bullet is on the front of the bait. 

Pro Tip – Go Weightless

Many choose to use a weight when Texas Rig Fishing so the bait constantly dives to the water’s floor when not being reeled. However, it’s also super popular to fish a Texas Rig without a weight. This method will allow a soft bait to float and dance a lot more and in hot temperature conditions or other areas where keeping the bait higher in the water is preferred, unweighted texas rig fishing is amazing!

How to Fish Texas Rig for Bass

There are three main ways to fish a Texas rig, and having fair knowledge of all three can help you fish for bass. Knowing how to fish a Texas rig worm can help you catch a lot of bass even in the cold months.

1. Straight Reeling

This technique involves dragging the Texas rig slowly across the lake or pond floor, especially during colder seasons when the bass is feeling more lethargic.

We generally recommend you reel a bit, twitch, and reel some more.

2. Jigging – Lift and Drop

This method involves enticing bass strikes by the up and down movement of the Texas rig, especially during the spring seasons when bass are feeling most active.

You need to lift the Texas rig from the lake floor, and then let it fall. Bass tend to strike when the rig is moving downwards. Giving it a good twitch and and up and down motion with the tip of the rod will make the bait dance up, spin around, and then head straight back down.

3. Weightless Twitching

Knowing how to fish a Texas rig without a weight is a real treat to behold. You simply need to cast the weightless rig and watch it ‘twitch’ in response to the water currents, attracting nearby bass. 

The Final Verdict

As you have seen, Texas Rig Fishing can help you successfully catch more bass during a fishing trip or at your next bass tournament.

Knowing how to set up a Texas rig is often harder than actually using the Texas rig, but frequent practice can help you become a real pro!