Light jigs/small plastics only for those lowly panfish?

When we think of light tackle for fishing, fly fishing comes to mind. Light jigs and small lures are the next category before going whole hog to 1/4 oz lures or heavier for bass. If you've caught fish on light jigs you already know what I'm about to say which is: they catch fish - PERIOD! and all kinds of fish, not just bass.

In another post I asked questions about the drop-shot presentation and it will be one more choice to consider where a lure is kept in one location longer than most others. But light jigs also allow lures to be kept and worked in one location though maybe not as long. Most of the reason I love light jig/small soft plastics is the variety of lure shapes and actions that provoke attacks from all sizes of fish. Each lure shape and action is unique in what fish see and feel with the lateral line. No more having to focus on buying one or two lures I may think are the only ones that can catch fish. Better to focus on what each lure does in the water - mainly how it moves that got fish to attack.

In past posts, I've given examples of lure shapes and the fish they caught while stipulating that the same retrieve does not equate to the same lure action for all lures. Each action is unique and can be labeled. I will post more examples, but before I do, note the shape and action of the tadpole in this video :



More important than the type of prey animal shown is its action and shape. Note the body waddle, glide and tail shimmy - just one of a thousand kinds fish see and feel every day whether hungry or not. Fish respond to certain shapes and actions almost as if it's part of their DNA. What's more is their lack of self-control that allows them to just ignore a lure that is unnatural in so many ways. ( Spinnerbaits, Chatterbaits, wacky rigged Senkos, skirted jigs & trailers come to mind.).

So now that the concept of choice-by-design is on the table, here again are examples of shapes/actions fish can't refuse (making me the Godfather of fishing LOL).
Remember the chubby little tadpole (with a face only another tadpole could love?):
Here's my rendition:

The subtle shimmy of its straight, thin, flat tail lures is one of the best shapes I've cast - ever!
Believe it or not, the curl tail grub is less productive than many other designs for reasons only a fish would know though they seem to do better with a spinner blade:


On the other hand, mini-sticks rigged on light jigs do very well most of the time:

The surface of the stick doesn't have to be smooth or rigged from the front. Here's a regular and wacky-rigged sticks that do fantastic on a light 1/24 oz jig and in different colors:


Let's not forget GY Kut Tail worms on light jigs:


There are hundreds more but I don't want to bore you, but you get the point - as do the fish!

 

Fixed so the photos and video show up.