How to Catch Mangrove Jack on a Bait Junkie Kikker Curly

By Jack Mitchell

Mangrove jack are hard to beat as a sportfish. Aggressive, hard fighting and willing to take a variety of different lures they're a species that many anglers rate as one of their favourite fish to target.

Their eager willingness to take a surface lure is one of the things that makes them a much revered species and when it comes to a soft plastic surface lure the Daiwa Bait Junkie Kikker Curly is one of their favourite lures to eat. Let's look at my go-to tackle selection and approach when I'm heading out for a Kikker Curly jack session.

In most situations when using the Daiwa Kikker Curlies to chase jacks you will be fishing heavy structure and will be required to skip cast underneath overhanging mangrove banks or into tight timber structure. To make this easier for yourself there are a few things to look at when selecting what rod, reel combo and line combo. You'll also need to know how best to rig your Kicker Curly frog.

Rod and Reel Combo

I find in these situations your rod selection is the most important thing to look at in your whole set up. When I’m looking for the right rod I’m having a look at the taper. I like to use a fast tapered rod that will help give me that softness in the tip allowing me to really skip the frog tight into cover, and also gives me the strength in the bottom half of the rod to help pull fish out when needed.

When it comes to the length of the rod length I like to go as long as I can to the point where it's gonna crowd my casting style. I find if I go longer than 7 foot I start to get to cramped when it comes to cast room. This may sound odd but when you skip casting you're using a low sweeping motion and the longer the rod the less room you have and more chance of hitting the water on your cast. When matching a reel to your outfit it's really up to you and what you feel comfortable with on your rod. I personally use a Daiwa Revelry 3000 HD paired onto a TD Black Wicked Weasel rod. 

Line and Leader Selection

When it comes to selecting a leader I would highly recommend using a fluorocarbon leader. Using a fluorocarbon leader this gives you a lot more abrasion resistance which is very important when chasing jacks using this style of fishing. I find using a 40lb leader is the ideal size and personally use the J-Thread FC Leader and couldn’t recommend it enough. I tie this to 20lb J-Braid Grand using an FG knot. I have found it very important to use a knot like the FG as its very slim and passes through the guides with ease. In the past when I've used other knots the line can tend to get caught up in your guides putting your casting accuracy off. I also follow through by tying a simple loop knot to the lure.

Rigging The Kikker Curly

When rigging a Kicker Curly I use a 3/0 worm hook. I go with a bigger worm hook only because I am chasing jacks and wanting that bit of extra strength in the hook. Don't worry about a hook of this size imparting the swimming action because the Kikker Curly swims perfectly with this big hook in it. Daiwa have made the rigging of these lures super simple for you. When you have your frog and worm hook you will see two small dimples underneath the nose of the frog. You will thread your hook point through the first dimple closest to the nose and it will then exit through the second point, then thread the hook through until the nose sits above the offset part of the shank. Line up your hook size along the frog which will determine where your exit point of the frog should be. The Kicker Curlies also come with a weedless slot that allows the hook to sit nice and flat with the shape of the frog. 

Happy frog fishing!