San Diego & SoCal Fishing Forums

I’m looking for some incite on how to set up a live bait rig to use at the bays, jetties, piers, ect. I have never tried it, so any recommendations and tips would be great.

quick and simple rig.

For halibut, I would recommend a rig that gets the bait off the bottom more so they can see it from a longer distance, either a dropshot rig or a 3 way swivel rig. Dropshot for anchovies, 3 way swivel for mackerel and smelt. You could also use a dropper loop for the bait hook instead of a dropshot.

24" is about right for swivel to sinker and swivel to bait, much more than that will be hard to cast with most rods. Use a trap hook for the larger baits if you desire. Nose hook the bait. The larger baits will cause more line twisting if a swivel is not used. Carolina rig is good too, especially for surf perch, rays, bonefish and sharks.

Try them all and especially notice what successful anglers are using. Note that the same rigs can be used for dead bait and even soft plastics. Gulp can work well at times.

Has anyone used lizardfish for live bait and how would you rig it ?