Review of the Custom Jigs and Spins Diamond Jig

Quality

Utility

Value

Summary: With these diamond cut jigs, Custom Jigs and Spins have managed to set themselves apart from the pack.

3.7

Pretty Good

The Diamond Jig is one of the many jigs manufactured by the Custom Jigs and Spins company. There are now so many different types of ice fishing jigs that they can all sort of blend in with another. But even in that crowded field a few constants have emerged. One is Custom Jigs which makes a number of really good ice fishing lures.

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The Custom Jigs and Spins Diamond Jig is a sort of unique jig. For one I have only seen it sold in packs of two which already sets it apart from the other premium jigs that are almost always sold as singles. But on a structural level the jigs have different shapes to the much more common square or tear drop shaped jigs that are now so popular.

What is a Diamong Jig?

I guess the name of the Diamond Jig comes from this fact. In some ways it resembles a brilliant cut diamond in the way the head is shaped. The Diamond Jig is nothing like the bejeweled jigs such as the Clam Epoxy Drop which has an actual gem attached to the front.

The Diamond Jig is actually a lot like the tear drop shaped jigs on the market except with some more flat areas. It almost looks like a tear drop jig with some pieces cut straight off with a knife. That gives it a slightly different action and profile in the water without making it bulky or slow on the sink.

I’m not sure how much fish notice the difference, but the shape does help the ice fisherman in two ways. One is that the flat face on the front of the jig is more likely to show up on a flasher. The other is that the more squared off jig displaces more water and is thus more likely to be noticed by fish relying on their lateral line to find food. At least those are my theories anyway. Since I’m not a scientist I can only rely on my actual experiences and findings in the field. I find that the Diamond Jig is a nice switch up that is easy to see on the screen and catches fish.

What makes it different

There are a few other small things that set the Diamond Jig apart from other ice fishing jigs on the market. One is that the hook eye is a little angled and offset so it is not at a perfect 90 degree angle. Another is that the jigs have a little piece of plastic piping around the base of the hook where it leaves the back of the jig head. Depending on where you buy the jigs some also come with small beads on the hook shank.

I don’t think the plastic does much of anything at all to be honest. The offset angle on the hook eye on the other hand does make the jig sit differently in the water. While I normally think that a purely horizontal presentation is best I am glad to have options. And the facts are that a lot of the small creatures that crawl around the bottom of lakes do move in a more angled way, for example when a mayfly nymph heads towards the surface to hatch or a dragonfly nymph goes on the hunt.

Ultimately we want to match the hatch when possible so it’s nice to have lures that actually look and act like the things that the fish are eating under the ice. The more abstract lures certainly have their uses but you want to have something close to the natural available too.

Variations

The Diamond Jig comes in colors like “glow” and “clown” that don’t actually look like any natural food at all but I don’t know how much that matters. Those kinds of colors can bring fish in down under the ice while a realistic silhouette and movement can then make the fish comfortable enough to bite. I think that’s why the Diamond Jig works so well.

The lures are also high quality and reasonably priced. You can pick up two for a few bucks and they will last season after season without losing their paint or breaking down from catching dozens of fish. I carry quite a few in my box.

I have found that these Diamond Jigs work especially well at pounding the bottom for panfish on very cold days. The funny thing is that as I am looking up these jigs online to review them here I see that the manufacturer recommends them for a similar use. The Custom Jigs website says: “When pursuing deeper panfish, look no further than the proven Diamond Jig.”

The Diamond Jig is available at Amazon and direct from Custom Jigs and Spins.

Tags: ice fishing jigs