By the Founder of Ebb N Flow Outdoors | EbbNFlowOutdoors.com
I named it The Upgrade for a reason. While explaining everything this jighead does to my wife, she confidently said back, "so… an Upgrade." When I sat down to design the Multipurpose Jig Head for the Ebb N Flow lineup, the goal wasn't to reinvent the wheel. It was to take what's always worked and make every detail better — all the while fixing issues I was seeing on the water: the hook type, the hook angle, the weight placement, the bait keeper, and the finish. The result is a jig head that looks familiar enough to fish with confidence on day one but performs noticeably different from anything you've thrown before.
Let me walk you through what makes it different and where it truly shines.
What Makes The Upgrade Different
The Multipurpose Jig Head is an exposed hook design — no weed guard, no keeper arm in the classic sense. Clean. Direct. Built for maximum hook-up ratio in open water and light cover scenarios. The hook is the star of the show here, and we spec'd it for that role.
The profile is designed for versatility and the Do-It-Yourself crowd. You can tie living rubber or bucktail to it and still have a bait keeper system that acts as an internal weight as well as a soft-plastic locking mechanism — for a truly custom experience on your home waters. ElaZtech optimized, "No Glue" required.
The keel-shaped head design with a 60-degree line tie allows straight tail baits to run straight and true, or be jerked and paused with erratic action. The keel doubles as bottom relief and will rock paddle tails even harder during the retrieve without spinning them out. The Upgrade line of Jigheads / Hover Hooks pairs cleanly with everything from Z-Man's finesse TRD range to larger paddle tails, jerk shads, and curl tail grubs. The head shape doesn't force your plastic into a single presentation angle — you can experiment with bait style and retrieve until you find what the fish want that day.
Inshore Saltwater Applications
In the Lowcountry, The Upgrade Multipurpose Jig Head earns its name on open-water grass and oyster-flat presentations for speckled trout, flounder, and redfish. When fish are up and actively feeding on baitfish over clean bottom or thin grass, an exposed hook design gives you the fastest hook-up ratio of any configuration. There's nothing between the hook point and the fish's mouth.
Pair a 3/32 oz Upgrade Hover Hook with a 3" to 4" Z-Man jerk shad in white, chartreuse, or natural baitfish colors. Work it on a slow steady retrieve just off the bottom, or jerk it along the surface of a flat on an incoming tide. Trout absolutely hammer this presentation, and once the redfish get up and start blowing water, they'll eat it too.
Docks and bridge pilings are another prime Upgrade scenario in saltwater. Let it fall on a semi-slack line, watch the line tip, and set on the drop. Flounder are notorious for eating on the fall near structure, and this head gives you the sensitivity to feel that. Live bait or artificial — The Upgrade was built for it all.
Freshwater Bass Applications
Back home in the midwest and here around the Carolina Lowcountry lakes, bass applications for The Upgrade span from docks to offshore ledges. The clean exposed hook excels anywhere you're not punching through heavy matted vegetation — open water, gravel points, pea gravel spawning flats, dock shadows.
Swim it on an A-Rig style with small Baby Ztoo's for an unbelievable fall, winter, and spring flats bite. Rig a worm or swimbait and work it along a rocky bottom for a classic bass and walleye presentation that's caught fish since your grandfather was young. Rig a paddle tail straight and swim it through the middle of the water column for suspended bass on offshore structure.
An exposed hook in the right scenario isn't a liability — it's a feature. More direct contact between hook and fish means more fish in the net.
Live Bait Presentations
One of the angles that separates The Upgrade from other multipurpose heads is its performance as a live bait jig head. Thread a live shrimp through the tail and work it under a popping cork for speckled trout, or free-line pogies near an oyster bar for red drum. The hook size and geometry keep live bait in a natural swimming position without restricting movement the way some oversized head designs do.
This is especially useful in the early morning, pre-sunrise hours when live shrimp are most effective and you're trying to get baits in the water quickly and quietly. A clean, simple jig head with no extra hardware gets you fishing faster.
Tips for Getting the Most from The Upgrade
- Match weight to conditions, not habit. Start light — 1/16 oz in shallow calm water — and only go heavier as current or wind demand it.
- Use quality soft plastics. Z-Man's ElaZtech and TPE materials are the best pairing for this head — they hold the hook better, last longer, and maintain action at slower retrieves.
- Let the fall do the work. On every cast near structure, let the bait fall before starting your retrieve. Most bites on an open-hook jig head happen on the initial descent.
- Vary your retrieve cadence. A straight slow roll catches fish. But a hop-pause-hop near the bottom will often trigger fish that are following but not committing.
- Check your point. An exposed hook point that's slightly dulled will cost you fish. Touch up with a hook file regularly, especially after bouncing off oyster shell or gravel.
The Bottom Line on The Upgrade
The Upgrade Multipurpose Jig Head is built for anglers who understand that versatility doesn't mean compromise. It's the jig head I reach for when I'm fishing open water, want maximum sensitivity, or need a platform that works equally well with artificial and live bait. It's the one in my box that catches fish in the widest range of scenarios without asking you to make tradeoffs.
Simple. Effective. Built for the way real anglers fish.
Get The Upgrade at EbbNFlowOutdoors.com →
Frequently Asked Questions
What's the difference between the Upgrade and the ATV Weedless?
The Upgrade Multipurpose Jig Head is built on 2x black nickel plated wire with an exposed hook point. The internal belly weight and bait keeper pins your plastic tight and keeps it riding horizontal on the fall, and the exposed design is ready for any DIY customization. The ATV Weedless Hover Hook is built on 1x black nickel wire and made to fish the nastiest cover you can find. The tapered lead bait keeper on the nose works with almost any plastic with little to no blowout, and the weedless configuration keeps the hook clean through grass, wood, and heavy cover.
What hook size for 3-inch Z-Man baits?
A 2/0 or 3/0 hook is the right call for 3-inch Z-Man plastics. The 2/0 gives a finesse-forward presentation ideal for speckled trout on open flats and pressured bass in clear water. The 3/0 adds more gap and bite for weedless cover fishing or larger fish. Both sizes are available in the Upgrade Hover Hook and ATV Weedless Hover Hook at EbbNFlowOutdoors.com.
What's the best jig head for fishing shallow wood and stumps?
The Upgrade ATV Weedless Hover Hook. The tapered lead nose deflects off structure instead of catching it, the weedless keeper lets you drive the bait through heavy timber without fouling, and the 1x black nickel wire handles the hookset when a big bass blows up in a brush pile. Fish it slow on a semi-slack line next to every piece of wood you see.