Dirty Jigs, in my opinion, makes the best swim jig on the market—the No-Jack Swim Jig. This review is not about the No-Jack, but rather Dirty Jigs’ new Weekender Swim Jig. I did feel it worth noting, though, the No-Jack lineage is from where the Weekender series was born. It was because of my affinity for the No-Jack that I was particularly intrigued by the idea of Dirty Jigs creating another swim jig.
But why would Dirty Jigs make another swim jig when the No-Jack was so good? Well, knocking 28 percent off the price tag is a pretty good reason to do it—so that the everyman angler could better afford the bait. Let’s take a closer look at the new Weekender Swim Jig and what makes it different, and in some cases better, than the No-Jack and other swim jigs.
First Impressions of the Weekender Series
Again, I was a little taken aback by Dirty Jigs offering another swim jig, when their No-Jack is flawless. It took understanding more about the overarching mission of the Weekender series lineup to better understand why adding a new swim jig to the lineup made sense.
Dirty Jigs has decided to make a concerted effort to bring above-average baits to the market for below-average prices. They simultaneously released a swim jig as well as a casting jig in the Weekender series line this year, with presumably more baits to come. Each of these baits comes in for a dollar or so less than almost all comparable baits, giving the weekend angler a quality bait at a budget-friendly price.
Testing the Jig on the Water
I got this jig a couple weeks prior to ICAST 2025, where it was officially released to the public. With so much confidence in the brand, I was very excited to get out on the water and put this one to the test. On my first trip out, I spent my time fishing the jig around patches of water willow grass.
While reeling the bait over and through one especially thick patch of grass, I had a stud come up and smoke the bait. I laid into the fish and was able to wrestle it out of the middle of the grass and get it into the open water, where I boat-flipped the bass over the gunwale and into the bottom of the boat. The jig performed flawlessly.
Hook Choice
Though this hook isn’t as beefy as the No-Jack, it’s still plenty big enough for 95 percent of all swim jig applications. I still want the beefier hook if I were fishing with 65-pound braid in thick Florida hayfields, but for a patch of grass in Alabama, this 5/0 VMC hook is way more than enough. I didn’t bend it hauling that 4-plus-pounder out of pretty dense cover, so I can guarantee you you’re not going to bend it easily.
Color Options
A somewhat limited assortment of 8 colors still covers the bases well. From white to black and blue, there’s something for almost any situation you’d need a swim jig for. There are solid colors, translucent colors, shad patterns, bluegill patterns, green pumpkins, and more. Plenty to pick from.
Size Selection
The Weekender Swim Jig comes in any size you want, as long as you want a ⅜ ounce. Again, Dirty Jigs is making an effort here to bring a great bait to market for a good price — I assume that has something to do with the limited weight options. Even still, if there were 20 weight selections in a swim jig, I’d pick 3/8 99 percent of the time. And, I think this really helps cut out some of the confusion for the angler, especially anyone new to swim jig fishing. No need to get lost in which weight to choose.
Weekender Swim Jig Specs
This jig as a whole could be described as a no-nonsense workhorse. The weedguard could be best described as standard, with the same boring descriptive language used for the bait keeper. There are a few gill slits in the head of the jig, but it’s otherwise conical in shape like every other good swim jig, with a vertical line tie—all strategically assembled to come through vegetation and over heavy cover well.
Final Thoughts
I had high hopes for the Dirty Jigs Weekender Swim Jig, and I was not disappointed. This is one of those baits that is extremely easy to recommend. If anything, Dirty Jigs outdid themselves a little here and made the Weekend series good enough to replace their No-Jack Swim Jig. I wouldn’t go quite that far, as I’ve caught some great fish over the years on my beloved No-Jack. But this is a heckuva bait, especially for the price. I like the simplicity and affordability of this bait. I like that there’s only one size to choose from and a handful of colors. The head design, hook, weedguard, and bait keeper are all uncomplicated. Dirty Jigs didn’t try to be cute or get fancy with this one — they delivered a solid, quality bait for a competitive price.let it be known I’m a big fan of this one.
