Angler holding yellowtail shown with a fully rigged Kicker Pk-rig

How to Rig an Umbrella Rig for Calico Bass, Spotties, and Stripers

Short answer: Bend each arm so it exits the head straight before it flares outward, run your two heaviest jig heads on the bottom two arms so the rig tracks like a keel, match your bait size to the bait in the water, and use quick clips so you can swap baits without re-rigging. Then strap the baits together for transport so the rig doesn't tangle everything in the rack.

An umbrella rig is a school of bait moving through the water column. That's the whole idea — five profiles instead of one, and a fish that would ignore a single swimbait will run down a group of them. But an A-rig is also five sets of moving parts, and most of the rigs we see come back to the shop bent, spinning on the retrieve, or wrapped around three other rods.

None of that is the rig's fault. It's setup. Here's how we do it.

Step 1: Bend the arms before you rig anything

This is the step people rush, and it's the one that determines how long your rig survives.

Kicker PK-Rig umbrella rig in I'm Saury color showing where each arm exits the head — Find where each arm exits the head — that exit point needs to be straight before the arm flares outward.

Look at the head of the rig and find where each arm actually exits. You want that arm to come out of the head straight, then bend outward from a point an inch or so past the head. What you don't want is an arm that leaves the top of the head and immediately bends down toward the bottom — that's a stress point, and stress points are where wire fails after a hundred fish.

So: pinch the arm about an inch off the head, and bend it away from the head. Straight out of the head, then flared. Do all five.

Work them out to roughly their final position first, get the whole spread laid out in the directions you want, and only then commit to the final bend. Don't send them all the way out on the first pass — go in stages and check the spread from the front.

Kicker PK-Rig umbrella rig I'm Saury collapsed — A finished spread. If it looks a little too wide on the bench, it's about right.

Bend them out further than looks right. Once you hang five weighted baits on those arms, the arms flex inward under load. A rig that looks perfect on the bench collapses in the water. Close to 90 degrees off the head is not too far.

Take your time here. Two minutes on the bench saves you a rig.

Step 2: Weight it like a keel

Here's the part that separates a rig that swims from a rig that helicopters.

Run your two heaviest heads on the bottom two arms. With PK-5s on all five, a setup that works is 1/2 oz on the bottom two arms and 1/4 oz on the top three — we run Warbaits Neck Breaker Swing Heads for this. The swinging hook gives the bait freedom to move independently of the head, which is what you want when five baits are tracking together and you need each one to look alive rather than dragged.

Warbaits Neck Breaker swing head jig used on the bottom arms of an umbrella rig — Warbaits Neck Breaker swing head — the swinging hook lets the bait move independently of the weight.

The reason for the split is keel effect. Weight low means the rig has a bottom, and a rig with a bottom lands the same way every cast and tracks the same way on every retrieve. Even weight across all five arms gives the rig no reason to stay oriented — it rolls, it spins, and a spinning A-rig looks like nothing that lives in the ocean. It also twists your line.

If your rig comes to you already rigged, this still matters the moment you re-rig it. Check the head weights before you cast, not after your line is a corkscrew.

Step 3: Match bait size to what's actually in the water

Five baits is a school. A school of the wrong-size bait is still the wrong bait.

Kicker Pickle Kick paddle-tail swimbaits used on umbrella rig arms — Kicker Pickle Kick paddle tails — the profile does the work, so size it to the bait you're seeing.

Open water, boiler rocks, Catalina and the outer islands — the Kicker Pickle Kick PK-5 is the workhorse. It's the size most calico bass are eating most of the year, and the paddle has enough kick to move water without fighting the rig.
Harbors, bays, and skinny water where the bait is small — drop to the Kicker Pickle Kick PK-3. Spotted bay bass inside the harbor are keyed on small bait, and a 3" profile keeps the rig honest. It also lightens the whole package, which matters on a lighter setup.
When you want the rig to look like a bigger meal — the Kicker Pickle Kick PK-7 builds a larger school. Heavier to throw, but it changes what the rig calls up.

Kicker Booty Spin blade-tail swimbait for dirty-water umbrella rig arms — Kicker Booty Spin — same body, spinning blade instead of a paddle tail.

If you want flash and vibration instead of a pure paddle profile, the Kicker Booty Spin swaps the tail for a spinning blade on the same body — worth a couple of arms on a dirty-water day.

Step 4: Quick clips are the reason you only need one rig

The Kicker PK-Rig comes with quick clips on the arms, and that's not a small detail — it's what makes the rig practical.

Kicker Quick Clips black steel clips on umbrella rig arms for swapping swimbaits — Quick clips let you change the whole school without ever touching the wire.

Calicos today, spotties tomorrow, and you're not building a second rig. Clip the baits off, clip new ones on, and the arms never get touched. Every time you re-tie or re-thread an arm, you're working the wire. Clips mean you set the arms once and leave them alone for a season.

Keep spares. Kicker Quick Clips come in 25, 50, 75, and 125 lb black steel — the heavier sizes are what you want on a rig this size.

Step 5: The keeper

Nobody teaches this one and everybody needs it.

You hook the rig on the keeper, put the rod in the holder, and the boat runs to the next spot. Wakes, swell, wind chop — that rig is bouncing the whole way, and five arms of hooks will find every other rod in the rack. You get to the next spot and spend five minutes untangling instead of casting.

Fix: grab all five baits at the bottom of the rig, gather them together, and use a rod strap or bungee on the whole rig. Don't worry about bending the arms — they're set, they'll hold. The baits stay contained, the rig stays clean, and you grab the rod and cast at the next stop.

Quick reference: umbrella rig setup by situation

Where you're fishing	Bait size	Head weight	Notes
Boiler rocks / outer islands	PK-5	1/2 oz bottom two, 1/4 oz top three	Standard calico setup
Harbor, bay, small bait	PK-3	1/4 oz throughout, or 1/2 oz on the bottom pair	Spotties keyed on small profiles
Bigger presentation	PK-7	3/4 oz bottom two, 1/2 oz top three	Heavier rod required
Deeper water / current	PK-5	1 oz bottom two, 1/2 oz top three	Gets the school down and keeps it tracking
Dirty water	Mix in Booty Spin	Same keel principle	Blade adds flash and vibration

Umbrella rig FAQ

How far should you bend the arms on an umbrella rig?

Close to 90 degrees off the head. It looks like too much on the bench, but the arms flex inward once five weighted baits are on them, so a rig bent conservatively will collapse in on itself in the water.

What jig head weight should I use on an A-rig?

Two heavier heads on the bottom two arms, lighter on the top three. With 5" swimbaits, 1/2 oz on the bottom pair and 1/4 oz on the other three is a solid starting point. Go heavier across the board for deeper water or current — 1 oz bottom, 1/2 oz top — but keep the ratio. The point is keel effect, not the exact numbers.

Why use a swing head instead of a fixed jig head?

A swing head lets the bait pivot independently of the head. On a rig where five baits are moving together at the same speed, that independent motion is what keeps each bait looking like it's swimming rather than being towed.

Why does my umbrella rig spin on the retrieve?

Almost always even weight distribution. If every arm carries the same head, the rig has no bottom and nothing holding its orientation. Move your heaviest heads to the bottom two arms.

Can you fish an umbrella rig with 3-inch swimbaits?

Yes, and inside harbors and bays it's often better. When the bait in the water is small, a 3" profile on all five arms matches what fish are eating and lightens the rig enough to throw on a more reasonable setup.

How do you keep an A-rig from tangling your other rods?

Gather all five baits at the bottom and use a rod strap or bungee on the rig before you set it in the holder. Contained rig, no tangles, ready to cast at the next spot.

Do I need to re-bend a rig that came pre-rigged?

Check it before you fish it. Confirm the arms exit the head straight, confirm the spread is wide enough, and confirm your heaviest heads are on the bottom two arms. Shipping and storage move arms.

Are umbrella rigs legal where I fish?

Hook and lure restrictions vary by state and by individual water body, and multi-hook rigs are specifically regulated in a number of places. Check your current state regulations for the water you're fishing before you throw one.

Gear for this umbrella rig setup

Kicker PK-Rig Umbrella Rig — five-arm rig with quick clips, available in EnlightenMint and I'm Saury
Warbaits Neck Breaker Swing Head — 1/4 oz for your top three arms, 1/2 oz for the bottom pair
Kicker Pickle Kick PK-5 — the standard calico and open-water profile
Kicker Pickle Kick PK-3 — harbor, bay, and small-bait situations
Kicker Pickle Kick PK-7 — larger profile for a bigger school
Kicker Booty Spin — blade-tail version of the same body
Kicker Quick Clips 12pk — 25, 50, 75, and 125 lb black steel

Umbrella rigs are one of those things that are easy to get 80% right and hard to get all the way right. If you're setting one up for the first time and you want a second set of eyes on the arm bend or the head weights, bring it into the shop in Santa Clarita — we'd rather spend ten minutes with you at the counter than have you find out on the water. And if you're ordering online, we're happy to talk through your setup before you buy.

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