Kalin’s Pendu Jig Review

A few years back, the Kalin’s Pendu Jig hit the market.

As someone who frequently fishes with jig heads, I remember being immediately intrigued by the prospect of being able to add more action to my presentations.

Recently, I put these jigs to the test. Here’s what I learned:

How it Works

Quoting straight from the Acme Tackle website, the Kalin’s Pendu Jig has a ” free swinging hook that acts like a pendulum, you can fish your favorite plastics and give them an incredible tail whipping action that is irresistible to all species of gamefish.”

The Test

I rigged two rods: one with a standard ounce jig head and one with a Kalin’s Pendu Jig in the same size.

On several occasions, I brought both rods to a variety of river and lake spots and took turns fishing with each setup.

I tipped each jig head with a variety of plastic baits including grubs and minnows and compared the number of bites and fish caught.

At the end of the testing, the two options performed nearly identically. There was no significant difference in the number of bites or fish caught, nor in the size or variety of species of fish.

The Perks

The action from that free-swinging hook comes as advertised. Every bait I put on this jig head moved through the water beautifully. It adds a realistic, subtle action to the baits without sacrificing the intended action that was built-in to their original designs. In highly pressured water, this can be a real benefit.

The Drawbacks

Functionally, I can’t find any negatives. This bait does exactly what its creators say it will do.

However, I struggle with the price. A two-pack of 1/8-ounce Pendu Jigs is $6.99 on the Acme website. For reference, a 10-pack of standard jig heads costs about $3.50. On a per unit basis, that’s 10 times the cost.

The Ruling

I know we’re only talking a handful of dollars but, I find the price to be a real bummer. If something is going to be 10 times more expensive than the alternative, I want 10 times the performance. Frankly, I just don’t see that here.

That said, I certainly think there is a time and place for the Kalin’s Pendu Jig. This is something I will go to when I need a little bit of an edge, whether I’m fishing highly pressured water or the fish are just tight-lipped.

What I can confidently say is that you know what you are getting with these jig heads. And if you are OK with the cost, it’s worth having a couple on hand.

Plus, if the action these jig heads provide gives you added confidence in your setup, that itself might be worth it.