Owner is a premium brand that makes exceptional hooks and if I could afford to buy Owner for every hook I use, I would. The products are exceptional and that’s why every brand in the world will proudly display a sticker on a packet of lures letting you know they are fitted with Owner hooks. So when I learned Owner had released a range of squid jigs I was keen to get my hands on them. The premise behind Draw 4 and the name is that they offer four features: two action styles (dart and hop) and two sink styles (fall and slide).
Aesthetics & Features
The Draw 4 is a thin jig with shallow features across the body. A flat top section and a flat belly are all attributes of a jig that should dart and sink with stability. It’s fitted with a battle axe-style sinker designed to prevent the jig getting stuck in weed, though we couldn’t really ascertain how well this worked. We didn’t lose any to weed, but then we didn’t lose many of the other jigs to weed. The colours have without doubt been designed by an experienced and knowledgeable squid angler who has found a balance between effective colour and tackle store shelf appeal. The Draw 4 jigs exhibit great contrast, flash and well-designed patterns that our collective experience agreed would be highly effective, before we even got them in the water. Of the five 3.0 size jigs we were sent, there was a good range to cover all conditions with UV, gold foil, rainbow foil and a very cool marbled rainbow base that was original and effective. However, there were two standouts that were dramatically effective on multiple days and in various conditions. One was number 13 Gold UV, a gold base covered in a light-green cloth with darker green bands and gold glitter paint accents, and number 23 Oil UV, a dark mottled cloth on a UV rainbow foil. Both these jigs were exceptional, and they will be part of my tackle tray going forward.
Action & Effect
Aside from the effective colours, the reason why the Draw 4 jigs are so good is the way they fall. At 15 grams at 3.0 they’re the perfect weight for a nice steady sink on shallow depths of 3-6 metres and extremely stable thanks to the flat bottom section. Many squid were taken on the drop on the first cast and my five-year-old son managed to catch many with them just by setting the rod in the rod holder and waiting for the hook-up. On the retrieve you can easily achieve a great darting action with big fast lifts or a hopping action with faster sharp jerks. They move through the water very nicely and bring squid in from a distance. They are a very good jig.
Build Quality
Owner, like most companies, has used two cloths: an open weave that allows the under-foils and paints to show through, and a tighter, more durable cloth. The open weave is a good-quality cloth that caught a lot of squid before it really started to tear, and the tighter weave can take a real beating. The sinker is double-pinned, which is rare on a sinker of this size or on 3.0 size jigs – it goes to show Owner is really trying to build a durable jig. The feathers are long and of great quality and pinned in very securely. The eyes are set well into the head so won’t be falling off, even if you bash them around on the rocks. You’ll note in the advertising material that the jigs feature Owner’s premium super-sharp hooks with the open crown and black sheaths; however, the export models we have here in Australia feature a different model hook of lesser quality but it’s still a good hook.
