Experiment A Success

[Darren.]

A little something I learned here at bassresource was to gain confidence in a bait, hit the water with nothing but that bait and fish it.

So I did this yesterday. I took a bag of nothing but Bass Pro Stik-o worms out to one of my favorite reservoirs and fished 2 colors predominately.

Now I normally would use only my Zoom Finesse or Yamamoto Senkos and would try a Stik-o on occasion. I just couldn't get the same results.

Used only spinning gear, and fished wacky and TX. Wacky was most successful, and the Pepper Frog/Hot Orange color (4.25") was the hot color.

Caught 6 bass with one wee laddie, one around 1lb, the rest 1.5 and up, largest being between 2.5 and 2.75 lbs. Not beasts, but successful nonetheless in the short time I was on the water.

Just the beginning of the experiment. Planning to do so a few more times to continue building confidence in the "cheaper" alternative. Will be much easier on my wallet, that's for sure, but I'll still keep Yammies on hand.

So thanks and kudos to all those here who've suggested this method to gain confidence in a bait. I've shied away from ever trying it out of not wanting to be skunked. Yesterday I was willing to get skunked...sort of...to make this work.

[shimmy]

I always think this is such a sound experiment. It is just so hard to do, especially when you don't get to go out that much. For me, i'd have a hard time letting go of GY though. Just can't do it. Have absolutely no idea if it is better than the others, but i just have too much confidence in that brand. This technique has taught me to finally utilize crankbaits as a main way of fishing. Still have to make the jump to swimbaiting. That will be a hard jump. I love that color of a senko you got there.

[LgMouthGambler]

Sometimes the more expensive baits dont produce much better in my opinion. I use a lot of Bass Pro baits, Zoom baits, Rage, Charlies, etc. I think each company has some baits that they make better than others.

[Darren.]

Day 2 of the "experiment" was another success. But today was using ONLY the Pepper Frog/Hot Orange color. Caught a number of bass up to a lost-at-the-boat ~4-5-6 lber (estimated). She took me for a lot of dives before twisting at the side as I was netting her...twisted enough to dislodge the hook. Great sadness ensued.

Overall a very good experiment, tho only 2 days in. I plan to continue conducting it for a few more outings as my confidence level rises in the BPS stik-o's.

Agree with you, LgMouthGambler, that some baits made are better than others.

An obvious flaw I find with BPS Stik-Os is consistency. Senkos are by FAR more consistent in quality and coloration.

Case in point with the color I'm using, I have to hunt thru the bag to find a "true" laminate with one side orange and the other side green. A good number in the bag are mixed with spots of orange, but not the length of the worm in orange. Attached pic is of 4 worms pulled out of the bag to demonstrate the inconsistency.

You can see the fourth worm from the left is almost all green. I purposefully put the orange side UP on each worm. That WAS the orange side of that worm. So a really bad job done at the factory... So while I am gaining confidence in BPS worms, I'm not a fan of the inconsistent coloration....

[StinkyBass]

DARRENM: i think you hit the nail on the head about the color inconsistency i find that STIK-O's are better colored in more solid patterns such as watermelon magic or black/blue fleck etc. where they really seem to "pay off" is their durability. they seem to last longer than the Yammies. just my thoughts...

[Tuckahoe Joe]

DARRENM: i think you hit the nail on the head about the color inconsistency i find that STIK-O's are better colored in more solid patterns such as watermelon magic or black/blue fleck etc. where they really seem to "pay off" is their durability. they seem to last longer than the Yammies. just my thoughts...

I agree with you about the durabiltiy. Yamamoto brand senkos seem to tear really easily. Haven't fished STIK-O's but I bought a bag of YUM dingers and they are much more durable then the yammies.

Glad to hear your experiment is working out for you darren.

[West Coast Bass]

strike king shim-e-stick are the closest i have found to senkos producing fish. watermelon black flake is my confidence color and have caught some big fish on using these with a wacky hook. love it.

[Marty]

So while I am gaining confidence in BPS worms, I'm not a fan of the inconsistent coloration....

I've never fished a Stik-O; in fact, I've never seen one. It is true that quality control is lacking. That said, I think the color inconsistency affects the fisherman more than the fish.