fat ikas

[bocabasser]

ok gentleman and ladies, i have been reading nothing but great things about the fat ikas. i just ordered some and i know to rig them upside down, but living in florida i don't know exactly how to work them. i will be fishing them mainly in the everglades, which has lots of pads. any suggestions on how to work this bait will be greatly appreciated. i intend on rigging the ika upside down, with a small 1/32 screw in weight and just dancing it through the pads. will this work? any suggestions? you all are great. can't wait for the responses.

[WhiteMike1018]

If your working it thorugh pads i would first loose the screw in weight.

The fat ika has plenty of weight on its own, and sinks relatively fast. Also if the pads are really thick i would reccomend maybe using a plastic forg or a zoom trick worm.

If the pads arent as thick I would use the ika.

Make sure you rig it backwards on a 5/0 EWG hook.

Let us know how you did.

-WM

[BassFishingMachine]

Yeah I definetly wouldn't add any weight to the Fat Ika, that thing is heavy enough  .

[FatBoy]

Roadwarrior will probably be along soon to give you the real lowdown.  But when you say "dancing it through the pads" that sounds like swimming it to me.  That's not what you want to do.  The magic of the fat ika is the fall.  You want to pitch/flip it into that cover.  Lift and drop, not swimming and reeling.  

[roadwarrior]

Nothing you have in mind is what the lure is designed to do.

A frog or Slug-Go is a much better option for you.

[Lucky Craft Man]

Nothing you have in mind is what the lure is designed to do.

A frog or Slug-Go is a much better option for you.

What is the proper way to work a Fat Ika, RW?  I've tried to fish them similar to a Senko, but  I realized quickly that was wrong (the Ikas fall fast).

[roadwarrior]

I fish them just like a Senko:

Cast parallel to structure or cover and allow the bait to fall to the bottom on slack line. Let it sit for at least 30 seconds, then move the Fat Ika 6"-12" with a slow horizontal sweep, allowing the lure to fall back on slack line. Leave the lure motionless for at least 10-15 seconds between movements. Repeat until you feel you are out of the "zone."

The Fat Ika imitates a crawdad. I think there are much better options fishing on lilly pads.

[Guest avid]

The fat ika is a great lure down here in FLA.  trust me on this.

Our thick grass/weed cover and yes even pads make ideal targets for this bait.

You MUST not use any weight with the ika for the shallow conditions and skirt up rigging.

With the bait rigged skirt up the bait will "swim" down and away.

This is why it is so deadly here in florida.  

Hydrilla mats are ideal but any vegetation is ika country.

Cast directly to the edge of the lilly pads.  Make sure you have a semi slack line.  The bait will go down a couple of feet and under the mat or edge of the pads into the denser middle.  Then it will settle and shimmy down towards bottom.

fish with confidence.  This lure will get em.

good luck and have fun.

avid.

[roadwarrior]

avid,

I can picture just what you are describing. I was thinking about dragging the bait over the tops of the pads and "working it" like a lizard, Slug-Go or frog. My point was that these other profiles work better for that type of presentation.