Senko -- raise it all the way to the surface?

[beardown34]

Quick question or two about Senkos (or fill in the blank whatever stick bait you prefer). 

True or false -- the majority of bites occurs on the fall.

If true (which is what seems to be the case based on most people's articles and thread posts), when fishing in shallow-ish water (15-20ft max, like the residential ponds I fish), it is a reasonable strategy to cast, let it slowly fall to the bottom, deadstick for a bit, and then raise/reel it back all the way to the water surface before letting it fall again? I mean all the way back to the surface, not just raising your rod tip from 9 to 12.

I am new to all this, and finesse fishing is agonizingly slow for me, but this would seem like a way to K.I.S.S., as opposed to overworking a worm (shaking, hopping, etc). 

[tbone1993]

Obligatory " Check here first" post  

That being said here is how I fish them most of the time.

Cast with the bail open

Let the bait sink  down

wait to fall

close bail

watch line

pick up a bit of slack

shimmy shake my rod just a bit

pop,pop

sit, shake

reel in

repeat

If at any point the line starts to move or twitch during the fall you probably have one on. 

[beardown34]

thanks tbone -- that's actually the reason this idea came to me. in the first post of the senko FAQ, there's an article titled "Keeping Senkos Simple". the author says this about wacky rigging:

"One of the major differences (at least when I use it) is the addition of a little added movement. Very rarely do I ever allow a Wacky Rigged Senko to hit the bottom. The exposed hook is very easily snagged. Instead, I allow the bait to fall for a number of seconds (which will be determined by water depth), stop it just prior to hitting bottom and then bring the bait back to the surface."

i guess my understanding of how most people seem to fish worms is to cast, let fall, and then impart any variety of maneuvers sub-surface, kinda like what you described. what i'm trying to achieve, is since i've yet to develop much patience for finesse fishing, and if it is true that the fall is where the money is at in terms of getting bites, and since the fall on slack line seems pretty dummy proof (just let it fall!), i was hoping this would be a reasonable way to make finesse fishing more high yield. as you all know, sometimes it just takes building some confidence in a strategy before you are willing to have more patience with it. 

i'm sure your strategy works for you. but look how many different nuances there are to your technique! for a beginner, i'm just wondering if literally just casting, falling, raising, and repeating would work.

 

[bigbill]

Everything said above.

I'.m in 9' of water. I cast it out on a 1/8oz Carolina rig with a 24"   leader with the senko wacky rigged on a eagle claw weedless hook.

It can be presented in different ways.

Cast it out, close the bail and keep the line taunt, watch the tip as it falls for a nibble. Then lift and repeat. Then repeat, ditto till it's near you.

Cast it out, close the bail, watch the line as it falls

Cast it out, close the bail, keep the line taunt, shake n twitch the rod tip to make that senko dance for his life all the way down, repeat. Just about a 2" twitch.

[tbone1993]

1 hour ago, beardown34 said:

thanks tbone -- that's actually the reason this idea came to me. in the first post of the senko FAQ, there's an article titled "Keeping Senkos Simple". the author says this about wacky rigging:

"One of the major differences (at least when I use it) is the addition of a little added movement. Very rarely do I ever allow a Wacky Rigged Senko to hit the bottom. The exposed hook is very easily snagged. Instead, I allow the bait to fall for a number of seconds (which will be determined by water depth), stop it just prior to hitting bottom and then bring the bait back to the surface."

i guess my understanding of how most people seem to fish worms is to cast, let fall, and then impart any variety of maneuvers sub-surface, kinda like what you described. what i'm trying to achieve, is since i've yet to develop much patience for finesse fishing, and if it is true that the fall is where the money is at in terms of getting bites, and since the fall on slack line seems pretty dummy proof (just let it fall!), i was hoping this would be a reasonable way to make finesse fishing more high yield. as you all know, sometimes it just takes building some confidence in a strategy before you are willing to have more patience with it. 

i'm sure your strategy works for you. but look how many different nuances there are to your technique! for a beginner, i'm just wondering if literally just casting, falling, raising, and repeating would work.

 

There are plenty of weedless options of senkos you can even bury the hook. I'm not worried about snagging the bottom. Watch how bass feed in clear water. Plenty of times you'll see them follow a bait down and nose it. That little pop can initiate a strike. I don't even consider it a true finesse technique. I've caught bass on a senko with 15lb test powerfishing weedless.  To give a tl;dr to my approach : Cast, . . . , close bail, wait, repeat.   Insert a pop when you see fit.

http://www.basspro.com/Gamakatsu-Wicked-Wacky-Hooks/product/10210191/

http://www.basspro.com/VMC-Wacky-Weedless-Hooks/product/12060205060033/?cmCat=CROSSSELL_PRODUCT_MTv2

http://www.basspro.com/Gamakatsu-Weedless-Finesse-Wide-Gap-Hook/product/58035/

[Hogsticker]

Close bail.....All these spinning reel fanatics. There is no wrong way to fish a Senko. Let the fish tell you how they want it.

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

If fish are active and I don't get bit on the initial fall I let it sit several seconds, give it a twitch or pop then recast. 

[Jar11591]

13 minutes ago, Delaware Valley Tackle said:

If fish are active and I don't get bit on the initial fall I let it sit several seconds, give it a twitch or pop then recast. 

 

This.

[Lendiesel22]

Try to stay in the range you think the fish are with your movement. I see no reason to pull it all the way up if you are seeing fish in 12 out of 15 ft. I try to stay where i think they are as long as possible. 

[snake95]

20 hours ago, tbone1993 said:

That being said here is how I fish them most of the time.

T-Bone, your description was the single best, most informative piece of writing I've read in my last month on this forum.

(Well, that and a key repair explanation from DVT).

Fishing plastics may be perfectly easy to the guys experienced with it, but that description of the process -- even if it is one of a million potentially effective ways to work it -- is so hard to come by.  Thanks, bud.  I'll fish it that way next time I'm out there with my soft stickbaits.

 

9 hours ago, Delaware Valley Tackle said:

If fish are active and I don't get bit on the initial fall I let it sit several seconds, give it a twitch or pop then recast. 

Also great stuff.  Are you describing your approach only for when you are targeting a specific spot you think might hold fish?  Or, this is how you'd work a whole area of interest, such as a shallow bay or a long weedline?

Do you mean to say that after you make that twitch or pop, you (typically) just crank the bait right back in?

Or,

Do you mean you make repeated twitch+pops/falls, and work it back to the boat or bank?  

If it varies, what factors determine when you vary your approach?

[Darren.]

I'll go so far as to say there is *almost* no
wrong way to fish a senko. Almost  

[beardown34]

Thanks for all the input. Maybe it's because it's still in the 40's up here in Northern Illinois and the bass are sluggish, but man it's hard to sit on the banks and get skunked while waiting for a weightless senko to sink. For giggles I jerked the Senko a couple times and it actually gives a pretty cool action. I know it goes against all the advice about just letting it sink on slack line, but lord that's hard to wait out. 

It's completely backwards thinking, but for some twisted reason I would rather get skunked using a search bait like a chatter or spinnerbait, than a slower finesse presentation.

[flyfisher]

37 minutes ago, Darren. said:

I'll go so far as to say there is *almost* no
wrong way to fish a senko. Almost  

I am not sure if i can come up with a wrong way but there are definitely ways i prefer more than others.

[tbone1993]

1 hour ago, beardown34 said:

Thanks for all the input. Maybe it's because it's still in the 40's up here in Northern Illinois and the bass are sluggish, but man it's hard to sit on the banks and get skunked while waiting for a weightless senko to sink. For giggles I jerked the Senko a couple times and it actually gives a pretty cool action. I know it goes against all the advice about just letting it sink on slack line, but lord that's hard to wait out. 

It's completely backwards thinking, but for some twisted reason I would rather get skunked using a search bait like a chatter or spinnerbait, than a slower finesse presentation.

 I feel your pain. The pond near my house is normally good for at least one dink and a few good bass here and there. I can't seem to get them to bite yet. I know they are deep but I just can't reach the productive water. I didn't want to bust out the shakey head and wacky rig but that's my best bet for monday. These weather patterns are reeking havoc on the fishing. One day the salmon are up close and the next the only way to catch them is on a power line. I'm ready for summer.

[N Florida Mike]

Most of my senko caught fish are caught by reeling in at a slow to moderate speed across the surface.

 

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

3 hours ago, snake95 said:

T-Bone, your description was the single best, most informative piece of writing I've read in my last month on this forum.

(Well, that and a key repair explanation from DVT).

Fishing plastics may be perfectly easy to the guys experienced with it, but that description of the process -- even if it is one of a million potentially effective ways to work it -- is so hard to come by.  Thanks, bud.  I'll fish it that way next time I'm out there with my soft stickbaits.

 

Also great stuff.  Are you describing your approach only for when you are targeting a specific spot you think might hold fish?  Or, this is how you'd work a whole area of interest, such as a shallow bay or a long weedline?

Do you mean to say that after you make that twitch or pop, you (typically) just crank the bait right back in?

Or,

Do you mean you make repeated twitch+pops/falls, and work it back to the boat or bank?  

If it varies, what factors determine when you vary your approach?

I don't use the senko as a search bait really. If the fish are neutral or negative in mood I'll soak and slowly drag a senko around for bites. 

[seyone]

22 hours ago, N Florida Mike said:

Most of my senko caught fish are caught by reeling in at a slow to moderate speed across the surface.

 

i can't say that I have caught most this way, but I have caught a lot like this. The first few times were accidental, just burning the bait back across the surface and bam, gets hit like a topwater bait.

[hawgenvy]

Yes, of course you can bring a Senko up to the top and make a little surface commotion to attract some bass!

In fact, you can twitch a weightless Senko across the surface in a "walk the dog" fashion like you would with a frog or a spook. Sometimes bass blow up on it when you do this. Sometimes they just follow along under it when you walk it, but if you then let it sink for five seconds and then subtly twitch it they might inhale it.

Just about every way to fish a Senko is widely described. But jerking it across the surface is a technique that is not usually mentioned, which is why I'm posting this. But it's easy to walk and it's always worth a shot if they're not eating it when it's down below. It works for me, anyway.

[N Florida Mike]

I should have said that I catch a lot of bass on the retrieve using large senkos.I catch more with the 4 inch just casting out and letting it sink.And I never use any weight with them because they cast great and sink fast.

[Last_Cast]

On 3/19/2016 at 0:10 AM, tbone1993 said:

Obligatory " Check here first" post  

That being said here is how I fish them most of the time.

Cast with the bail open

Let the bait sink  down

wait to fall

close bail

watch line

pick up a bit of slack

shimmy shake my rod just a bit

pop,pop

sit, shake

reel in

repeat

If at any point the line starts to move or twitch during the fall you probably have one on. 

I couldn't have wrote it any better.