Senko durability

[KentuckyFriedAngler]

I've been fishing with senkos a lot lately and really am loving them and my favorite rig so far is weightless Texas rig. This is about my senkos but applies to any Texas rig. When you skin hook the bait for a seedless set up, pretty much after the first bite the hook rips through and I can't get it back into the now roped bait. I might be doing something wrong but how can I make these baits last longer because a pack of senkos are decently expensive and my favorite color of anything around here is chartreuse and I have to drive an hour to buy chartreuse senkos, Thank ya'll for the help!

[EvanT123]

Rotate the worm and re-hook works some and so does bitting a little off the top. Screw lock hooks might help too. 

[BareHook]

I haven't tried it but what about melting the rip with a lighter to re-seal it for a fresh skin hook?

I've experienced the same thing and do the following in order as the worm wears-out

1. re-hook deeper under skin

2. rotate and re-hook

3. trim off tip 1/4" and re-hook

4. deeper skin hook

5. rotate and hook

6. Discard and replace

 

[SWVABass]

I would say if you can't make any other style stick bait work for you invest in a mold and injector. As you wear out bait save them, melt , and pour. Might save a lil bit. There are a couple sites where you can find Yamamoto senkos for cheap but you got to be on top of it the good colors sell fast.

[stk44]

I've found that if you get a EWG hook that has a longer shank before the offset occurs, this will help keep the upper portion of the senko intact a bit longer.

If you keep snagging and the senko starts to wear out, you can do that quarter turn thing like others have suggested, but if you catch fish, it's just not going to last. I would recommend finding a few colors you like, then buying them in bulk when they go on sale. You can always try the knock-offs which work well, but they typically don't seem to be saturated with as much salt as a senko- which isn't necessarily a bad thing either. 

 

[Catt]

You have a choice to make!

You can have lures in your tackle box or you can have bass in your livewell... You can not have both!

One given when fishing plastics is ya gonna tear em up!

We try to minimize the number of plastics we tear up but we accept the fact they will get torn up.

[iiTzChunky]

Personally I've been just buying packs of senkos when every I run out and keeping all my ripped bad ones in a zip lock. When winter rolls around I'll make a mold of a Senko and melt down my ripped ones and repour them myself and I hopefully won't be needing to buy packs of senkos for a while again. 

[NYWayfarer]

I go through Senkos faster than any other bait, except maybe Strike King dreamshots. The only way I know to make them last longer is to wacky rig them with an O ring.

When I do texas rig them they don't last long so I carry ziplock baggies with me to save the tattered ones. I then cut them in half to use on drop shot and ned rigs.

[Oklahoma Mike]

Since I began using the Owner Twistlock hooks, I find I get a lot more mileage out of a Senko. I also throw all the torn up ones in a bag and take them back home at the end of the day and repair the ones I can with Mend-It.

[Glenn]

3 hours ago, BareHook said:

I haven't tried it but what about melting the rip with a lighter to re-seal it for a fresh skin hook?

I've experienced the same thing and do the following in order as the worm wears-out

1. re-hook deeper under skin

2. rotate and re-hook

3. trim off tip 1/4" and re-hook

4. deeper skin hook

5. rotate and hook

6. Discard and replace

 

^^ This ^^

I would only add that I'll also flip the bait around, cut off the tip, and start over again with the other end.  With this method, usually a fish will rip the bait apart long before I "use up" the bait.

Good luck!

[CavScoutA21]

I keep all my old senkos I used with a T-rig then use them on a Wacky rig.  I cuss more when I lose one of them more than when I lose a fish!  

[Bob C]

I catch about 4 fish (sometimes less) and it's junk. I relocate the hook, swap ends then wacky rig it. I hate them but they work so good I keep buying more.

[Team9nine]

"Senko" "durability" - two words  in the English language that should never be used together  I believe they're called 'oxymorons.' BareHook listed the options...

-T9

 

[ClackerBuzz]

11 hours ago, Oklahoma Mike said:

Since I began using the Owner Twistlock hooks, I find I get a lot more mileage out of a Senko. I also throw all the torn up ones in a bag and take them back home at the end of the day and repair the ones I can with Mend-It.

bam.  this is step #1

step #2: get over this celestial belief in a rubber worm. go fish the bleep out of knock off worms till you're the man:  when you are catching bass on senkos put them away and hook on a generic, marvel as you continue to catch bass.  when bass aren't biting a senko take it off and hook on a generic, marvel when they won't bite that either.  

step #3: give away all ur leftover packs of senkos to ur buddies and tell them you don't need them anymore b/c you've switched to generics.  watch as they gaze at you like a god

[IndianaFinesse]

5 hours ago, Team9nine said:

"Senko" "durability" - two words  in the English language that should never be used together  I believe they're called 'oxymorons.' BareHook listed the options...

-T9

 

This.  GCYB senkos are so darn fragile and expensive that I only use them in tournaments, otherwise I just use a knock off like a dinger.  I usually only get one or maybe two fish per senko, but one way to save senkos is after the tip gets torn up (if you're lucky enough to still have the senko attached to your hook) from t-rigging, wacky rig them so you might be able to get another fish out of it.

[JustJames]

12 hours ago, BareHook said:

I haven't tried it but what about melting the rip with a lighter to re-seal it for a fresh skin hook?

I've experienced the same thing and do the following in order as the worm wears-out

1. re-hook deeper under skin

2. rotate and re-hook

3. trim off tip 1/4" and re-hook

4. deeper skin hook

5. rotate and hook

6. Discard and replace

 

Can i add one more maybe #5.5 . Use the damage senko for wacky rig with either o-ring or heated shrink tube.

I do this to all my plastic. Either trim deeper hook and then change hook style. I even show my friend which he throw away senko after it unhookable I kept those and still catch a couple more fish. Now he never throw away those expensive senko.

[Jaderose]

All of the above, with the exception of Yum Dingers.  They just don't do it for me.  Not saying they're bad baits, I just never catch anythign on them when I Texas rig them like a Senko.  They just aren't as heavy .  I have had good luck with Stik-o's and I definitely need to try the Sassy sticks.  Senko's are like crack.  Yeah, they'll kill you but it feels so good!  Lol  

[fishwizzard]

I don't mind if they wear fast if I am catching on them, but it drives me nuts to have to retire one that wore out just being cast and retrieved.  

I do save broken ones to repair with Mendit, I found that turning a rip into a clean cut with a razor really helps the stuff make a good bond.  I also save badly damaged ones that are >4' to nose hook and throw them when fishing in small rivers.  

[KentuckyFriedAngler]

Thank you for all the help and none of the baits feel the same as a real senko but I like the field and stream brand stick baits. I think I'll just buy senkos to fill a box then just keep those for tournaments when I get my boat together and then get a box of the 2 dollar ones that are my second favorite.

[tcbass]

Cabelas version of the Senko, the Go-To Stickbait has a built in O-Ring that might help you with durability. 

I know you want T-Rig for weedlessness, but if you want to try wacky rig, I use a rubber tube that helps Senkos last much longer. Like 7-8 trips and many bass with no loss of Senko sometimes. You might want to try it out. 

[Torn Thumb]

22 hours ago, Bunnielab said:

I do save broken ones to repair with Mendit, I found that turning a rip into a clean cut with a razor really helps the stuff make a good bond. 

Do you slice it into two pieces or just trim off the jagged parts?

[ClackerBuzz]

 

[fishwizzard]

36 minutes ago, Torn Thumb said:

Do you slice it into two pieces or just trim off the jagged parts?

I generally cut the worm at the point of the rip.  I find that to repair a torn middle a maybe 3/4" diagonal cut gives a good bond and to repair a torn nose, a cut maybe 1/16" past the tear works well.  I also have a plastic bait tray from a pack of Keitech stick baits that I use as a splint/cradle to hold the senkos while the glue does it's thing.  

[Torn Thumb]

I don't follow. Dense as lead. So do you cut it into 2 separate pieces or just make more easily mendable halves ??

[fishwizzard]

All my used senkos are in the car currently, so here is an old hawg, but the idea is the same. 

For nose damage, I split the nose inline with the direction of the tare. 

For damage in the middle of the bait, I will make a clean diagonal cut to let the glue work on a greater surface area.  

You need to find some way to support the cut while the glue sets for the long cuts.  The worm will not be as strong as new but seems to last for a few dozen casts or a fish or two.  I keep my used and repaired senkos in a small pencil case tucked in my tackle bag.  They get used for skipping or throwing into snaggy looking cover.