An interesting Ned bait option, Damiki Hydra

[Cgolf]

I was on instagram a while back and one of the many small companies that advertise their plastics on there had a Ned bait with tube like tentacles with balls on the ends at the head of the bait. Not having an unlimited budget to buy all the crazy cool plastics I see, I realized I had something almost identical, the Damian Hydra. 

 

I reverse rigged the 4” model and it looks really good. Only concern and it is a minor one is will the tentacles impede a hook set. I can’t believe they will though since bass can get to the hook through a weed guard on a bass jig. 

[OCdockskipper]

I bet that would look good in the water, but the lack of any significant gap between the hook point and the thick body would concern me with hooking fish & keeping them stuck.

[Cgolf]

7 minutes ago, OCdockskipper said:

I bet that would look good in the water, but the lack of any significant gap between the hook point and the thick body would concern me with hooking fish & keeping them stuck.

I have to wait till May to try it, but it is a pretty soft body so it should compress nicely. Sadly for a Ned bait with the old school hook sizes that is more gap than I am used to between the bait and hook point. The newer Ned jigs being marketed and sold have larger hooks with bigger gaps. 

[Turkey sandwich]

I dig it, but my only concern is also the hook size.  Can you maybe find a finesse football head to roll that around on?  The ones I've seen at least generally have larger hooks.

[Cgolf]

4 hours ago, Turkey sandwich said:

I dig it, but my only concern is also the hook size.  Can you maybe find a finesse football head to roll that around on?  The ones I've seen at least generally have larger hooks.

My first attempt will be with a Ned head, which will allow one hook size larger, that is a #2 and I have some morels with a #1 hook I could try.

 

Since I am all in and bought 3 more bags from the TW classic sale, if the hookup rate isn’t good, I have some jigs with 1/0 and 2/0 hooks that I can and will use, but it will be a jigworm then, not a Ned. 

[NYWayfarer]

Looks a lot like the Biwaa Patate with some tentacles added on.

 

I share your concern over the tentacles and the exposed hook. I predict you will be unhooking tentacles that get stuck on it after every cast. Sorry for the pessimistic review.

[Cgolf]

43 minutes ago, NYWayfarer said:

Looks a lot like the Biwaa Patate with some tentacles added on.

 

I share your concern over the tentacles and the exposed hook. I predict you will be unhooking tentacles that get stuck on it after every cast. Sorry for the pessimistic review.

That is one concern, but I could just trim two or three of the tentacles off the top which would likely remedy the situation. Will be interesting to see how it works.

[J Francho]

I rig them like this on a light Bite Me shaky head jig.  The hook is plenty big enough.

[Cgolf]

42 minutes ago, J Francho said:

I rig them like this on a light Bite Me shaky head jig.  The hook is plenty big enough.

How does it work? I have some mushroom heads with bigger hooks I can rig them on. I like how the tentacles float when in the water on this bait, worked well as a drop shot bait for me in the past.

[J Francho]

I've been popping all kinds of plastics on a jighead since my grandfather taught me how to rig what he called a "jigworm."  This was before I knew anything about a Texas Rig.  They work.  The shaky head hooks are nice with thicker body baits because of the bigger hooks and the bait holder.  Just because they were designed to be rigged weedless doesn't mean you have to use them that way.

[JustJames]

Instead of Damiki hydra, you might try Yamamoto Hula grub instead, smaller body with add twin tail.

[lo n slo]

7 hours ago, J Francho said:

I rig them like this on a light Bite Me shaky head jig.  The hook is plenty big enough.

nice, i like the Dirty Jigs magnum stand up jig

[fishwizzard]

13 hours ago, cgolf said:

 

Since I am all in and bought 3 more bags from the TW classic sale, if the hookup rate isn’t good, I have some jigs with 1/0 and 2/0 hooks that I can and will use, but it will be a jigworm then, not a Ned. 

I bought a bag of the tiny ones and fished them like a fat ika, but with a 2/0 twist lock hook and on a ml/f spinning rod.  It worked well enough and was a good "heavy" option for creek fishing.