Never Neko rigged. Any advice?

[Luke Barnes]

Well, ive never Neko or wacky rigged. I dont really know why, except I'm not the best at detecting bites while bottom fishing.

 

I'm interested in throwing a Neko rig though. First off whats the ideal rod/reel setup? I'm confident enough to fish it on a baitcaster, I cast weightless Flukes so a stick bait is good with me to cast. Second, I'm interested in weedless rigging. I saw a Mike Iaconelli video about him doing it and call it the chicken rig. I have some eagle claw hooks with metal weed guards I got to wacky rig, but havent used them. Third do common screws work for weights or do I really need to buy the over priced Neko weights?

 

Thanks for any help!

[Luke Barnes]

People must think I'm trolling. But ive seriously never thrown a Neko rig. Honestly not a big fan of stick baits. But I'm wanting to try. A 6'6 M casting setup suitable for it?

[plawren53202]

I haven't used a Neko rig much, but I throw a wacky worm almost every time out on ponds. So I'll give you a couple of my observations about that, which I think will transfer to a Neko rig too.

 

Maybe it's because of my specific application of a wacky rig, but I would never throw it on a baitcaster. Mine is always on my 7'0" ML spinning (10# braid/6# copolymer leader) or 7'0" M spinning (15# braid/8# leader). That's not to say a bigger worm with a nail weight couldn't work on a baitcaster, just for me the wacky rig is far to the finesse side of the bait spectrum so I always use a spinning rod with it.

 

4" Yum Dingers are my usual wacky rig bait. If I'm fishing somewhere with bigger fish I'll bump up to the 5", but most of the places I usually fish are highly pressured public ponds (i.e., Dink City) so the 4" works much better for that.

 

For weedless rigging, I tried a variety of hooks with the wire weedguards (like the VMC Ike Approved Weedless Wacky and a Mustad wide gap weedless wacky). Seemed like I was missing a lot of hookups on bites. I finally switched over to the VMC Neko Finesse hook and my hookup ratio improved dramatically. If I'm going to be fishing weeds that are too heavy for this setup, then I just switch to a weightless Texas rig.

 

USE THE O RINGS. Get an O ring tool and a bunch of O rings. Prior to using the O rings I was very lucky to get 2 fish per worm, and often they would pull it free from the hook without getting hooked. Two nights ago I caught 6 fish on the same worm using an O ring. 

 

For the nail weights, I have been getting the Eagle Claw lead nail weights. I want to say they are $1.29 or something like that at my local store. 

 

 

[Fishin' Fool]

I bought all the stuff for the Neko rig. My advice would be to Ned rig

[Luke Barnes]

11 hours ago, plawren53202 said:

I haven't used a Neko rig much, but I throw a wacky worm almost every time out on ponds. So I'll give you a couple of my observations about that, which I think will transfer to a Neko rig too.

 

Maybe it's because of my specific application of a wacky rig, but I would never throw it on a baitcaster. Mine is always on my 7'0" ML spinning (10# braid/6# copolymer leader) or 7'0" M spinning (15# braid/8# leader). That's not to say a bigger worm with a nail weight couldn't work on a baitcaster, just for me the wacky rig is far to the finesse side of the bait spectrum so I always use a spinning rod with it.

 

4" Yum Dingers are my usual wacky rig bait. If I'm fishing somewhere with bigger fish I'll bump up to the 5", but most of the places I usually fish are highly pressured public ponds (i.e., Dink City) so the 4" works much better for that.

 

For weedless rigging, I tried a variety of hooks with the wire weedguards (like the VMC Ike Approved Weedless Wacky and a Mustad wide gap weedless wacky). Seemed like I was missing a lot of hookups on bites. I finally switched over to the VMC Neko Finesse hook and my hookup ratio improved dramatically. If I'm going to be fishing weeds that are too heavy for this setup, then I just switch to a weightless Texas rig.

 

USE THE O RINGS. Get an O ring tool and a bunch of O rings. Prior to using the O rings I was very lucky to get 2 fish per worm, and often they would pull it free from the hook without getting hooked. Two nights ago I caught 6 fish on the same worm using an O ring. 

 

For the nail weights, I have been getting the Eagle Claw lead nail weights. I want to say they are $1.29 or something like that at my local store. 

 

 

If I was weightless wacky fishing I would use spinning for sure. But I figured with the weight it should be ok on a baitcaster. Ill play around with it. Ive got O rings and a tool, just never used it haha. Ive heard others say the "weedless" hooks really hamper the hook up and you confirmed it so I'll try open hook. I have some Mustad Neko hooks I'll try over the eagle claw with the wire weed guard. 

1 hour ago, Fishin' Fool said:

I bought all the stuff for the Neko rig. My advice would be to Ned rig

I have a combo dedicated to the Ned that never gets anything else tied on it!!

[JustJames]

It is not about casting with Neko Rig but more like presentation. I fish Neko/Wacky rig all the time with baitcaster caught plenty of fish but Spinning is way better when you wanna present the worm in slow pace for both neko/wacky. The difference for me between both is Neko rig can cover water faster and deeper than wacky rig, and in the meantime can present as slow as wacky rig if (choosing the right worm). Another benefit of Neko Rig is you can choose different type worm, craw (my favorite Baby brush hog or Zmanz stuffs) but not so much on wacky rig. Mean time Wacky rig advantage is fishing in grassy area or mud bottom.

Weight if you can find heavy enough screw to match your style it should work. You gonna loose a lot of that so cheaper is better. I use mostly 1/16-1/8oz.

I use weedless hook sometime (for snagging purposes) but I don’t usually fish Neko rig around weed area. I found the long shank VMC Neko hook, I use Mustad Titan, work well with both techniques and can improve hookup percentages. I’m gonna try VMC soon, I’m not sure but I think Mustad use heavier wire, and somehow I have problem bass stay hooked with weedless on my spinning.

 

[stk44]

The most important thing is a well-balanced and lightweight rod, typically a medium light for me. Remember, you are constantly twitching your rod to keep the bait ticking the bottom. Most times I do not feel the bite, the fish is just there on the fall or when you pop it off the bottom. 
 

I use 10 lb braid with an 8 lb flourocarbon leader. I don’t use weedless hooks and I use 4” yumdingers often, with various size twist nails which work perfectly in dingers, senkos, etc. This is a really easy rig to fish, so don’t overthink it. 
 

p.s. - if you use an o-ring with the yumdingers, you can potentially get 20+ fish on the same worm, just keep rotating the bait. 

[WRB]

I referenced another thread apparently will not be read.

Neko is a resurrection of a very old nail rigged worm that I have been using since the the 70's. 

Like a Senko a nail weighted worm sinks with a slight waggle straight down and lands on the bottom with the worm standing up then slowly tipping over. Bass strike about 90% of the time on the fall or within a few feet where it landed. Working any further is usually wasting time.

The more modern version use Stick worms but any straight worm works. The key to this rig is a flat end worm nose. Cut off about 1/4 of the worm nose so it's flat. Insert a 1/16-3/32 oz nail weight into the flat end.The hook I prefer is Owners 5172 weedless wacky hook size 1/0 or 2/0 depending on worm diameter, about 1 1/2" back of the worm nose. Using a o-ring or tubing saves worms and weights. I use 5 lb Max Ultra Green Copoly or 7 lb Sniper FC depending on water depth. Spinning works good as you open the bail and let the worm swim straight down.

Hand poured worms tend to softer and swim better plus float upright.

Tom

 

[JustJames]

4 hours ago, WRB said:

 Bass strike about 90% of the time on the fall or within a few feet where it landed. Working any further is usually wasting time.

 

That is a little bit too extreme comment, don’t you think. It might apply to those fishing structures, target cover, but as bank fishermen I found it not 100% true. Bass close to shore in shallow water they trend to roaming around looking for bait fish especially around weed area. I see them all the time going left and right in wolf pack sometime a feet from shore and most time around weed edge. For those structures fishing, blind casting is a waste but for us shore fishing we have no choice but to work the whole shoreline looking for those bass.

[kayaking_kev]

The Neko Rig is my go to bait, especially in the Summer. I'm too impatient for a regular Wacky Rig, so I just stick a nail weight in the end and short hop it off the bottom to make it look like it's feeding. I use a 5" Yum Dinger most of the time, but I will use any 5" Stick Bait, and I use an O-Ring with the hook facing the opposite direction of the nail weight and it usually hooks then in the the top lip. I buy the Eagle Claw nail weights from Wally World for .88 cents a pack and stock up on them. I've caught 34 Bass on one trip with one worm before using an O-Ring.

 

The hooks are a different story, I've tried all sorts of hooks and haven't really found thee one yet. I caught my P.B. last year with a Neko Rig using a 1/O Circle Hook and have used Circle Hooks quite a bit, but recently went away from them after missing too many hookups. I've tried a few different weedless hooks of different sizes and styles and didn't really like any of them. It's not really a problem when fishing from a kayak, because you can just pull yourself over and get unstuck, but I use it while bank fishing a lot also and still fish exposed hooks. The lightness of the Eagle Claw nail weights that I use helps a lot from getting snagged, they are only like 3/32 oz & 1/16 oz. Right now, I've been using the Gamukatsu 1/O Octopus hooks, they seem to have a strong barb on them that keep the fish hooked. I was using some wide gap wacky rig hooks and seemed to be losing a high ratio of fish with them, especially the bigger ones.

 

I throw it on both a Medium and Medium Heavy Power Fast Action Baitcaster, but have also thrown it on a Daiwa Tatula Regular action rod and it did a decent job. The 5" worm and nail weight along with my SV or MGL reels enables me to get good distance on the cast.

[Luke Barnes]

5 hours ago, kayaking_kev said:

The Neko Rig is my go to bait, especially in the Summer. I'm too impatient for a regular Wacky Rig, so I just stick a nail weight in the end and short hop it off the bottom to make it look like it's feeding. I use a 5" Yum Dinger most of the time, but I will use any 5" Stick Bait, and I use an O-Ring with the hook facing the opposite direction of the nail weight and it usually hooks then in the the top lip. I buy the Eagle Claw nail weights from Wally World for .88 cents a pack and stock up on them. I've caught 34 Bass on one trip with one worm before using an O-Ring.

 

The hooks are a different story, I've tried all sorts of hooks and haven't really found thee one yet. I caught my P.B. last year with a Neko Rig using a 1/O Circle Hook and have used Circle Hooks quite a bit, but recently went away from them after missing too many hookups. I've tried a few different weedless hooks of different sizes and styles and didn't really like any of them. It's not really a problem when fishing from a kayak, because you can just pull yourself over and get unstuck, but I use it while bank fishing a lot also and still fish exposed hooks. The lightness of the Eagle Claw nail weights that I use helps a lot from getting snagged, they are only like 3/32 oz & 1/16 oz. Right now, I've been using the Gamukatsu 1/O Octopus hooks, they seem to have a strong barb on them that keep the fish hooked. I was using some wide gap wacky rig hooks and seemed to be losing a high ratio of fish with them, especially the bigger ones.

 

I throw it on both a Medium and Medium Heavy Power Fast Action Baitcaster, but have also thrown it on a Daiwa Tatula Regular action rod and it did a decent job. The 5" worm and nail weight along with my SV or MGL reels enables me to get good distance on the cast.

Ive never thought about using circle hooks. Smallest I have is 5/0 but a cool idea. 

[WRB]

10 hours ago, Bass_Fishing_Socal said:

That is a little bit too extreme comment, don’t you think. It might apply to those fishing structures, target cover, but as bank fishermen I found it not 100% true. Bass close to shore in shallow water they trend to roaming around looking for bait fish especially around weed area. I see them all the time going left and right in wolf pack sometime a feet from shore and most time around weed edge. For those structures fishing, blind casting is a waste but for us shore fishing we have no choice but to work the whole shoreline looking for those bass.

Good point. Sometimes I forget about bank anglers and usually ask that question. Nail/Neko rig would be very slow presentation to search for bass bank fishing. Ounce you know the depth and location it's very affective.

I usually recommend the slip shot rig for shore anglers and fan cast the area.

Tom

[JustJames]

Neko can fish fast too, just like you mentioned most bite come from the drop. Instead of twisting along bottom, I would do hard few pops (just like when fish wacky rig) let the worm come up (lift the rod to at least 45 degree) and let it fall on slack line and let it sit a few seconds. Rinse and replete, most bite I got either the first pop or on the fall. But don’t count me on it, I just started fishing Neko this year exclusively. I’m still listening to more experience like you.

[Glenn]

Reams of info here:

https://www.bassresource.com/fishing/fishing-neko-rig.html

https://www.bassresource.com/fishing/neko-rig-advanced.html

https://www.bassresource.com/fishing/fishing-neko-rig-bass.html

 

[Luke Barnes]

51 minutes ago, Bass_Fishing_Socal said:

Neko can fish fast too, just like you mentioned most bite come from the drop. Instead of twisting along bottom, I would do hard few pops (just like when fish wacky rig) let the worm come up (lift the rod to at least 45 degree) and let it fall on slack line and let it sit a few seconds. Rinse and replete, most bite I got either the first pop or on the fall. But don’t count me on it, I just started fishing Neko this year exclusively. I’m still listening to more experience like you.

Ive done that technique with the Ned so I bet it would work great with a bigger more floppy worm. 

6 minutes ago, Glenn said:

Reams of info here:

https://www.bassresource.com/fishing/fishing-neko-rig.html

https://www.bassresource.com/fishing/neko-rig-advanced.html

https://www.bassresource.com/fishing/fishing-neko-rig-bass.html

 

Awesome, thanks Glenn!

[fishwizzard]

I think of the Neko as a "finesseier" and snaggier shakeyhead and fish them both about the same. The Neko I do fish a bit faster and with more hops, they are surprisingly snag-free if I keep them moving, if I let them fall over I tend to lose more of them.  A shakeyhead I will drag around more often and will deadstick longer.  I use the same combo for each and will start with one and move to the other as needed.  As sacrilegious as it sounds, I am starting to like both more then I like t-rigging a worm. 

 

Both are oddly two of the ony presentations I really prefer on a spinning combo, not sure why but they both just feel better somehow. 

 

 

[Luke Barnes]

1 hour ago, fishwizzard said:

I think of the Neko as a "finesseier" and snaggier shakeyhead and fish them both about the same. The Neko I do fish a bit faster and with more hops, they are surprisingly snag-free if I keep them moving, if I let them fall over I tend to lose more of them.  A shakeyhead I will drag around more often and will deadstick longer.  I use the same combo for each and will start with one and move to the other as needed.  As sacrilegious as it sounds, I am starting to like both more then I like t-rigging a worm. 

 

Both are oddly two of the ony presentations I really prefer on a spinning combo, not sure why but they both just feel better somehow. 

 

 

Yeah I could see that. It sounds like my ned rig combo would work well for it, but I have a hard time taking off the Ned!

[Eddie101]

On 7/10/2020 at 9:06 PM, stk44 said:

The most important thing is a well-balanced and lightweight rod, typically a medium light for me. Remember, you are constantly twitching your rod to keep the bait ticking the bottom. Most times I do not feel the bite, the fish is just there on the fall or when you pop it off the bottom. 
 

I use 10 lb braid with an 8 lb flourocarbon leader. I don’t use weedless hooks and I use 4” yumdingers often, with various size twist nails which work perfectly in dingers, senkos, etc. This is a really easy rig to fish, so don’t overthink it. 
 

p.s. - if you use an o-ring with the yumdingers, you can potentially get 20+ fish on the same worm, just keep rotating the bait. 

How long is the leader, and what kind of nail weight do you use? 

[stk44]

29 minutes ago, Eddie101 said:

How long is the leader, and what kind of nail weight do you use? 

I usually use a 6-8 foot leader so that I don’t have to keep replacing leader line. I use brass twist nails, you can get them at homedepot or any hardware store. 

[Eddie101]

3 minutes ago, stk44 said:

I usually use a 6-8 foot leader so that I don’t have to keep replacing leader line. I use brass twist nails, you can get them at homedepot or any hardware store. 

That's great! Any idea how much those nails weigh? How long are they? 

[stk44]

3 minutes ago, Eddie101 said:

That's great! Any idea how much those nails weigh? How long are they? 

I want to say they are roughly an inch. I think I weighed one once and it was under 1/16 oz. 

They are really cheap so I would recommend to buy a few different sizes and experiment. 

[Luke Barnes]

I run about a 6 foot leader for the same reasons. Ive only retied more leader once this year and it was 2 weeks ago so should last me rest of the year. I'm not paying for VMC prices so I planned on going to the hardware store for screws too!

[Eddie101]

On 7/11/2020 at 7:55 PM, stk44 said:

I want to say they are roughly an inch. I think I weighed one once and it was under 1/16 oz. 

They are really cheap so I would recommend to buy a few different sizes and experiment. 

This is the only brass plated twisted nails @HomeDepot, and it weighs practically nothing - 1/40 oz or something like that. Is this what you use? I considered using two nails for each worm, but there isn't enough space on the worm to screw them in. Oh, well, back to the drawing board.

 

[Luke Barnes]

Does brass make a difference? I was going to just some varying sized screws. Was supposed to go to Lowes today but forgot and glad I did because I would have forgotten screws for stick baits!!

[stk44]

On 7/12/2020 at 5:24 PM, Eddie101 said:

This is the only brass plated twisted nails @HomeDepot, and it weighs practically nothing - 1/40 oz or something like that. Is this what you use? I considered using two nails for each worm, but there isn't enough space on the worm to screw them in. Oh, well, back to the drawing board.

 

You can literally use anything, nails, drywall screws, but I like the twist nails. The one I use most is 7/8”. I threw it on the powder scale— it weighs 21.5ish grains aka .05 ounces, which is slightly less than 1/16 oz. 

On 7/12/2020 at 5:34 PM, Luke Barnes said:

Does brass make a difference? I was going to just some varying sized screws. Was supposed to go to Lowes today but forgot and glad I did because I would have forgotten screws for stick baits!!

No brass does not make a difference. If you can find something that doesn’t distort the shape of the plastic and stays snuggly in the nose of the bait, you can use it. Don’t worry if a weights don’t fall cleanly in the 1/32, 1/16, or 1/8 oz category either, it doesn’t matter.