Strike King Ocho

[roadwarrior]

If you have fished the Ocho, I would like your opinion on the bait.

[NYWayfarer]

I have fished the Ocho, 5”, 4” and the Ocho Ned worm. The 4” is one of my favorite baits for pond Largemouth.

 

They are best wacky rigged and I still use O-rings so they don’t get shaken off the hook. Just don’t leave the o-rings on to long as they react with the plastic in the worm. They have the coffee and salt scent that Strike King uses. I am fond of that scent. 
 

The Ocho is in my top 5 stick baits along with GYBC Senkos, Yum Dingers, Berkley Maxscent the General and BPS Stik-O
 

The Ocho Ned is thicker than your average Ned Worm. I have yet to catch a fish on it. 

[Columbia Craw]

Yes.  It is my go to when wacky rigging with an O-ring. They sink at a very moderate rate and have a shimmy.  I can catch multiple fish on one bait and the CPB is okay.  If i'm pitching texas rigged, the Senko is heavier and out performs the Ocho.  That's my experience.

[Jig Man]

I haven’t personally them but one of the guys who fishes with me has used them 3 times (slow learner).  Each time the Zeros have put a serious butt whuppin on him until he put a Zero on himself.

[ChrisD46]

2 hours ago, NYWayfarer said:

I have fished the Ocho, 5”, 4” and the Ocho Ned worm. The 4” is one of my favorite baits for pond Largemouth.

 

They are best wacky rigged and I still use O-rings so they don’t get shaken off the hook. Just don’t leave the o-rings on to long as they react with the plastic in the worm. They have the coffee and salt scent that Strike King uses. I am fond of that scent. 
 

The Ocho is in my top 5 stick baits along with GYBC Senkos, Yum Dingers, Berkley Maxscent the General and BPS Stik-O
 

The Ocho Ned is thicker than your average Ned Worm. I have yet to catch a fish on it. 

*This is a good overview - I use the 6" , 5" and 4" Ochos ... I like them T-Rigged using VMC Drop Dead EWG weighted hooks in various sizes (great shimmy on the fall !) ... They are softer and may not last as long as a Dinger but have more salt content with more weight and girth for a lot of action . The Ocho also comes in some unique colors which I will always find a place in my bag for .

[Big Swimbait]

My experience is the Ocho works much better for me in dirty or heavily stained water. I can not tell you why other than maybe the 8 sides give off a little more vibration.

[NorcalBassin]

There's a color that the spots out here seem to love that GYBC doesn't sell, and I've had good success with it for spots and largemouth at a catch rate similar to senkos. Senko is still my #1 stick bait but the ocho isn't too far behind. 

[BlakeMolone]

I just bought some ochos for 1.99 a pack at academy, only bought two packs and I have no idea why I didn’t just by them all

[NittyGrittyBoy]

Better options out there personally.

[Bluebasser86]

My favorite stick worm.

[Teal]

I haven't fished them a ton, I've been settled in pretty good with gycb senko and yum.  But I have caught fish on them.  

[Finessegenics]

I find them hard to Texas rig. The flat sides always make it look kinda funky when Texas rigging. I’m not sure if they catch as much as the senko or if there’s really any difference at all. While I do appreciate that they are cheaper than the senko and still have a good action, they are just as durable as the senko in my experience. Two fish and the bait is usually done.
 

When it comes to senko knockoffs, I still prefer the Ochos over the Dingers. But my favorite is definitely the XZone True Center Stick. A very good shimmy and still a firm plastic. Has worked just as good as the original senko for me so far. 

 

 

[12poundbass]

@roadwarrior does Mr. Yamamoto know you’re testing the waters and are potentially going to be unfaithful? 

[roadwarrior]

NO!

 

[Big Rick]

21 hours ago, NYWayfarer said:

Just don’t leave the o-rings on to long as they react with the plastic in the worm.

It's my understanding that the Ocho is not the Elaztech material like the Zero. So, it shouldn't have an adverse reaction to the o-ring material, should it? 

[snake95]

I love the Ocho, T-rigged weightless.  

 

Cast and let them hit it on the fall.

 

90 degree spring days in south Florida ponds, cast onto flats and get ready to set the hook.

 

Have sight fished with them and the bass glide over and inhale on the fall.

 

Done well with Honey Candy and Green Pumpkin Purple Gold, because that's what was on sale.

 

Only downside: fairly fragile.

 

 

[fishwizzard]

 I like the 4” Ochos better then the 4” Senkos. I feel like they fall horizontally more reliably then the Senkos when wacky rigged and like their wiggle better when t-rigged as well.  
 

 

[ww2farmer]

I fished ocho's for one season, and it was my least productive year for that style of worm.

 

Coincidence? Who knows.

 

What I do know is Yum Dingers have never let me down when I wanted to try an alternative to a GYCB Senko.

 

The same can't be said for Ocho's...Big Bite sticks, and quite a few other brands.  

[zell_pop1]

8 hours ago, Finessegenics said:

I find them hard to Texas rig. The flat sides always make it look kinda funky when Texas rigging. I’m not sure if they catch as much as the senko or if there’s really any difference at all. While I do appreciate that they are cheaper than the senko and still have a good action, they are just as durable as the senko in my experience. Two fish and the bait is usually done.
 

When it comes to senko knockoffs, I still prefer the Ochos over the Dingers. But my favorite is definitely the XZone True Center Stick. A very good shimmy and still a firm plastic. Has worked just as good as the original senko for me so far. 

 

 

Thanks for that info, I've been meaning to try out Xzone stick baits and tubes. For me the Ocho works well, so did the cheap Creme stick baits I get at Wally World, want to see if Xzone or Missile Baits out produce them.

[Ben77]

Ochos are good but Senkos are still king!

[Fishes in trees]

A couple of years ago I happened to be in Academy Sports, right after ( within 15 minutes ) they had put a bunch of marked down Ocho's on the peg board.   As I recall they were $3 per package ( for the 5" size ? not sure about the exact length)   I didn't buy them all but I did buy five packs of every color they had, plus a few of the 6"  size.  Spend over $100.  A few pack I have traded away, but most of them went into the large storage tote of extra stick baits.

 

For me - they work best as a tx rigged pitching bait.  I fish the regular size ones with a 4/0 or 5/0 hook and generally a 3/16 oz tungsten weight & 15 lb Abrazx line.  As I type right now, I forget the different colors I've tried but I think I should fish the black/ blue flake more.

 

When I go to fishing events like the Fishing for Freedom event that the Leavenworth Bass Club puts on, I bring a medium size tote of spare baits - just to trade and give away to guys I meet there.  It is a shame that event was canceled this year, but it was for the best.  Had it not been canceled it probably would have turned into one of those super spreader covid events that you read about.

 

Hope they are able to have the event next year but  wouldn't be surprised if they don't.  I don't expect  covid to go away any time soon.  

[NYWayfarer]

20 hours ago, Big Rick said:

It's my understanding that the Ocho is not the Elaztech material like the Zero. So, it shouldn't have an adverse reaction to the o-ring material, should it? 

In my experience the bait became deformed in the middle where the O-ring rested. It could have been too tight and that’s what caused it.

[ww2farmer]

On 10/26/2020 at 6:19 PM, ww2farmer said:

I fished ocho's for one season, and it was my least productive year for that style of worm.

 

Coincidence? Who knows.

 

What I do know is Yum Dingers have never let me down when I wanted to try an alternative to a GYCB Senko.

 

The same can't be said for Ocho's...Big Bite sticks, and quite a few other brands.  

Whoops....I got my Strike king products mixed up...they make so many, it's often confusing when your not familiar. I just realized I have never fished an Ocho to my knowledge. The bait I was referring to in my original post was the Shimmy Stick. Totally unimpressed with that and not very productive for me. Now I'm going to have to buy a few packs of Ocho's and see what they are all about.

[J Francho]

I’ve done well on Ochos. They work. There’s a shimmer to them on the fall that is unique if you use a color with some reflective flake. 

[Bluebasser86]

3 hours ago, ww2farmer said:

Whoops....I got my Strike king products mixed up...they make so many, it's often confusing when your not familiar. I just realized I have never fished an Ocho to my knowledge. The bait I was referring to in my original post was the Shimmy Stick. Totally unimpressed with that and not very productive for me. Now I'm going to have to buy a few packs of Ocho's and see what they are all about.

Yeah the Shimmy Stick isn't so great. The flat sides on the Ocho give it a sweet flutter/wobble on the fall. Academy here has them on sale for 1-2 bucks a pack all the time. No telling how many packs I have at home but I buy the whole peg anytime I find them for $1. Can't ever have too many stick worms.