Wacky Rig question

[lovecranking]

I've never done it. It looks kind of simple. What type of hook would you use? I've seen guys use a ewg 3/0. Is that the correct hook? Any other suggestions?

[.dsaavedra.]

thats the hook that i use. i do wacky rigging quite often. its very simple. just hook it right thru the middle, then cast it near visible structure (liles, trees, stumps....) and just let it fall. on the way down just give it the tiniest twitches. if you dont get hit on the way down, let the lure sit on the bottom and jiggle it around on the bottom. if still no hits, then jerk it all the way back to the top, and repeat, till you cach a fish, or your retrieve is over. most people use senkos or look alikes for wacky rigging but i suppose you could use whatever you wanted, ive heard of people wacky rigging flukes.

good luck!

[armesjr]

Wacky rigging zoom trick worms work well too.  

[links_man2]

I like the Gamakatsu Finesse Wiide Gap 3/0 hook and Zoom Trick worms or Finesse worms. Also, my local lake has very heavy salt cedars in all of it so I need a weedless hook. I tried the Gamakatsu weedless finesse hook, but the weedguards came loose too easily in the salt cedar.  I also always use an o-ring rather than hook through the worm.  Worms last much longer. I started tying on a loop of cheap 50lb mono as a weedguard that works pretty good, better than the regular weedguard.

[Low_Budget_Hooker]

Gammy finesse wide gap

Don't be afraid to throw it in wide open water, especially if you are familiar with your lakes structure and topography.

DO NOT WORK IT.  If you do anything to this bait as it falls, you are over-working it, let the natural wiggle of the ends do it's thing.  Once it has settled, very subtle twitches can often attract a bite.  I don't usually work it for more than 5-10 ft or so (closer to 5) before getting it right in and sending it out again.

[bpm2000]

LBH - so what youre saying is: you let the wacky rigged bait fall to its intended location, move it 5-10 feet in subtle twitches, then just reel it back in and do it over again?  So you are NOT working the bait all the way back to you?

thx!

[Infidel.]

I also always use an o-ring rather than hook through the worm.

I do the same.  I can catch 6-8 fish on one Senko by using an O-ring as compared to 1-2 fish with out one.  You can buy one of the tools they sell to put the o-ring on or what I like to do is rub a little megastrike on the bait and the o-ring will slide right to the middle.  Just put your hook under the o-ring instead of through the plastic.  Works great.  For smaller worms you can also use those dental rubberbands people use with braces.

[Low_Budget_Hooker]

Yes, that's exactly correct, that's how I fish them.

Not to beat a dead horse but you only need an "O"-ring if you are using Yamamoto's.  Other brands do not tear as easily and can last for up to as many as 8-10 fish or so.

[Bass_Akwards]

LBH, can you give your opinion based on your experience and others you've talked to as to what other brands will last the longest please?  I've just started using Yum's "dinger" with the very cool little trench they put in the worm for your hook.  It lasts a little longer but not much.  

Thanks,

todd

[Sam]

Caught a 16 incher today using a Zoom Mocassin Blue finesse worm Wacky rigged.

He just sucked it in and started to walk off with it.

Lucky for me I saw my line start to move sideways so I set the hook.

He had almost swallowed the entire worm and I had to dig the hook out.  But he was fine and swam away as a happy fish.

The Gammy weedless hooks are a pain to use for the Palamor knot.  I like the Eagle Claws as they have a very large hook eye and tying a Palamor is easier.

The weedless hooks are excellent with a Wacky rig as you can throw it anywhere and it will not get snagged.

I use all types of plastic worms, including Senkos and Gulp! with the Wacky rig.  All do very well.

Just remember, you cannot cast the finesse worms as far as you can cast a Senko but that really is not a problem once you understand the physics of the cast.

Have fun going Wacky.

[Sam]

And by the way, one more thought....

I have a Zip Lock bag full of Senkos and finesse worms rigged for the Wacky rig.

I just take one out of the bag, put it on the hook, put some love on it (Carolina Lunker Sauce) and it is ready to go.

I must have 20 finesse worms and 25+ Senkos all ready to go.

I use the shrink tubing in place of the O-ring and it is fantastic.

I can keep using the worm for at least 10 fish or until the bass throws the worm when it jumps.

This is Ike's method of Wacky rigging and it is fantastic!

[bass109]

wacky rig is very very easy to use, but better than rigging it the normal way. You just catch more fish.

[Low_Budget_Hooker]

LBH, can you give your opinion based on your experience and others you've talked to as to what other brands will last the longest please?  I've just started using Yum's "dinger" with the very cool little trench they put in the worm for your hook.  It lasts a little longer but not much.  

Thanks,

todd

I also was a big Yum dinger fan for a while.  A better value and they sure do catch fish.

In the last yr or so though, we were lucky to find ***.  also an advertiser here.  He sells baits that are a hair softer than the dinger (and has the hook channel too) but not as soft or as tear-able (due to salt crystal size) as the Yammie.

Now for the good part.

50 for $10!!!

And to make it one better, mention your BR screenname and a portion of the sale goes directly to the site to help with costs.

Also, when you mention you are from BR, he will throw in some extras for you to try.

[lovecranking]

Thanks for all of the info. As I'm heading to the lake tomorrow...I've got a few more questions. I take it this is rigged with no weight, correct? So if there is no weight...and the senko is kind of light...do you only throw this with spinning gear and on a day when there is little or no wind? I'm fishing a clear deep lake, is the wacky rig a good idea? Under what conditions do you use the wacky rig?  

[Low_Budget_Hooker]

wacky rigged, no weight, will still cast a country mile

[.dsaavedra.]

bass_awkwards, BY far the most durable and soft senko style worm ive found is the strike king zero. it used to be 3x, but then they did away w/ that and now its elaztech. anyway, you'll know it cuz its a bag w/ yellow at the top and it says "ZERO"in big letters. those things strech to about 3ft. never had one rip due to fishing...EVER. the down side is they arent very easy to come by...at least not for me.

i havent tried *** yet, but i would like to...

[Jeff_NHBA]

I like to use a 2/0 hook with a weedguard and a large enough split ring in place of a rubber o-ring.

s

[Crowcommander]

I like to use a clear small cable tie instead of a "0" ring and Gammy 3/0 Octopus hook in red. Be careful not to cinch the cable tie too tight though. The octopus hook seems to get um every time with very few misses. Crowcommander

[lovecranking]

Well...I was out yesterday & gave it a try. I had 1 hit that I missed and that was it. I'm heading out again in a couple of days & will try it again. I did what everyone suggested. Thanks.

[One Sock]

snip>

DO NOT WORK IT. If you do anything to this bait as it falls, you are over-working it,

i disagree, I wouldn't do that everytime, sometimes you need to over work it depending on where you are fishing it, deadsticking in open water works well, but not good when fishing weedbeds or on rocky shorelines. IMO,  In those situations I like to keep twitching it, I vary my retrieves until I find what the fish want, sometimes I wacky rig and burn it back to the boat, I have landed a lot of nice fish casting reeling it back as fast as possible then letting it die right at the boat. The attacks are vicious, just make sure you have your drag set, or you risk ripping it out of it's mouth.

I use to use the gammy finnesse wide gaps but had some hook up problems, believe me it's wasn't a hook set proble or an equipment problem as I usually use  a shimano scorpion baitcaster on a g-loomis rod. i think it had more to do with the hook not being offset. I have sinced switched to a 2/0 red octopus hook that I had made for me by a tackle company. I pay less than 70.00 for a 1000 of them and absolutely love them. the off set made all the difference in getting a good hook set, even the very smallest of bass come hooked right back to the boat. I rarely miss a fish on the wacky rig now, it doesn't take a big hook to land a big fish 2/0 works just fine

[One Sock]

Oh and if anyone is interested in durable fish catching stickbaits you can PM me for more info as I do not want to spam the board...all though I think i just might of just done that  

[bassman00012]

Wacky rigs work best when you just let them fall. I only fish them a short distance from the boat where I have good feel. I have the best luck with WAVE TIki Sticks. They are a bit larger than GYCB and they catch heavier fish.

[bubbler]

try a 1/0 gamakatsu widegap.

if im using a gycb senko then i will alloways double dack through the middle of the worm, because those things are expensive.

however use a wated hook for wave worms because they hardly sink.