Favorite plastic Hellgramite

[Mbirdsley]

What’s your favorite soft plastic Hellgramite?  i know Hellgramites are candy to river small mouth and are native to Michigan.

 

the Neko Hellgramite looks pretty good but, seems expensive $7-$8 for four of them.  how do they hold up.  I think Yum, linker city, and others have hellgramites. 

 

I probably would fish them one of two ways.  either with a small jig head or wacky rigged and than let drift down stream.  so it seems like some decent action would be needed. 

 

 

[GRiver]

Bass Pro,  ya get 15 for just under $6.00. Color selection seems to getting less. 
 

[PaulVE64]

The Neko ones are buoyant and indestructible, but they snag up just like everything.

 

A splitshot rig dead drifted seemed to work best.

[Mbirdsley]

5 hours ago, GRiver said:

Bass Pro,  ya get 15 for just under $6.00. Color selection seems to getting less. 
 

i saw those at cabelas last time i was there.  they looked decent. 

3 hours ago, PaulVE64 said:

The Neko ones are buoyant and indestructible, but they snag up just like everything.

 

A splitshot rig dead drifted seemed to work best.

are they made out of elaztech type material? that would make the price better.  probably help drift on small jig also 

[waymont]

I also like the BPS baits. They are not elaztech but are great baits, at a good price. They work great wacky rigged, weightless, and on a ned head. A few years ago I was catching a lot drop shoting too.

[herder]

Yeah, the Neko baits are made out of some type of elaztech stuff.

[GreenPig]

My #1 are the Nikko large and small hellgrammites. Catch tons of LM and Spots on them. 50 - 60 plus fish per bait is normal.

[Shadow1]

There is a thread about this on the Smallmouth Forum.  If you go to "River Rock Custom Baits", you will find a bait they call the "Helgripede".  It is a cross between a centipede and a hellgrammite.  These baits are fantastic for smallies.  I use them in small creeks and rivers all the time, as well as, in Canada twice a year.  I fish them on ned heads and with a small straight shank hook with a bullet weight pegged about 16" above.  We had one of those days in Canada last year where the temp dropped from about 70 degrees to 40.  I was using these and caught one just over 5lbs with quite a few "small" 3 pounders thrown in.  The baits are very soft.  You will go through quite a few of them, but they do catch the fish.  Dark Special for stained to dark water, and Light Special for clear water.  Now don't you guys go and give this secret bait away!     

[WRB]

Fish Lab Nymph works good.

Tom

[Munkin]

Tackle HD Ned Mite

Bought some of these from TW to try out.

 

Allen

[RRocket]

What about Raid Japan 2Way? It's creepy crawly looking..

[Mbirdsley]

9 hours ago, Shadow1 said:

There is a thread about this on the Smallmouth Forum.  If you go to "River Rock Custom Baits", you will find a bait they call the "Helgripede".  It is a cross between a centipede and a hellgrammite.  These baits are fantastic for smallies.  I use them in small creeks and rivers all the time, as well as, in Canada twice a year.  I fish them on ned heads and with a small straight shank hook with a bullet weight pegged about 16" above.  We had one of those days in Canada last year where the temp dropped from about 70 degrees to 40.  I was using these and caught one just over 5lbs with quite a few "small" 3 pounders thrown in.  The baits are very soft.  You will go through quite a few of them, but they do catch the fish.  Dark Special for stained to dark water, and Light Special for clear water.  Now don't you guys go and give this secret bait away!     

you sold me on the helgrapede.  I bought a pack of texas tea and chocolate mint. both 3.5 inch. were still about 2 months away from fishing them in my local rivers but, i’ll have them. 

 

i see that they also make tubes. have you used the tube bait that they sell ? 

[Shadow1]

12 hours ago, Mbirdsley said:

you sold me on the helgrapede.  I bought a pack of texas tea and chocolate mint. both 3.5 inch. were still about 2 months away from fishing them in my local rivers but, i’ll have them. 

 

i see that they also make tubes. have you used the tube bait that they sell ? 

You will love them. I have been fishing them for years. I found them by accident. A local tackle shop had some of their tubes. I wanted a color they were out of, so I went on their website to order tubes. Found the helgripede, bought them, and been hooked. They catch them when nothing else will. I throw them in a 1/16 oz Lifted Jigs weedless ned head. If the smallies want a different look then I use a 1/0 Gama straight shank hook with a 1/16 oz bullet sinker pegged 16" above. They will work weedless, BUT they are so light I had some trouble with fish in the current hitting them and I couldn't  tell.

[Munkin]

4 hours ago, RRocket said:

What about Raid Japan 2Way? It's creepy crawly looking..

 

Not even sure what this is supposed to be?I bought a large lot of JDM plastics a couple months ago and received a couple packs of these. All the odd JDM stuff like this I just put on the table at the last show for $5 a bag and sold it all. Guys that knew about JDM stuff bought all of it in like an hour. 

 

Allen

[RRocket]

2 hours ago, Munkin said:

 

Not even sure what this is supposed to be?I bought a large lot of JDM plastics a couple months ago and received a couple packs of these. All the odd JDM stuff like this I just put on the table at the last show for $5 a bag and sold it all. Guys that knew about JDM stuff bought all of it in like an hour. 

 

Allen

 

[Munkin]

15 hours ago, RRocket said:

 

 

What is that meant to imitate? Looks like a Blue Crab to me?

 

Allen

[RRocket]

4 hours ago, Munkin said:

 

What is that meant to imitate? Looks like a Blue Crab to me?

 

Allen

Anything you need it to be? Crab? Bug? Creepy crawly?  Can do multiple presentations.

 

This video is better..They show it cut in half like a bug. And nose hooked it definitely looks like a creepy crawly.

 

 

[WaskaCrank12]

@Shadow1 - thank you for the info. about the Helgripedes from River Rock Customs  - I ended up purchasing a pack of Dark Special and a pack of Light Special (3.5 size) and will give them a go this spring/summer

[Jmilburn76]

I just picked up a few different colors of Yum to try out this year.

[Shadow1]

On 3/4/2024 at 7:51 PM, Mbirdsley said:

you sold me on the helgrapede.  I bought a pack of texas tea and chocolate mint. both 3.5 inch. were still about 2 months away from fishing them in my local rivers but, i’ll have them. 

 

i see that they also make tubes. have you used the tube bait that they sell ? 

I do use the tubes they sell.  They are very good.  That is how I found the Helgripede.  A small tackle store in my area had some of their tubes.  They were out of the particular colors I wanted, so I went to River Rock's website.  That is when I found the Helgripede.  Bought some and boom . . . the smallies in the creeks and rivers I fish ate them up.  Used them later that year in Canada and same thing.  Been buying them ever since.  As for my previous posts, the color selection they have can drive you crazy, so keep it simple . . . dark colors for dark water and lighter or transparent for clear water.    

[Mbirdsley]

received my 2 packages river rock helgrapede’s.  left color is texas tea w/copper and the right is chocolate mint.  I’m impressed by the quality with these helgripedes. They are salt impregnated so they should sink but, i’ve not tested that yet. They are 3.5 inches long and come in a 8 pack. 

 

The trend right now in bass fishing is for smaller profile baits. if a smaller profile is what your after these could be simply cut in half; as both sides look the Identical IE no head or  tail just 2 heads. Which, would than give you 16 1.5 inch helgripedes in a pack to fish with.  

 

As long as the smallies like them i will buy some more. 

 

originally, i was thinking more of using them on a small gamakatsu ball head that i pour or wacky rigged for river fishing.  These would work very well on a split shot/ mojo rigged, light carolina rigged or a small t-rig fishing in a lake.  i’ll probably use them on a mojo rig while, lake fishing. 

 

 

[Shadow1]

Mbirdsley, I rig them up with a Lifted Jigs 1/16 oz. weedless ned head or like you are talking about with a split shot rig.  I don't use a split shot.  I peg a bullet weight 16" above the bait.  I have used them all over for smallies . . . western Maryland, WVA, Ohio, Michigan, and Canada.  I was using them on a drop shot in Canada last year.  Major front came through.  Air temp fell from low 70's to the 40's.  I caught some nice fish in that weather.  I was fishing them 6" off the bottom out from rock bluffs in 8'-10' of water.