What Is Your Favorite Neko Rig Worm ?

[ChrisD46]

As the title states , what is your favorite Neko Rig (or even senko style stick worm) to use for the Neko Rig ? I believe good action and a floating or worse case - a neutral tail is key for the Neko Rig to have good action while dragged / hopped across the bottom . Most of my current worms will get a "retrofit" half a toothpick in the tail to aid in floating that tail up to at least be neutrally buoyant (works with shaky head as well) instead of lying on the bottom lifeless while no action is imparted by the angler . My future worms will be Z-Man worms , Xzone Deception worms , Black Label Cliff Pace Hollow Point worms , Biz Baits Dizzy Diamond worm , GrandeBass Air Tail Wiggler or other 5" to 7" straight tail worms with a tail that floats . Your thoughts ?

[GetFishorDieTryin]

GB airtails are tough to beat for consistency.  Zmans work great and you don't have to use a o ring, but the salted baits from zman change in sink rate as the salt dissolves.  

[bp_fowler]

I love the original Yamamoto Senko for wacky rigs but when it come to the Neko I prefer the YUM Dinger as it seems to hold up better to multiple fish as well as having the nail weight stay put which has been a problem for me in the past when using Senkos.

[MN Fisher]

Zoom Trick Worm - floats and thinner so it 'waves' easier in the mild current we have in the natural lakes up here.

[bowhunter63]

Zoom fluke stick or Bass Pro Shops stick worm 

[gulfcaptain]

So one of my favorite neko worms now discontinued of course,  6.75 Pro Senko. Great bait on a neko rig due to the thin tail design and head holds that nail weight nicely.  And will also use a 4" finesse worm too when needing that small package and subtlety. 

[gim]

5 inch various stick baits.

 

As @bp_fowler stated, the yum versions seem to hold up a little better when a nail weight gets inserted than the yamamoto ones.

 

When just using a straight wacky, I like the natural fall rate of the original yamamoto. Even if they aren’t very durable.

[FryDog62]

EASY - both of them have floating tails:

 

1) GrandeBass Airtail Rattler is the bomb. Best big fish lure for me in the past 5 years.  
 

2) Second is the T-Mac worm which is such a great replacement for the inconsistent Zoom Trick Worm. 

[ChrisD46]

3 hours ago, GetFishorDieTryin said:

GB airtails are tough to beat for consistency.  Zmans work great and you don't have to use a o ring, but the salted baits from zman change in sink rate as the salt dissolves.  

Good point to be aware of - the more salt that leaches out of Elaztec worms , the more weight  potentially needed to get the bait down to the bottom to achieve the same fall weight . 

[Columbia Craw]

Quiver worm

[Bird]

10 minutes ago, ChrisD46 said:

Good point to be aware of - the more salt that leaches out of Elaztec worms , the more weight  potentially needed to get the bait down to the bottom to achieve the same fall weight . 

Yes indeed, pay attention.

The durability of Elaztech has it's downfall.

As salt is released over time the bait becomes more floatatious, actually floating to the surface, weightless.

 

[bottom_dollar]

4” Senko or a Gambler Sweebo 

[rgasr63]

6in Dizzy Diamond worm gets a nod from me. There is a Magnum Dizzy that works good also. They are kinda a local favorite.

[rangerjockey]

Senko

[ChrisD46]

10 hours ago, MN Fisher said:

Zoom Trick Worm - floats and thinner so it 'waves' easier in the mild current we have in the natural lakes up here.

Zoom Trick Worms with salt (which are mostly what is sold) lie or fall over on the bottom like they are paralyzed (great for dead sticking though) . If you do not impart action then a Zoom Trick Worm is not doing much . A half a tooth pick in the tail helps though to float the tail a little .

[BrianMDTX]

It’s always been a 5” Senko or a Neko Macho. 
 

But I recently tried a Rage Craw with a half-moon weight in the tail rigged wacky-style and the hits kept coming. 

[Catt]

For a floating worm, Double Z Magnum T-Worm

 

Bass Assassin Tapout Worm 

[GetFishorDieTryin]

19 hours ago, gulfcaptain said:

So one of my favorite neko worms now discontinued of course,  6.75 Pro Senko. Great bait on a neko rig due to the thin tail design and head holds that nail weight nicely.  And will also use a 4" finesse worm too when needing that small package and subtlety. 

I think they canned the entire pro senko line, which is a shame.  I wish they still made the 5.75 kut, that was a do it all size.  

The plastic isn't the same, but the profile of the zoom mag Shakey head is really close to the pro long.

17 hours ago, Bird said:

Yes indeed, pay attention.

The durability of Elaztech has it's downfall.

As salt is released over time the bait becomes more floatatious, actually floating to the surface, weightless.

 

It's really only the heavily salted baits like the zinker and fatty that have fall rate issues after a long day or lots of fish.

The limited and salt less baits, like the trd/ned baits and derivatives of them are consistent in comparison.

[LrgmouthShad]

On 5/4/2024 at 7:37 PM, FryDog62 said:

1) GrandeBass Airtail Rattler is the bomb. Best big fish lure for me in the past 5 years.  

Great. Bait monkey is informed now and he won’t be quiet 

[MN Fisher]

44 minutes ago, LrgmouthShad said:

Bait monkey is informed now and he won’t be quiet 

Does he ever shut up?

Not in my experience.

[padon]

xzone deception, grande bass airtail wiggler and airtail rattler.

[FryDog62]

10 hours ago, LrgmouthShad said:

Great. Bait monkey is informed now and he won’t be quiet 

Trophy Hunter best color, second is Ballostic Bluegill 👍

[RRocket]

I am not an avid Neko fisherman but I thought the Geecrack Bellows Stick using the rather excellent Geecrack Neko Hack looked great! For a weight I used a Decoy DS15 screw in weight.

 

I enjoyed fishing it and it definitely got bit, but I enjoy other techniques much more. Just a preference thing.

 

But if you want to try something different, this would be it! 

[ChrisD46]

8 hours ago, padon said:

xzone deception, grande bass airtail wiggler and airtail rattler.

Great Choices !

[softwateronly]

On 5/4/2024 at 6:37 PM, FryDog62 said:

EASY - both of them have floating tails:

 

1) GrandeBass Airtail Rattler is the bomb. Best big fish lure for me in the past 5 years.  
 

2) Second is the T-Mac worm which is such a great replacement for the inconsistent Zoom Trick Worm. 

The airtail wasn’t available my last TW worm order so I moved over to hags tornado. The 6.5 & 8” are both big bass magnets, float, seem to last forever, and storm chaser is a hard to beat color.  I’m not sure I’m gonna go back to grande bass. 
 

scott