Good replacement for Gary Yamamoto senkos

[roadwarrior]

We'll see.

I fish some ponds that are very productive and this is the very best time of year to fish soft plastics. One fisherman's experiment doesn't qualify as being very scientific, but it should be interesting none the less. I admit to being a die hard GYCB fan, but I will not be throwing one at all for the next ten weks or so.

[Keithscatch]

Hey RW, I respect your willingness to think outside of GYCB's box  . Not all will do that.  Regardless of your outcome I am glad to see that you are willing to give them a fair shake.

[Valascus]

This oughta be interesting. I don't really have an opinion on which stickbait is better. I have Senkos, Tiki Stiks, YUM Dingers, and plan on buying some *** in the near future. I am with LBH in this friendly debate though. If I can get a bait that similar to a more expensive bait and get the same or better results with it, then I am obviously going to go after the cheaper baits. Gives me more money to put towards bolstering lacking areas of my tackle bag. I cannot wait to see the results of this experiment. Kudos to you RW for being big enough to take on the challenge with an open mind . This should be both educational and entertaining which is what this site is all about.

On a side note, I think the results of this experiment should be posted on a new thread and that thread should be made a sticky so anyone who has questions regarding which stick bait is "better" or "more effective" can just see the results for themselves.

[jomatty]

i surprised you guys dont like the o rings.  i think i prefer the way the hook runs when using o rings, but have not really been able to tell the difference as far catching fish goes.  i guess its just a matter of personal opinion (and i admit i may not bother with it if i was paying ten cents a bait).

matt

[Bud]

  I was not going to post on this subject for RW and others are having fun with a challenge.  I use GY baits for the simple fact is they work.  I feel this way if you thing they are to expensive don't buy them that simple.  GY has put a lot of time and money in his product and he can sell sell then for whatevery he wants.

 I am sure if some of the one that are hollowing about the price had the chance to come up with something like the Senkos they would charge what every the market place would stand.

  The majority of the people on this form thinks nothing of spending a couple of hundred for a new rod and a couple for a new reel so why skinp on the bait?????

[roadwarrior]

Bud,

You know I feel the same way, but I don't mind backing off a little and spending some time on this experiment. Something I can tell you for sure is that I'm going to fish these other baits HARD. My mindset is to demonstrate that LBH is correct and Brent's baits are just as good as the GYCB Senko. The test period is what I consider to be the very best time of year to fish soft plastics.

I can assure you and everyone else on the forum, I'll make a good faith effort and report the results however the cards fall.

[senile1]

  I was not going to post on this subject for RW and others are having fun with a challenge.  I use GY baits for the simple fact is they work.  I feel this way if you thing they are to expensive don't buy them that simple.  GY has put a lot of time and money in his product and he can sell sell then for whatevery he wants.

 I am sure if some of the one that are hollowing about the price had the chance to come up with something like the Senkos they would charge what every the market place would stand.

  The majority of the people on this form thinks nothing of spending a couple of hundred for a new rod and a couple for a new reel so why skinp on the bait?????

If other people are catching just as large, and as many fish, on less expensive Yum Dingers, Tiki sticks, etc.  as they would catch on Senkos I wouldn't call that skimping.  I would call that an intelligent decision.  I've had luck with Senkos, Yum Dingers, and the Strike King Zeroes (which seem to be despised by some on this forum).  I can't say that one has out-performed the others overall.  We all have our favorites due to the minute differences in the way we each fish a lure.  For RW, Senkos may be the best for him and the way he fishes.  For someone else, that may not be the case.  

[Bankbeater]

This forum is getting to hip for me. We got people sniffing bags of plastic baits and RW biting senkos.

[Zel]

Senko Re-Treads

1. Get a 5 1/4" 4 cavity Stik mold from Del-Mart http://www.del-mart.com/shop/product.php?productid=16143&cat=306&page=1

2. Save all your torn/worn out Senkos

3. Melt old Senkos and pour plastic into molds

4. Save $$$ (if you can stand the mess)

[Low_Budget_Hooker]

The majority of the people on this form thinks nothing of spending a couple of hundred for a new rod and a couple for a new reel so why skinp on the bait?????

Skimp? That's the point. When you're catch ratio either stays the same or increases but it costs less, I see it as a value,not a skimp.

And yes, I like nice reels and rods too and since switching, I can afford more set-ups.

Time will tell

[Bud]

LBH

 GY Senkos work better than any thing I have used so that is the reason iI use them.  I doubt the penney you save by using a knock off will every buy a cheap rod much less a good one.  If it does you will be old and gray.

[Low_Budget_Hooker]

Last week I used 11 bags of 10. At a savings of roughly $.50/worm, that's over $50. With $200, I can get a decent set up. Hopefully I won't be old and grey by the middle of August.

You are entitled to your opinion but the term "best" is relevant.

I am catching the largest size class fish in the lake and as many as I did back when GYCB's was the only game in town.

The savings last month gave me the combined pleasure of breaking my PB for the year twice in 2 weeks and a new 55lb Minn Kota.

That's not an opinion. That's a fact.

Bud- GYCB's work great, no doubt.  My point is so do many others.  Not all but many.

[Hamlet]

Even if the knock off lures work just as good as Yamamoto's, there's still all the reason in the world to stay with the Yamamoto lures. The main thing is that it's a great company with great customer service, everything is top of the line, the magazine is great, the man himself is as nice a human can be, they offer so much knowledge not just lures, and they have make you feel like its all one big family. I have been infinitely impressed with this company and I reward them with my purchases.

I ordered some lures online and I didn't get a confirmation email and so I emailed them, well before I could even get a chance to check my email they called me and told me about a small problem that they were having and then sent a thank you note with my lures in the mail. good stuff. I have like 4 or 5 more stories just like this about GYCB and thats why I continue to fish with them even though I do use the knock off lures as well. In fact it has been a while since I made a GYCB purchase (I only buy them over the internet), I have been buying the tiki sticks lately.

I had to edit this post to say that if I fished ALL THE TIME and I was using bags and bags of soft plastics, I would switch to cheaper versions in a heartbeat. But thats not what i do, so i fish yamamoto style biatch.

[roadwarrior]

LBH,

Man, what are you doing that I'm not? I fish soft plastics a lot, I mean most of the time if I'm fishing artificial lures. My "bags" are just five 6" baits and I haven't gone through five bags this year! If I include ALL soft plastics, I'm sure I haven't used fifty baits in 2006.

[Low_Budget_Hooker]

Sorry Brent,...too selfish to worry about the folks that want junebug/chart.....

[move] B L A C K [/move]

But that's what you would want too,.....................If you were me

RW- Maybe you're throwing the wrong ones?? J/K

I've ben fortunate (if you consider migraines fortunate) to have the time this year to quadruple my time on water. I've been fishing a consistent 5 days/ week for 4-8 hrs/day.

Funny thing is that I have been throwing a variety of baits this year, trying to break from my Jigging ways. I have also been giving samples away tosome folks I fish with who want to try them. Brent gave me a few extra to pass out as samples. Many people I invite on the water are at beginner/intermediate levels and I like to tell them to leave everything of theirs at home and come learn my way for the day. More baits used again. Money well spent in my book.

Still,...not uncommon to blow through 3-5 bags of 10 in one outting when the bite is on and there are two of you. Now if that 2nd person also knows what they are doing..............

I have pillaged Dirks tackle box for years.  I told him this year, I'll cover your plastics in a good faith effort to restore his stocks.  He never complains.  Well, he just ordered his first batch last week and has been using mostly mine this year, I would say maybe 1/2 the time, he has used mine so there is reason why that number is so high but regardless of why, If I had to buy all that bait at $7 for 10,...I would'nt have the money for gas to get to the lake!

[Keithscatch]

Actually Brent I woulkd order Junebug w/blue tail now that is a color that tears them up here in Florida. I could throw some business your way with those. But Black would be cool too. Could use those at night  ;D

[Zel]

Brent,

Good business question. Since I don't have industry information regarding percentage of color sales in soft plastics, I personally would have to make a business decision based on my limited experience and observations. I throw black Senko's over 50% of the time. When on a lake I observe other anglers who utilize Senkos, and by far I see black as the primary color utilized, followed by watermelon and pumpkinseed. In addition, when I go to local tackle shops that cater to bass anglers and go to the Senko area, I look at the color selections. Most seem to allocate the greatest amount of available space to black, watermelon and pumpkinseed. And by far the color that they seem to always be lacking in availability, or picked out is in fact black.

So if I were a soft plastic businessman and wanted to add a new color to my offerings, I would pick BLACK, as it represents the lowest risk component, due to its proven historical success factor.

I believe the draw to your company is primarily PRICE, not cool offerings.  And "cool" doesn't always cover the bills, but would BLACK with BLACK FLAKE qualify?.

[nboucher]

You could call them Zorro sticks, Brent.

[Zel]

Brent,

Interesting info. I guess I stand corrected.

But I still think that not offering a proven staple color makes no sence.

Personally, when I ordered from you, I would have ordered 4 bags of worms instead of 3. Also, of that order I would have gotten 2 bags of 50 in Black instead of 1 bag of 25 Black Blue Laminate. But as you pointed out, that is just me and my personal preference, which might not represent the masses.

Guess which color I picked on the poll you created?

[Siebert Outdoors]

LBH loves watermelon purple (sorry LBH if i'm giving away your secrets)

Well I guess that is 2 people in this world that love that color.  Since we are announcing great colors how about Green pumpkin purple, smoke purple, and white with silver/gold/blk flk.  There my secret is out.  

Good thing no one reads my posts.  

[Low_Budget_Hooker]

The other problem is, that for every color I get, I sell less of all of the other ones. And, the number of colors you can think of is unlimited. When do you stop and say, "Enough Colors."???

Brent

As soon as BLACK is on the list!! lol

Seriously though, Black has always been considered a staple color by most anglers.  It's Pumpkin and watermelons partner.  The green, the black and the brown.  Naturals.

When you did that questionaire about colors, was it multiple choice?  I ask because if you asked me that question, I would not answer black because I would assume the "staples" are already covered.

[roadwarrior]

"The Experiment" was suppose to run through September, but I think today will be the end. I will have a detailed report this weekend.

[Siebert Outdoors]

"The Experiment" was suppose to run through September, but I think today will be the end. I will have a detailed report this weekend.

I am interested to see your detailed report.  I will be keeping an eye out

[KYbass1276]

I use Gycb as well and like them very much hard to beat.   But with that I have other brands that I use too so really I don't have a stance on this topic for each brand I have used has been a good producer.   For me and this sounds stupid I like trying different baits all the time it's a hobby I guess I always look for something I haven't ever tried weather it be a different technique or bait or a bait that works good for me but just trying different companys version of the same bait.  

[Rattlinrogue]

I'd have to say the Kinami Flash since it's the same thing.I've used tiki stiks with some success,but I'm now using the Strike King 3X Zero.