Bass love senkos...... A little too much

[Acountdeleted]

This weekend at my parents cottage, the bass fishing was on fire. I found any colour of sanko, thrown around any cover in shallow water was producing a lot of fish.

 

So, here is my thing; I love fishing senkos wacky style. I don't know why, I have just had the most success with that rig. I find the falling 'flutter' drives the bass wild. I've never used O rings with sankos before and always just hook the senko through the middle. The problem is, with most of the fish, I noticed the fish will hit, grab the hook, then jump and make a Marvelous head shake, as I see my senko sailing off into the wild blue yonder. Does anyone have any advice to keep em on the hook for longer so I'm not going through one per fish?

[manitoubass2]

An o ring lol

 

Seriously though, little black zip ties.

 

Bass angler secret

[adempsey]

As mentioned, try an O-Ring, a slice of tube (ones you use for fishing), shrink wrap or zip ties.

 

 

 

If you're using actual Senkos, try cheaper knock-offs like Yum Dingers, Strike King Zero/Ocho, Z-Man Zinkers, BPS Stik-O, Wave Worms Tiki Stik or even Kinami (which are basically identical). All are cheaper and aren't as soft (with the exception of the Kinami).

A hook with a weed guard may also help. The guard may offer an added benefit of stopping the worm from coming off.

[Dutch]

O-ring

Bait tape

Zip tie

 

If you are using "real" senkos - they will only last a fish or two no matter what you do. I like yum dingers in their place.7

[sauce]

Keep your rod tip down so the fish has a harder time launching out of the water.

[manitoubass2]

I use yum dingers and those lunkerhunters version(salted)

 

Very durable

 

I only buy senkos in the grean/white colour

[salmon]

Get yourself to the closest dollar store. Get the smaller rubber bands they come in diff colours. I prefer black but there are clear ones too

[IndySKS]

Use the o ring or wire tie method or what ever works for you but dont put the hook into the worm its self. It creates a weak spot and your worm will break. Just hook it under the o ring. Honestly o rings are dirt cheap and you generaly wont loose them very often.

Imo dont waste your money on other brands i have found they dont perform as well overall.

I prefer black senko's with a #2 red wide gap hook.

[Acountdeleted]

Thanks for the help everyone. Zip ties is a great call.

[singingdog]

Shrink wrap tubing. Hook through, not under, the tubing. I use real senkos for smallies with this setup and sometimes fish multiple days with one senko.

[MCTFisher9120]

I can't do it...can't do the wacky rig anymore. Got me into bassin' tho that 5" Dinger when Izumi was pushing them on tv...Now I much prefer flipping, pitching or casting(frog,spinnerbait,swim jig,swimbait,deep crank,shallow crank, jerkbait,popper,spooks,drop shot,tube jig,and more I'm sure. Every season I add a technique to my style of fishing...Although that Senko has its place just dont use them anymore.

 

Congrads on a good weekend, got a little more than 2 weeks can't wait to get fishing again myself!

Edited September 8, 2015 by MikeTheBassFisher

[Cloudy15]

I am a little over the senko/ wacky rig myself,mainly because I see everyone using it.Bass must be getting use to it right? I find I don't catch nearly as many large bass on it 4lb plus as I use to. Anyways I've always double hooked my wacky rigged senkos. I can catch 5 plus bass per worm all the time this way. I also move the hook along the worm when it gets to worn in one spot.

[Acountdeleted]

Everyone is making some real good points on the senko wacky rig. This is a fairly new phenomenon for me so i'm still cashing in.

 

That being said, on my parents lake I've noticed that, to catch bigger bass, I have to go to deeper water (6 to 15 feet) and I find the wacky rig only works in the 1-4 foot range.

 

That being said, I love catching 1-2 lb smallmouth. The fight they put up is always a pleasure to see.

[Lape0019]

I use the Powerteam lures sick stick. It is designed to be used with a weighted wacky hook and last alright when used by themselves. My buddy started using the heat shrink tubing and it works quite well.

 

I find senkos are just to easily broken when wacky rigged. You are better off using a knockoff.

[netminder]

Guys are still using wacky senkos to win derbies and tournaments. No reason to put it away just yet.

 

On topic though, the o-ring things are the best way to lengthen to life of the senko and never seem to eliminate any of the action on the worm.

[jimmer]

Do any of you that use the O ring notice more hook set misses with the hook turn side ways? Just asking because I was thinking about trying them.

[manjo39]

Jeremy, I've tried all methods mentioned above to get more durability out of one senko. The o-ring works to add durability but will split the senko in half eventually. Best option is to use 3/8" heat shrink tubing for the 5" senko. Cut a thin width piece (just enough to get a hook through it while maintaining one piece) to minimize the affect on action. Different sizes tubing will fit different size worms obviously.

 

Also, to catch bigger Bass (and get us an upgrade!) using the same locations and technique, but replace the senko with a jig/trailer. You catch less but will catch bigger. It will be difficult to maintain confidence in the jig/trailer at first as you won't get many bites, but after you land a 5 plus pounder it won't be a problem after that

Edited September 8, 2015 by manjo39

[fishindevil]

I fish senkos a lot and rig them several different ways and always always have a senko rod ready to go for a thowback bit and it still produces for me HUGE !!!! One of the easiest baits to use in many different situations and most years always produces some of my biggest bass of the season as a few members on this board know that have been fishing with me !! They are so versatile and can be used in just about any situations shallow deep logs rocks docks and yes for wacky style I use the rubber O ring on them as well as several diff styles of hooks From weedless to Texas rig hooks and ya I go through senkos sometimes a pack per outing but with the quality of bass I catch with them I don't mind one bit !!! But to each their own I guess Cheers & fish-on And I acually need some more of my fav color as the crayfish molt bite has been insane and I went through several packs of that color ......

[singingdog]

Yep, the bigger bass are often deeper. That's why I almost always use the wacky jig instead of going weightless. On the lakes around here, it has been the #1 producer for big smallies for several years.