One of the best lures to use if you simply have to catch a bass is a Senko on a wacky rig. These soft plastic worms are perfectly balanced for the wacky rig technique and for years have consistently put fish in the boat. A wacky rigged Senko is a great lure to catch largemouth bass because it is easy to fish and effective, making it one of the best techniques for beginners and kids (as well as pros)!
In this article, I’ll explain what a “wacky rig” is, how to rig a Senko wacky style, and also give some tips on some equipment you should pair with it to make your trip better. I’ll also offer my thoughts on a tool that will make this technique even better and much more affordable.
What is a Wacky Rig Worm?
To put it simply, a wacky rigged worm is any soft plastic lure that is hooked directly through its center. More than one person has remarked that it looks like something you’d expect a kid to come up with, but sometimes keeping it simple simply works. There’s a reason I have it as one of the four best fishing lures you can use with kids!
While the most common type of soft plastic to wacky rig is the Senko worm, it can also be utilized with pretty much anything you have. Flukes, tubes, creatures, stick baits and grubs all work just fine and might be exactly what the fish are seeking on any given day.
When you wacky rig a worm or other soft plastic, what you’re basically doing is letting both ends of it dangle and do its thing. This creates way more chaotic action than a Texas Rig (where the “front” of the lure is basically an extension of the line) would, for example. You basically double the action of any given soft plasitc which can have very interesting results.
How to Rig a Wacky Worm
You can wacky rig a worm with pretty much any hook you like, though they do make dedicated hooks for the job. Rigging it is as simple as it gets – simply thread whatever hook you’d like directly through the center of gravity of a soft plastic lure. The idea is to balance it out so both sides will kind of wobble back and forth on the fall. If you’re using a Senko or stick bait, this is pretty easy to find – just put it straight through the middle and call it a day. If you’re getting all wild like and using something like a fluke, you may need to adjust where you put the hook to get the desired action.
How to Fish a Wacky Rigged Senko
Wacky Rigged Senkos are exremely easy to fish – simple cast them out and wait while they drop down. Very frequently, fish will hit it on the drop. If you don’t get a bite, lift your rod tip back up to the 1-2 o’clock position to raise the worm up off the ground, reel in your slack, and have it fall again.
You can also retrieve a wacky rigged worm with little twitches, taps, and pops which will give it a darting action while you’re raising it off the sea floor. This, coupled with its tantalizing drop, can really turn fish on in a huge way.
This versatility and ease of use makes Senkos some of the best lures possible to tie on for a kid. Whenever I put together a fishing care package for a child I make sure I toss a few packs of Senkos in for good measure.
Disadvantage of the Wacky Rig
The three main disadvantages to wacky rigging your Senkos, worms, or other soft plastics are that this style is far less weedless than the Texas Rig, are prone to being bitten off by pickerel or pike, and are considerably less durable than other fishing set ups.
Can Wacky Rigged Worms Be Weedless?
While you can buy “weedless” wacky rigged hooks, the hook is still exposed and frankly the weed guard is just one more thing to snag. While these specialty weedless wacky rig hooks can help, you’re still going to catch a lot of weeds, so the wacky rig is better used in clearer water.
If you want to use a Senko and make it weedless, your better bet is to just Texas Rig it by putting the hook into the body of the worm. This will not have the same action as a wacky rig, but what good is action if it immediately hooks a weed?
Wacky Rigged Worms and Pike
The enticiing action of a wacky rigged worm is going to be just as irresistable to a northern pike or chain pickerel as it would be to a bass. Unfortunately, a wacky rig has no protection from the teeth of these predators, so it’s very easy to be bit off. If you’re insistent on fishing these lures in areas where northern pike and chain pickerel are prevalent, you should probably just accept that you’re going to lose the occasional worm to their teeth. You also might consider being proactive by using a fluorocarbon or even steel leader, though the latter can have a negative effect on such a light lure’s action.
How to Make a Wacky Rig More Durable
While worth it, a bag of Senkos isn’t cheap. This is made all the more problematic by the fact that the baits are very soft and therefore aren’t as durable as others. When you throw in how a wacky rigged worm really doesn’t have much of the hook connected to it, and it’s no suprise that these fling off so easily and you can go through more than a few packs of Senkos during a day.
To make a wacky rigged worm last longer, you’re going to want to use some sort of o ring. These are little rubber rings that slide over the worm and allow you to attach a hook more securely. Rather than simply embedding a hook in the soft plastic the worm, the o-ring acts as a brace that’ll keep your wom on the hook longer.
Do you need an O-Ring for Wacky Rig?
Using an o ring on an wacky rig isn’t strictly necessary but it is very helpful. Because Senkos are so soft, they tend to pull off the hook easily when wacky rigged. An o ring will allow you to get more casts and fish out of each worm.
What Can you Use Instead of an O Ring?
While o rings are very inexpensive and easy to use, if you run out of them, you have some other options. The most prevalent can usually be found by searching for a “neko rig band.” These bands are just like the o rings but a bit larger and more durable. Because they have a greater width, it is possible to rig them much more securely because you can thread the hook through both sides of the band in addition to the worm, which is going to maximize how many times you can throw it. If you decided to go with one of these, make sure you get yourself this tool that will help you put Neko sleeves on your Senkos.
Should I Use Braid or Mono for Wacky Rig?
You can use either braid or mono for wacky rig fishing. Because a wacky rig is usually fished in fairly clear water with few obstructions, there isn’t as great of a need for braid and its higher visibility may even be a disadvantage. On the other hand, braid will help you set the hook better and will allow you to handle larger fish with confidence. Braid will also afford slightly better capabilities when fishing near weeds as it will slice through them a bit better and reduce, though not eliminate, the number of times you get gunk on your hook.
How Deep Can You Fish a Wacky Rig?
Most anglers don’t fish a wacky rig that deep. Generally, they work well in 10′ of water or less, simply because they don’t have much weight to them. If you try to fish them deeper than this, you won’t be able to cover water as easily as you’ll have to wait longer for the Senko to sink to where you want it.
Should You Put a Weight on a Wacky Rig
Putting a weight on a wacky rig worm dramatically changes its action. The reaosn folks put weight on is typically to fish deeper water more effectively and quickly. While a weight will help you do that, it also changes the way the wacky worm fishes. A big part of the reason a wacky rigged Senko is so deadly is because of its maddeningly slow, tantalizing descent. Weight is going to change this and speed it up. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but sometimes you’re better off having a bit of patience and letting the fall do its thing, even if that means it takes a few more moments for the lure to reach the depth of the fish.
What Season is Best for Wacky Rig?
You can fish a wacky rig worm all year round but it is especially deadly in the spring when bass are spawning. There are few lures that are as effective at getting a strike than a wacky rig worm falling slowly near a bass bed. There’s something about the slow and wobbling descent that drives mama and papa bass crazy, so where fishing during the spawn is legal, spring can be the best season for tossing a wacky rig.
Wacky rigged worms also work well in fall and even summer, but the trick is you need to find bass that are shallow. While you can add weight to a wacky rigged worm to fish deeper, it’s not the norm with this technique. Instead, you’re usually fishing shallower, so you’re going to want to fish a wacky worm during seasons when bass tend to be shallow (chiefly, spring and fall).
What is the Best Rod for Wacky Worm Fishing?
Because the hook point is exposed on a wacky rig, you don’t need as heavy a rod as you might with a Texas rig. This is because you don’t need to drive the hook through the soft plastic lure and the fish’s mouth – just the latter. Accordingly, you can get away with something like a medium power, fast action spinning rod, though I’d still say you should probably keep it simple and go with the standard medium heavy worm outfit.
Some people (including myself) prefer fishing wacky rigged worms on spinning gear. First, it can be a fairly light presentation that is tough to toss on a baitcaster. Not as commonly discussed, but the way the spinning reel sits below the rod can sometimes make techniques that require short jerks much more comfortable. If you intend to give the wacky rigged worm little twitches on your retrive to the boat, you might find spinning gear more enjoyable.
Conclusions
A wacky rigged Senko is one of my go-to lures when I’m fishing with kids. While I relied heavily on the drop shot when my children were younger, now that Tristan is getting older I find him throwing these more.
While it can get expensive to throw Senkos without an o ring, if you make a minor investment in them, you can really extend the life of your plastic worms, making the wacky rig more effective. Definitely consider buying an o ring tool as it’s one of those few fishing items that will pay for itself quickly!
Thanks,
John Paxton
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