ChrisD46

The wacky hooks mentioned above for Senkos - I've convinced myself all other stick baits do better with Eco Pro tungsten wacky weights OR a wacky 1/16th oz. Gamakatsu or VMC jig head for wacky rig applications . *Not to thread jack but anyone happy with the wacky rigged action of non - Yamamoto Senkos just using a wacky hook ?

Terrible products - here , let me dispose of them properly for you !

*Good idea for top water treble hook lures !

The key to using light braid on a casting reel is to wind the line on tight when spooling … I may flirt with trying standard #20 lb. PP one day but that would be about as light as I would want to try . Most folks go with #30 lb. braid as the lightest weight braid to avoid line digging in issues .

I'll second that the Siebert Outdoors (sponsor here) Morel jig head is a good option in 1/16th oz. red , black & green pumpkin colors .

*By "correctly" Team9nine is referring to one of the 5 ~ 6 Ned Rig "no feel" retrieves . While an all - around winner still , the Ned Rig is by far the ideal application by far for post - front , blue bird skies with flat water , no wind conditions which typically cause bass to have lock jaw . Mid - West guys like Team9nine are now getting their masters and doctorate degrees in the Mid - West Finesse / Ned Rig - while the rest of us are mere freshman or sophomore under classmen in the Mid - West Finesse / Ned Rig ... Before giving up on the Ned Rig - go back and analyze your approach / tactics with the Ned Rig ! My Ned Rig set up : 7' ML / F spinning rod , 2500 series reel , #8 lb. PP braid main line + #6 lb. FC leader (6') , 1/32nd oz. , 1/20th oz. 1/15th oz. and 1/16th oz. mushroom jig head with a #4 or #2 size hook with half a Z-Man ZinkerZ or Finesse TRD (or similar soft plastic) of your choice using one of the 5 ~ 6 "no feel" retrieves . This is the text book Mid - West Finesse / Ned Rig set up - if your set up doesn't look similar , than you are fishing another technique other than the Mid - West Finesse / Ned Rig .

*Finesse flipping style jig (with arky style head) , finesse swim jig or finesse football jig ? Not sure how the downsized versions of the SK Rage Menace or Bug work versus their larger brothers - but they are expensive for what you get ! You may want to do yourself a favor and look at the following finesse trailers : Zoom Fat Albert Twin Tail Trailer , Creepy Crawler Twin Tail Trailer , Net Bait Paca Chunk (Regular or Tiny) . For a finesse swim jig trailer a Zoom Fat Albert Grub or Kalins 3" Lunker Grub would work well . For the trailers I list you could buy twice as many of packs versus the baby menace or baby rage bug . For the price , SK should offer double the amount of baby versions per pack as they do the regular size menace or bug .

*Are you kidding ? You may not here about it as much but as this thread replies prove - many Pros do and three times as many don't admit that they do (i.e. using Ned Rig non - sponsor products) .

*Thanks Bluebasser86 - Seems like it would do double duty as an effective spinner bait rod too if kept in the same lure weight range ?

If the boulders are not too severe I would like the YZ Hybrid #10 lb. better for jerk baits still using a casting set up - I just don't like anything but braid + leader on a spinning set up .

I saw Bret Chapmen use the Kast King Speed Demon Pro 7'3" M/M cast rod Vibrating Jig Model in a MLF event - seemed to be a decent rod for $109 and perhaps comparable to a similar Dobyns Fury rod for cranks / vibrating jigs … Any users of those with experience to share on this rod ?

Try these trailer colors with the new Hot Sauce color Foggy and Swim Jig : Net Bait Paca Chunk Sr. Green Pumpkin Red , Ruby Red Zoom Ultra Vibe Speed Craw : Cajun Craw, Spanish Craw, Ruby Red, Green Pumpkin Red Zoom Z Craw Jr. : Cajun Craw, Spanish Craw , Green Pumpkin Red Zoom Swimmin' Chunk : Ruby Red Strike King Rage Craw : Delta Red , Green Pumpkin Strike King Rage Menace : Delta Red , Green Pumpkin Berkley Power Bait Chigger Craw 4": Green Pumpkin ** For the Green Pumpkin color trailers - dye the craw tips Orange or Red with JJ's Magic !

Interesting reply Tom !

*Now that is a Ned Rig (two thumbs up !!) … I have two set ups now : 7' ML IM-8 Cabelas spinning rod (closeout after BPS purchased them) with a President 3000 series spinning reel , PP #8 lb. braid mainline with #6 lb. InvizX FC leader (approx 7' leader) . I use this for lighter Ned Rigs such as 2.75" TRD or 1/2 Zinkerz and a 1/16th ShroomZ jig head . Next , I have a 7' M BPS Extreme spinning rod , Daiwa 3000 series spinning reel , #10 PP braid mainline with #8 lb. InvizX leader (approx 7' leader) . For this set up I'll go up to 1/8th oz. or 1/6th oz. on a Shroomz jig head (or equivalent) with slightly heavier Roboworm Ned Worms or the Big TRD . I can also quickly convert this set up to shaky head applications as required … I try to stay with the lighter Ned Rig set up if possible because I believe you catch more bass . If fishing deeper or if wind kicks up - I'll go with the bigger Ned Rig set up . *Ned purists like A-Jay don't let wind interfere and are known to throw Ned rigs on a 1/20th oz. jig head in 25 MPH winds (lol !)

I agree - a new popular one is also the 733C for chatter baits / spinner baits (all graphite with tip flexibility with transition for backbone).

In the last several weeks I bought various lipless crank baits , regular crank baits and even vibrating jigs - all in RED color (or some combination of red / orange craw colors) . My objective was to exclusively use these red , red / orange combo colors for the colder , pre-spawn period exclusively . Fast forward today to the reality my large city area of Georgia has been ordered to shelter in place thru April 15th , established a police enforced curfew and closed all public parks (including most boat ramps fishing access) thru April 15th as well . With the above situation in mind - it doesn't look like I'm going to be able to use these new red , red / orange combo hard baits this year … *However , while on the topic of red color hard baits for pre-spawn : What months and or water temperature do you predominantly throw red , red / orange color hard baits ? Is there a max month in Spring (I.e. April) or max water temperature (i.e. 65 degrees F.) where you find the red , red orange hard bait colors no longer produce thus you move on to shad (whites , silvers) or Bluegill / Craw colors (Green Pumpkin , Green Pumpkin variation , Black/Blue) colors ? Thanks in advance for sharing your experiences and replies !

Any favorite Swimon colors for your chatterbaits ? Pearl is a given , then Green Pumpkin . Hematoma and maybe the Chartreuse / Green Pumpkin Swirl … The Red Flame Thrower looks killer for that limited Spring window we are in now !

I would not hesitate to buy the Swimon - the only thing close to it is the SK Perfect Plastics Blade Minnow (at almost twice the price) . Green Pumpkin or Green Pumpkin / Chartreuse Swirl , Pearl , Hematoma and Flamethrower (Spring) would be my choices to cover my Bluegill and Shad color vibrating jigs .

Booyah 1/4 oz. Chartreuse / White Spinner Bait (Colorado / Willow Combo)

DitchPanda : Nice Find !! … I recently discovered the sister bait to the Swimon - the Big Bite Baits Kamakazi Craw which has a similar construction . Like the Kamakazi Swimon , the Pearl and Green Pumpkin colors would cover the majority of needs . *The Green Pumpkin color in the Kamakazi Craw may be the best Green Pumpkin color I have ever seen (next to my Zoom favorites) . The Pearl White is a great Pearl color too (not too bright or white) … I'll have to figure out how to buy the Swimon and get it shipped to me (without the wife knowing) now that I'm working from home !

*Good Idea … The VMC "Drop Dead" EWG weighted hook could be used as well .

Thanks for replies to date -if a scrounger head is mentioned then a super fluke chatterbait trailer should work too .

Looking for new Super Fluke applications (besides the traditional weightless EWG 4/0 method) ... What are your other methods for using a Super Fluke besides weightless on a EWG hook ?

*Here are some great trailer & color recommendations to run with this new "Hot Sauce" color Jan. thru Mar. : Net Bait Paca Chunk Sr. Green Pumpkin Red , Ruby Red Zoom Ultra Vibe Speed Craw : Cajun Craw, Spanish Craw, Ruby Red, Green Pumpkin Red Zoom Z Craw Jr. : Cajun Craw, Spanish Craw , Green Pumpkin Red Zoom Swimmin' Chunk : Ruby Red Strike King Rage Craw : Delta Red , Green Pumpkin Strike King Rage Menace : Delta Red , Green Pumpkin Berkley Power Bait Chigger Craw 4": Green Pumpkin ** For the Green Pumpkin color trailers - dye the craw tips Orange or Red with JJ's Magic !

Thanks for replies to date - While the Moaner brand EWG (weighted / unweighted) I'm looking for EWG toad hooks I can but locally (i.e. BPS , DSG , Cabela's , etc.).