A favorite bait of mine is the Yum Mighty Bug HOWEVER it is so soft that the bait either tears easily or wants to slide down the hook.  For those tinkerers out there, is there anything I can dip the nose of the bait in (a hardener) to make it a little less soft?

If it is just the nose that is getting ripped you could run the tip of a toothpick through the bait and part way into the hook eye and try hitting it with some super glue. I have always used slider style heads for T rigging so I just glue it to the head on the jig.

12 minutes ago, cgolf said:

If it is just the nose that is getting ripped you could run the tip of a toothpick through the bait and part way into the hook eye and try hitting it with some super glue. I have always used slider style heads for T rigging so I just glue it to the head on the jig.

like that. 

Mustad Grip Pin hooks. I've got plastics that are butter soft and had same problems as you. Not anymore. 

 

Roboworm Rebarb hooks. Aaron Martens has a tube vedio on how to make your own using 1/8" diameter shrink sleeve.

I use a piece of Peg-It (rubber peg) through the hook eye cut so about 1/8" sticks out, this acts as a barb and holds the softest plastics.

Tom 

A drop of super glue to affix it to the nose. I do that and it works great. 

A drop of super glue to affix it to the nose. I do that and it works great. I use loctite.

Parasite clips . Problem solved . I use them a lot .

All the above are good options.  Let me add one more -- screw-lock hooks.