Yesterday I went through a bag of senkos in less than an hour on a wacky rig.  I've used a wacky/neko hook run through the worm, the VMC crossover rings, the Core tackle wacky shot, and a Gamakatsu circle hook run through the worm.  I'm not complaiing, it's a lot of fun, but it would be nice if I didn't have to put on a new worm after every fish.  I bought some Lake Fork tackle Wackin' hooks but haven't tried them yet (tomorrow).

I'm not having any problem catching fish, just hoping somebody can help me figure out a way to keep from losing so many worms or is this the norm and I just got to live with it!

Thank you for your input!

@Lottabass VMC crossover rings do not run the hook through the bait. Or you are using them incorrectly.

@Ski I'm running the hook thru the little hole in the ring, not thru the worm.  Using the ring that fits tight on the worm and still losing worms.  Even a bluegill can pull the worm out of the ring!

Not losing them every time but seems still too much.

@LottabassThey come in a few sizes, have you tried them?

The hooks with the screw lock thingy on them are the worst.  One fish and the worm is so torn up it either comes off on the fight or needs replaced 'cause it's about to come off.

Yep.

@Ski  Yes, I got 4 sizes and use the tightest ring I can get on the worm (senkos, dingers, ochos, trick worms, flick shakes).

I don't think there is another system.

Have you tried just an O ring?

If you are getting 10 bites an hour that's VERY strong! I could only wish for that!

@Ski  No, but I will.  Also gonna try shrink wrap tubing and run the hook thru that...

7 minutes ago, Ski said:

I don't think there is another system.

Have you tried just an O ring?

If you are getting 10 bites an hour that's VERY strong! I could only wish for that!

Yes, fishing has been great.  The wacky bite in the morning has been good.  As the sun gets higher the wacky bite slows down and I can get 'em stroking a jig out deeper.  I am blessed to have good lakes to fish!

When gills are defending their beds this is a common occurrence for me. Even with a tighter than normal band eg 6mm on a standard 5" senko they can get ripped out.

Just put shrink wrap on a magnum trick worm...

7 minutes ago, Peacedivision said:

When gills are defending their beds this is a common occurrence for me. Even with a tighter than normal band eg 6mm on a standard 5" senko they can get ripped out.

Thank you, I'm glad to hear your experience.

SR tubing on a 6" senko...

Shadow makes it look like 2 hooks...it's not.

You can try ElazTech by ZMan. 

Geecrack neko hack. You’re welcome.

It's the pesky Bluegill.

Don't fall for the " peck peck peck ".

 

Senkos are loaded with tons of salt and the plastic is very soft.

 

Lately I have been using the Crush City Pig Stick with a 5mm crossover ring. I’ve had maybe one pulled off by a sunfish. 

 

The pig stick is pretty durable and has a great action when it descends and vibrates a bit when you pull it.

I use shrink wrap tubing. I don't even shrink it..just choose the tightest size.

 

Then hook through shrink wrap and worm.

 

I don't even lose delicate Flick Shakes using this method. As an alternative to the shrink wrap, some prefer silicone tubing.

 

The Geecrack Nemo Hack is quite excellent too! 

3 hours ago, RRocket said:

I use shrink wrap tubing. I don't even shrink it..just choose the tightest size.

 

Then hook through shrink wrap and worm.

 

I don't even lose delicate Flick Shakes using this method. As an alternative to the shrink wrap, some prefer silicone tubing.

 

The Geecrack Nemo Hack is quite excellent too! 

Thank you!  I put shrink wrap tubing on some baits to try tomorrow.  Also added some pieces of nail for when I think a faster fall is needed or if wind is up.  I shrank them some with a heat gun and it didn't appear to hurt the worms.

4 hours ago, Pumpkin Lizard said:

Senkos are loaded with tons of salt and the plastic is very soft.

 

Lately I have been using the Crush City Pig Stick with a 5mm crossover ring. I’ve had maybe one pulled off by a sunfish. 

 

The pig stick is pretty durable and has a great action when it descends and vibrates a bit when you pull it.

Thanks for this. I had/have been using the crossover rings intermixed with the geecrack neko hack. I hadn’t tried a 5 on the pig stick, but the 6 was ok. I used a 7 one time and threw my worm and nail weight straight through it…

1 hour ago, Smirak said:

Thanks for this. I had/have been using the crossover rings intermixed with the geecrack neko hack. I hadn’t tried a 5 on the pig stick, but the 6 was ok. I used a 7 one time and threw my worm and nail weight straight through it…

I might try a 4mm next time. I am

new to this style of wacky rigging but I think I get a better hook up ratio and the bait lasts much longer. I caught an absolutely stupid amount of fish with them after the spawn.

4 hours ago, Lottabass said:

Thank you!  I put shrink wrap tubing on some baits to try tomorrow.  Also added some pieces of nail for when I think a faster fall is needed or if wind is up.  I shrank them some with a heat gun and it didn't appear to hurt the worms.

Shrinking doesn't hurt the worm if your're careful. I just never bothered as (luckily) the ones I use fit tightly without shrinking.

 

Please report back on your results after you try this! 

Yesterday I went armed for the wacky war!  I had 10 assorted stick worms with shrink wrap tubing.  I use a wacky/neko hook on these.  I also used a Lake Fork tackle hyper wack'n hook.  Both of these setups worked very well as far as not tearing up the worm.  Caught plenty of bass so gave them a good test.  

The Core Tackle wacky shot is a 1 worm/1 bass rig.  It is a worm ripper and I'm not using them anymore.  I still like the VMC crossover rings but still need to solve the problem of losing worms.

 

50 minutes ago, Lottabass said:

  Caught plenty of bass so gave them a good test.  

 

 

 

Did you lose any with the shrink wrap? 

1 minute ago, RRocket said:

Did you lose any with the shrink wrap? 

No.  Didn't lose any fish or worms!  Some worms got tore after a few catches but that is normal, I think.

3 minutes ago, Lottabass said:

No.  Didn't lose any fish or worms!  Some worms got tore after a few catches but that is normal, I think.

Oh that's good to hear!