7” powerworm is one my top 3 baits all year. 

How do you guys set the hook on a 10" worm?

 

Do you wait a little bit before you crack them?

Red shad 10” Power worm is always solid, but a 9” BPS “triple ripple” in red shad is the deal after dark.

 

1 hour ago, HawkeyeSmallie said:

How do you guys set the hook on a 10" worm?

 

Do you wait a little bit before you crack them?

 

I drop the tip, reel into weight and sweep, lift and continue reeling.  If the weight isn't there, I kill it and dead stick for as long as I can stand it.  All of it seems to happen just a little slower on the initial reeling than how I treat a jig bite.  The gammy g-finesse hybrid hookup ratio has been stellar since I switched to it.

 

scott

I use 7 1/2" and 10" worms all the time. I'm partial to the ones made by Bitter's Bait and Tackle out of Florida. I don't need many colors -- Red Shad/ Green Glitter, Junebug, Tequila Sunrise/Green Glitter, and Candybug/Gold Glitter are about all I use.

On 7/13/2025 at 5:16 AM, LrgmouthShad said:

Mag 2 and ol monster are my favorites.

X2

4 hours ago, HawkeyeSmallie said:

Do you wait a little bit before you crack them?

I never intentionally wait on a hookset, and that includes a big worm. Realization, followed by dropping the rod, reeling the slack, and sticking them is more than enough time for them to get the whole thing, and it’s more than enough time for them to reject it!

Dick Trask used 3 1/2” Screamer ribbon tail* worm on a 3/32 oz dart head jig to catch limits of suspended big bass 30 years before FFS! How Dick knew where the bass were located….he never disclosed his secret. 
Tom

* U.S. Baits own’s the Flutter Craft tooling for Screamers and 4 1/2” Flutter Tails.

15 hours ago, RRocket said:

So is this a big fish bait only then? 

No, just as a Ned is only a small fish bait.  I've caught 12in. and 20in. on both.  

A ribbon tail is a little more subtle than a curly tail, but in the same ballpark.

As you can see from some of the pics here a good old round bend, off-set worm hook is what I and others use for longer worms. I just seem to have a better hook up with them vs. EWGs.

18 hours ago, HawkeyeSmallie said:

How do you guys set the hook on a 10" worm?

 

Do you wait a little bit before you crack them?

A hefty sweep set. As far as missing bites and timing, I think it depends on the day. Sometimes perch and bluegill and baby bass will nip at the tails. If that's the case I usually feel a bunch of little ticks in a row followed by either nothing or a quick little aggressive pull as they swim off with the tail in their mouths. If it's happening a lot I will avoid setting the hook and let them drop it, but it usually takes a bit to key in on that because sometimes small and medium bass will feel similar if they're hitting it aggressively. Other days it's just one solid THUNK and then weight, those I hit them immediately. If they're more finicky sometimes it's just you feel weight or no weight at all. In those cases I reel down a bit to make sure something is actually there and then hit them. I'm not "waiting" but there's a bit more hesitation as I am reeling down. As soon as I "know" it's a fish I'm still hitting them. 

For you guys throwing the bigger worms as a search bait/target bait going down the bank (aka not offshore), are you using the normal range of texas rig weights or do you change specifically for the big worms?  My go to is a beaver type with a 3/8 tungsten.  In 5-12' of water that's a good combo as a baseline.  If they aren't eating that and I 'know' they should be, then I'll go up to a 1/2 first and look for reaction bites.  I rarely go lighter, since a slower fall rate usually means they are on a finesse bite which means I'm throwing a different rod and bait.  Do you treat the ribbontails and big worms similarly?  Offshore I'll throw a big worm with a half ounce usually.

4 hours ago, casts_by_fly said:

For you guys throwing the bigger worms as a search bait/target bait going down the bank (aka not offshore), are you using the normal range of texas rig weights or do you change specifically for the big worms?  My go to is a beaver type with a 3/8 tungsten.  In 5-12' of water that's a good combo as a baseline.  If they aren't eating that and I 'know' they should be, then I'll go up to a 1/2 first and look for reaction bites.  I rarely go lighter, since a slower fall rate usually means they are on a finesse bite which means I'm throwing a different rod and bait.  Do you treat the ribbontails and big worms similarly?  Offshore I'll throw a big worm with a half ounce usually.

Basically as little weight I can get away with for the wind and depth I'm fishing. Like you said deeper structure I usually go to 1/2oz, shallow I try to stick to 1/4oz unless it's super windy. 

When are you guys throwing a ribbon tail vs a curly tail? 

7 hours ago, MassYak85 said:

Basically as little weight I can get away with for the wind and depth I'm fishing. Like you said deeper structure I usually go to 1/2oz, shallow I try to stick to 1/4oz unless it's super windy. 

Funny enough that’s what I had rigged up for tonight before I asked the question.  No wind, modest weed cover.  I went with a 1/4 in a needle nose weight.  On the rod I used it was perfect for the 10” worms.  Borderline enough weight for the 7” worm.  I’ll bump down a power next time for that.  Landed one on each worm so not quite what I was hoping, but then again this lake has been giving me trouble all year. 

I probably throw a 7" Power worm or culprit as often as I do a Senko. Same with the old school curly tail worms (Love the GYB Curly tail worms). It is rare that a Bass will not grab a weightless ribbon tail worm after a missed topwater strike. Granted a Senko style bait is more popular but I believe by Mid Summer Bass have seen plenty of Stick worms. 

 

Culprit Fat max is a fantastic flipping and pitching worm as well. Thick body holds the hook well and shows a unique profile. 

 

I am a believer that fish see the same Black and blue and junebug senko's all day long here in Florida and I also like that I can fish the ribbon tail worm a bit faster and in more ways. Kind of can double as a swimming worm/Speed worm, Shaky head etc. 

Thanks for reminding me. I have neglected the worm for so long. Will be throwing it again soon. lol 

On 7/13/2025 at 4:16 AM, LrgmouthShad said:

Mag 2 and ol monster are my favorites. 

These are about all I will buy. And, just as a side note, if you have an Ollie's store near you, the ones near me have had a lot of both of these for cheap. I have bought Red Bug, June Bug, Watermelon/Red and Green Pumpkin for $3.99 a pack. They usually have Zoom lizards and Trick Worms too. 

On 7/14/2025 at 3:58 PM, softwateronly said:

 

I drop the tip, reel into weight and sweep, lift and continue reeling.  If the weight isn't there, I kill it and dead stick for as long as I can stand it.  All of it seems to happen just a little slower on the initial reeling than how I treat a jig bite.  The gammy g-finesse hybrid hookup ratio has been stellar since I switched to it.

 

scott

What size g finesse are you using for 7-10in worms? 

9” to 12” worms I use Owner Cover shot HD 5/0 or Cover shot original 4/0 depending on the worm diameter not length. 6” to 7” size 3/0 cover shot original.

The old saying bass don’t have hands applies to hook set, detect it set it!

Tom

I throw em a good 50% of the time from June-August. 10” the go to size, it catches everything. If you take one and ball it up in your hand it’s smaller than most jigs. 
 

I mostly throw them either on offshore structure or weed edges/flats. If I haven’t located fish yet and am probing deep spots I’ll use a heavy Carolina rig. That lets me fish faster and quickly discern bottom contours. If I’m throwing into weeds or trying to slowly pick apart a spot I’ll Texas rig with the lightest weight I can get away with. 

On 7/12/2025 at 9:21 PM, papajoe222 said:

I know a lot of anglers that don't consider a ribbon tail a go to bait for summer, but I'm here to tell you that, like a jig, you should consider having one rigged on your deck. Big long ones to short 4in. ones are a good producer of fish, especially in the summer. Yes, creature baits, craws and beavers will produce, but that worm is just something those girls can't resist. They'll dart out from the weeds to open water to inhale one.  I call them the Zara Spook of the bottom for that ability to draw fish to them.

Big, long worms have been producing better than average fish during the summer since they were first introduced. Although the first oversized worm I threw was a Mann's Jelly Worm, I all but abandoned them when the ribbon tails hit the market. Like their big brothers, small ones produce and not just smaller fish. Texas Rig, Carolina Rig, split shot,  or as a dressing for a bare jig, you may want to give them another look. 

What color is your fave?

I keep seeing all the YTers claiming purple or variations of purple are best in summers hottest months

On 7/14/2025 at 6:23 PM, Jar11591 said:

I never intentionally wait on a hookset, and that includes a big worm. Realization, followed by dropping the rod, reeling the slack, and sticking them is more than enough time for them to get the whole thing, and it’s more than enough time for them to reject it!

I've watched literally countless dozens of underwater videos of 100% wild bass from 1.5lbs to 5+pounders in their natural habitat completely engulf and spit out every type of soft bait and jig on the market on a slack line so fast I KNOW I must miss a HUGE number of bass because they engulfed and rejected my bait before I ever had a chance to sence them on my line. That's why when I'm fishing a soft plastic or any bottom bumping bait I now only use high vis braid to copolymer and watch my braid as closely as possible.

My big worm colors are:

 

Red Shad - evenings and early morning, overcast.

 

Fire and Ice or Plum - sunny conditions

 

Black/blue flake - night

 

 

 

 

Just FTHOI I had my son this time last year try a 10" BPS ribbon tail worm in Blue Flex and he caught 8 bass in six hours. He's currently in summer school for collage and between school and work has had few off days to fish and he is counting the hours till summer school ends this thursday as he and his buds are leaving for a trip two day to Cedar Point AP in Ohio and three days of bass fishing some local lakes we found over the last three tips I took he and his brother to Cedar Point AP. One spot is two larger pounds right next to each other that don't look like they hold a goldfish but we did outstanding there back in June so I'm hoping he and his friends will do as well. 

 

First time I ever used a 10" worm was in 1989 while fishing friends private lake in the middle southwest of Indiana on the suggestion of the our host. I then was use to only ever using 6 or 7' worms and couldn't believe a 10lb bass could eat a worm that big but man was I ever wrong. Cought all the 1.5-3lb bass I could ever want on that 10" worm I'm guessing was a Culprit. Remember it was black grape in color. I didn't realize at that age just how lucky I was to get to fish three strip pit lakes full of bass crappie and bluegills almost nobody ever fished for. ONLY time in my life I ever caught over 50 largemouth bass in a day, day after day.

A lot of my big bass come on the big worm especially in the summer.  Favorites being the Zoom Ol Monster and the Berkley Power worm.  I need to try some others.

 

On 7/27/2025 at 12:11 PM, 10,000 lakes Bassin said:

What size g finesse are you using for 7-10in worms? 

I always consider the thickness/diameter of the worm when choosing hook size. Thick worms, like the Mag ll I'll go up to a 5/0, but a Mann's Jelly Worm I may only use a 3/0.