The Wacky Rig

The Wacky Rig is possibly the most overlooked Bass fishing rig there is. It is overshadowed by the likes of the Texas and Carolina Rigs. However, it is just as effective if not more effective than it's counterparts. The Wacky Rig consists of a Bass hook and soft plastic bait no weighting system is used. The plastic bait is folded in half and the bass hook is pulled straight through the middle of the bait, leaving the hook exposed (as pictured).

The Wacky Rig primarily catches Largemouth Bass but because of the bending action of the lure, smaller fish can also hit the rig. Sized 3 Bass hooks rigged with a Senko worm got me Largemouth Bass and Rock Bass. Perch were intrigued by the rig and would often bite and nibble at it, with this being the case using a smaller hook and small grub could easily produce Perch. The exposed hook makes setting the fish much easier although it sacrifices the ability for the rig to go weedless.

I fell in love with the Wacky Rig while fishing it. I knew it was an alternative to the Texas Rig, but little did I know that it would produce big Bass after big Bass in areas that are extremely over fished. I pulled three of my biggest four Bass out of the water with this rig and that's why I highly recommend it. It's good around the exterior of weed beds and in thin weed beds. This is another excellent rig for structure fishing. During the dog days of summer this rig is best used with slow presentation. It's a great rig for the shallows in still water, although I caught a Bass on it in deep water with heavy current.

The discredits I have for this rigging system are few. The three main features that are problematic with the rig are it's inability to go weedless, it's weightless system and the fact that it loses a lot of Senko worms. Because the hook in straight through the middle of the rig, not much is holding the worm in place. So when larger fish hit, the worm is shredded and eventually thrown off the rig. When fishing in areas of high weed concentration I found myself taking more clumps of seaweed off the hook than fish. Using a weightless system allows you to bring your line in right above the weeds, but it limits your presentation by keeping it above holes in the weeds.

Although the rig is supposed to be weightless I applied a split shot weight 10-12 inches above the hook and found that it let me reach those hard to reach places without negatively effecting the action of the lure. I recommend using dressed grubs, minnows and Senko worms. On this rig I caught a 20 inch 4lb Largemouth, 17 inch 4lb Largemouth, and 16 inch 3.5lb Largemouth. This rig is highly recommended. Tune in next week for the Shad Rap lure.