Wacky Rig Thoughts

Lately we have been doing really well on Smallies wacky rigging 5″ senkos, however it seems as if we have been hooking most of the bites only to have what is a seemingly large mitfull of them come loose before making it into the boat.

I have been using a Gamakatsu 3/0 Finesse Wide Gap hook while rigging
Hooks Link

and I can assure you that the hooks VERY sharp and hooksets are similar to swinging a baseball bat backwards.

Anyone else run into this issue? Or something of the sort?

I use the same hooks and sometimes experience the same issues. Lately when this happens I cut my worm in half and that helps. You would think a small stub like that would be a problem but most of the time it is not when they arent willing to inhale the larger size.

I use Yamamoto Split Shot hooks and O-rings all the time and don’t have that problem. I fish Wacky Rig alot and have cashed a couple checks with them. It’s worth a try.

on the post link above they show the owner misquito hook I use,in 1 or 1/0 and haven’t had any problems. A3/0 seems pretty big? for smallies.
Stan

I use owner mosquitos as well but the gamakatsus should do just fine. you might want to try setting the hook upwards and giving it more of a pop. what kind of set up are you throwing it on? I throw em on a spinning rod coupled with braid and a fluoro leader and generally dont have a problem losing fish. one last question. the ones that you are hooking, where is the hook in their mouth? 90% of the time, mine are buried in the roof of their mouth

I use 4/0 & 5/0 weedless hooks of the same brand/shape, and I rarely have any hookup issues. Like phishirman said, the hooks are almost always buried in the roof of the mouth.

I rigging mine on a baitcasting St. Croix Avid MH w/ fast action, with 50lb braid(no leader).

My first thought was your rod might be too light and you’re not getting good hook penetration.

Thanks for the response guys, I have been using a 6’10” MH which even seems to be a little stiff for being a MH. That was my original thought with the issue. I figured “I’m not getting enough of a hookset.”

Turns out I don’t think that was the case. Those Gamakatsu 3/0 hooks shouldnt be too large I thought. They would barely encircle a dime, however as it has been mentioned maybe not so much the size of the hook but potentially it’s design. Most of the fish were in fact hooked right in the roof of the mouth and were a pain to unhook in some cases. I’m off to find a better hook. Or to at least put that theory to rest in my mind.