What are your go-to WEEDLESS finesse techniques?

[dmc575]

Tried neko, ned, tubes and they all have exposed hooks. I make it about 2-3 casts before i get snagged. Tired of that....but I gotta get better at finesse fishing!

Forgot to try the stupid tube yesterday....but im looking for other weedless techniques. Im hoping to not have to drop shot....but im not sure i have many other options beside that and the stupid tube. Even though its a different animal imo...maybe ill have to start throwing super light finesse jigs? Dont wanna do that cuz in my opinion jigs arent a true finesse technique.

[Phrog Phil]

Who cares if it’s a “true” finesse technique? If a light jig gets me fish then I can call it anything I want! A small Texas rigged senko type bait can be good I’m grass.

[KMcClure]

Take a Neko hook and Texas rig a TRD with it and put a Neko weight in the bottom of the ned. Weedless ned rig

[Walkabout7781]

Try my "Dumb Bass Rig" with a Zoom Trick Worm. I use 15 or 20 lb braid, a 3/0 EWG hook in the head, and a 1/8" Neko weight or #8 decking screw in the tail. Works great in reeds, rip-rap, bank fishing, etc. Might lose the tail of the worm, but seldom the hook end. It stands straight up with the tail on the bottom. It'll work with a floating type of Senko clone, too, like the BPS Stick-O or Yum Dinger. I just jiggle it a little, occasionally.

[dmc575]

Who cares if it’s a “true” finesse technique? If a light jig gets me fish then I can call it anything I want! A small Texas rigged senko type bait can be good I’m grass.

I throw a weightless T Rig senko often now...but i dont really consider it a finesse technique the way i fish it. Im thinking more spinning rod stuff, because even if I went with a light jig I would throw it on a casting rod for hookset reasons. Wondering what weedless (lighter)spinning rod baits you all throw.

Take a Neko hook and Texas rig a TRD with it and put a Neko weight in the bottom of the ned. Weedless ned rig

I got all that stuff so ill give it a shot!

Try my "Dumb Bass Rig" with a Zoom Trick Worm. I use 15 or 20 lb braid, a 3/0 EWG hook in the head, and a 1/8" Neko weight or #8 decking screw in the tail. Works great in reeds, rip-rap, bank fishing, etc. Might lose the tail of the worm, but seldom the hook end. It stands straight up with the tail on the bottom. It'll work with a floating type of Senko clone, too, like the BPS Stick-O or Yum Dinger. I just jiggle it a little, occasionally.

Sounds similar to what McClure suggested but an upsized version. Ill definitely try this.

Now you all mentioning that...I shouldve thrown that fat ika and put a weight in the tail like you all mention. I got a couple bags of that

[catdude28]

I still like to use an HP hook with a tube, weighted inside either 1/8 or 1/16 ounce. Skin hook the tube so it is weedless. Old school, but still works in the weeds. Skips well too.

[DrewFlu33]

You said you don't want to drop shot, but I've found that Texas rigging a drop shot with something like a Roboworm Rebarb hook over a cylinder shaped weight works really well. It's amazing how much better it will come through weeds and other cover, and it still sticks them with a drop shot style "reel set."

The micro jigs like the Z-Man Finesse ShroomZ jig or Missile Baits Micro Jig are good options, and at something like 1/8 oz and with light wire hooks, you're probably not throwing those on casting gear.

You can also Texas rig a Neko rig...Wired2Fish has an article about it where they call it the Chicken Rig.

[Walkabout7781]

Gary Yamamoto talked about his "Chicken Rig", and I was trying that with an EWG hook on a Zoom Trick Worm....didn't work, hook would not stay put in the middle of the worm. Maybe some super glue would have fixed that? That's when I just swapped things around, putting the hook in the nose. After I started catching fish with it, I had to come up with a name for it, right? That's how it became the "Dumb Bass Rig". The "B's" are silent, OBTW.

I read that the "Chicken Rig" is not a new rig, but one used in saltwater. I really don't care about that. It seems to me that the Neko Rig and Chicken Rig are one and the same, possibly with minor change to the hook, or not. The new Neko weights are merely a result of the manufacturers jumping onboard with something better than a sheet metal or decking screw. I'm sure glad we can still use lead weights.

[DrewFlu33]

I've found that you need to use a round bend to get the "Chicken Rig" to work...why I really can't say, but you're dead on that it won't work with an EWG. It also helps to use a smaller hook than you'd think - I've used like a size 1 or at most 1/0 offset round bend with success with Trick Worms.

You're also dead on that the Chicken Rig is basically a Neko rig. The difference is an exposed hook on the Neko while you Texas rig the hook in the middle(ish) of the worm for the Chicken Rig.

For my Neko / Chicken rigging, 99% of the time I use the heaviest tungsten nail weights that OM Fishing Sinkers sells. Stick them in, super glue or Mend-It behind it so it doesn't get flung out when fighting a fish or skipping it around. They're a little spendy at something like 50 cents a piece, but having a weight hanging outside the worm is no bueno for me with all the vegetation I'm fishing around and you'd be surprised at how few you lose if you glue the weight in, and use something to reinforce the worm in the case of a Neko rig.

[Walkabout7781]

While I first started using #8 decking screws, recently got some VMC Half Moon Neko weights https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/VMC_...page-HMWW.html and have not had any problem with them slinging out or catching weeds. I'd originally planned on using shorter panhead sheet metal screws, but didn't. I don't know that I'll stock up on them, but they seem to work just fine. Luckily, these are not "Ike endorsed" or "Ike Special Edition" items!