Alright i’m sure this has been asked by others on this forum, but I want to know some different retrieves I can make with the senko. I usually just do a slow, steady retrieve. But, I know there are different ways to fish them. I am going on another fishing excursion tomorrow with a friend of mine and i want to try and outfish him so i’ll take all the help I can get. Today, we used the same exact kind of senko, same scent, and same color but he outfished me still. Plus, it was even more wierd since we were hitting the same spots. So, i thought about it and narrowed it down to the fact that i think he was using a different retrieve. All help will be appreciated. Thanks.
Use a high vis line with a clear leader if you can, you want to keep an eye on the line as most of your bites will be on the drop. You will know if you get a bite, the line will take off like an hobo chasing a doughnut downhill. I use 10lb mono for senkos unless I’m fishing in a lot of structure or weeds, then I will use 17lb or switch to braid.
First is just the lift and drop method. Cast out, let it settle to the bottom. Lift you rod from 9 o’clock to 12oc. Let the bait settle while you reel in the slack. Repeat this however many times you want before you reel it back in and make another cast.
Second way is to cast out and let the bait settle. Then with a light and slow side sweep of the rod, drag the bait along the bottom. This works very well in submerged grass. Same retrieve as the first but your sweeping your rod to the side, not lifting it upward. You can use a very light bullet weight with this also if you want.
Third, use it like a jig. Go along and hit targets. Pitch to a stump. Let it flutter down. Reel it back in and hit the next object.
You can use all three methods either texas rigged or wacky. You can also nose hook and drop shot it.
You can also use them as topwater, earlier this year I reeled them across light pads. The tail kicked a little as it swam like a baby snake, the little bass would blow up on it but it was hard to get a good hookset.
First is just the lift and drop method. Cast out, let it settle to the bottom. Lift you rod from 9 o’clock to 12oc. Let the bait settle while you reel in the slack. Repeat this however many times you want before you reel it back in and make another cast.
Second way is to cast out and let the bait settle. Then with a light and slow side sweep of the rod, drag the bait along the bottom. This works very well in submerged grass. Same retrieve as the first but your sweeping your rod to the side, not lifting it upward. You can use a very light bullet weight with this also if you want.
Third, use it like a jig. Go along and hit targets. Pitch to a stump. Let it flutter down. Reel it back in and hit the next object.
You can use all three methods either texas rigged or wacky. You can also nose hook and drop shot it.
the thing that makes senkos so attractive is the way it shimmies on the fall. there are alot of things to try to get a different action than your buddy. you can use a nail and weigh 1 side of the bait, that will give it more of a gliding action. you can change the position of the hook when you wacky rig it, insyead of hoking it in the middle move the hook toward 1 end. a bigger hook will give it a faster sink rate. you can rig it wacky style on a drop shot. the best thing about a senko is all the ways to fish it, experament with it. good luck
First is just the lift and drop method. Cast out, let it settle to the bottom. Lift you rod from 9 o’clock to 12oc. Let the bait settle while you reel in the slack. Repeat this however many times you want before you reel it back in and make another cast.
This is the one I prefer. I like to vary the speed of the lift - doing fast mimics a darting baitfish; slow is the baitfish out for a stroll. One important thing with this method is while it’s falling to keep your semi-slack - this allows it to fall with the shimmy yet allows you to feel the hit - also WATCH YOUR LINE.
The other method I use is doing fast twitches almost like you’re walking-the-dog. This great in the lily pads or over heavy weeds. When working like this I kill it in any opening it comes to - hold on to your rod - they will bust the Senko hard fishing it like this.
I’m starting to fish my senkos 90% of the time wacky rigged on a 2/0 EWG. I’ve had better hook up ratios and a better catch rate. I like to fish the wacky rig by letting it sink and pop it as soon as it hits the bottom (very lightly though) And I’ve done well on a “flick shake” style where as I’ll very lightly shake my rod tip as if I were fishing with a flick shake worm. It can be deadly, especially if the fish are suspended, for example I was fishing a tournament this past weekend, and the last hour of the tournament I finally figured out that these fish were suspended in 7-8 foot of water (total depth was 15-17 foot) and I would count my senko down and pop and shake to leave my senko in the strike zone and let the current take the worm whereever at that depth and I managed to catch my limit in about half hour due to that. You can fish a senko any way and theres no right or wrong ways. I just feel that wacky rigged is the best by far, at least for me.
Here is something for you to try which works well for me. I’ll cast it out and let the worm settle to the bottom and reel in the slack line. I’ll wait for several seconds and if no bite occures, I’ll hold the rod in one hand while grasping my line with the other between the reel and the rods first guide. I’ll then give the line a few short tugs on the line making it gently squirm. Then I leave it be for several seconds and repeat. I do this by tugging on the line with my fingers, not the rod tip.
Allstar, I like the shaking method too. Especially when a bass only pecks at it, and doesn’t take it on the first hit. I will raise up my rod tip a little, shake the Senko, and let it fall back down to the fish. A lot of times I can tease a bass into biting it.
