Few techniques in the world of bass fishing can match the wacky rig’s ability to get a bite. Wacky rig soft plastic worms and stickbaits have a tantalizing appeal that even the pickiest bass usually can’t resist. However, this presentation also has its drawbacks.
The main downside to the Wacky Rig’s effectiveness is its efficiency, at least in terms of time. Although you can offer this bait to bass that don’t see a bait often by working it under and around cover, fishing efficiently with a Wacky Rig takes time. Simply because these baits fall very slowly. You can twist the hook and add a nail weight to the nose of the worm to speed things up, effectively turning your Wacky Rig into a Neko Rig. However, if you want to maintain the same horizontal fall as a Wacky Rig, you’ll need something different.
This is where a product like the WOO! Tungsten Wacky Jig comes in. Combined with a soft plastic, your Wacky Rig will drop faster, allowing you to cover more water. Let’s talk in more detail about how the WOO! Wacky Jig gets the job done.
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The details matter
The WOO! Tungsten Wacky Jig features a super sharp wide gape wacky hook with a vertical eye that has a tungsten ball molded into it. These heads are finished in either pumpkin green or black and come in three weight options: 1/16 ounce, 1/8 ounce, 3/16 ounce. Also protruding from the jig head is a single wire weed guard that provides significant protection for the hook point running in and behind the line.
USING THE WOO! TUNGSTEN WACKY JIG
First, tie on the jig head – preferably to a spinning rod combo with a braided main line and a fluorocarbon leader. You can also fish a weighted wacky jig head with a casting rig, but most anglers will probably have more success not only with casting this rig with a spinning rig, but also with landing the fish that bite. A spinning rig has a more accommodating drag system that allows the fish to fight without coming off the small hook.
You can attach a worm or stick bait to the WOO! Wacky Jig by running the hook point through the center of the bait. Or use a Wacky tool to attach an O-ring so your bait won’t come loose when you cast, bite, or fight. Now that you have your bait rigged, simply cast or hop it into any cover you see. Drop the bait on a semi-slack line and wait for the bite. Then you can gradually pull it back a little at a time as desired. For more information on fishing with a Wacky Rig, check out our detailed instructions.
FROM JIG OVERTURN
The WOO! Wacky Jig has three things that other Wacky Jig heads don’t have. The hook is impressively strong and sharp, the weed guard does an excellent job of keeping debris off the hook, and the tungsten head is far superior to lead – both in terms of reduced size and sensitivity.
If you are using a spinning rod and thin line, the hook set will not be able to land a fish. A strong and sharp hook that is thin enough to easily penetrate a fish’s mouth is essential. Weed guard jig heads are also much better for fishing near grass, wood and other cover than open hooks that get snagged easily. The dense, small diameter tungsten head falls faster and offers more sensitivity than lead, allowing you to cover the water effectively and efficiently.
PERSONAL EXPERIENCE
I’ve had one of these wacky jigs rigged and on hand since last month. In late summer, it can be really tough to get a bite here in Alabama. A wacky rig will certainly attract a bite. However, the slow fall of a weightless wacky rig (which is sometimes necessary in the spring to get a fish to bite) isn’t justified in the summer. The fish are also a bit deeper now, so I’ve found that in the summer, it’s more useful to have a shaky head or drop shot on deck to pick up and throw into isolated cover rather than a weightless wacky rig.
By adding weight to my worm, I was able to cast the WOO! Wacky Jig around isolated cover and catch a few fish that I might not have caught otherwise. I found this especially useful since I fish parallel grass lines on my home lakes. Every few hundred yards I’ll come across an isolated log 20 to 40 feet from the vegetation in 12 to 20 feet of water. I’d pick up the Wacky Jig, cast it to the log, and get more and more bites from a bass hanging on the cover.
The same fish would have taken a wobblehead or dropshot, but the slower falling Wacky Jig was certainly effective on fish holding in that deeper cover near the surface. Chances are the dropshot or wobblehead shot right past them as it fell.
The hook has proven to be sturdy and sharp and the point has held up to several weeks of catches and cover encounters on the two I’ve used. The only negative aspect I’ve noticed is that the paint has chipped on both. The tungsten head underneath the paint is a dull, dark grey color so I don’t think it’s that important. This is worth mentioning as many of WOO! Fishing’s weights have a “never chip” finish. However, these don’t use the same process, they appear to be painted using a more traditional process.
FINAL THOUGHTS
The WOO! Tungsten Wacky Jigs come three to a pack and range in price from $5.99 to $6.89 depending on size (1/16 for $5.99, 1/8 for $6.29, and 3/16 for $6.89). The two color options are pumpkin green and black, but in my experience the color doesn’t last long on the head and you’ll likely end up with a dark metal head over time.
The hook is impressive in its strength and sharpness. Additionally, the single wire weedguard is both effective and unobtrusive, making it a better choice for a finesse technique than the bushier weedguards some other Wacky Jigs use.
The bottom line is that the WOO! Wacky Jig catches fish and is an extra tool for catching a random bass while otherwise searching the bank. I can still cover the water quickly, which means more casts and more opportunities to make the most of a difficult bite. If you’re obsessive about your gear, the paint job might be a problem for you. As far as effectiveness goes, this jig head is top notch.
Buy from Tackle Warehouse
Buy at WOO! Tungsten
