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Soft plastic stick baits are among the most versatile and effective lures available. They can be rigged in various ways and fished within inches of the surface out to 20 feet or more. Popular ways to fish a stick bait include going weightless, on a jighead, Tokyo rig, Neko rig, or Carolina rig. But no matter how you rig a stick bait, they are one of the most effective bass baits on almost any fishery.
These baits are collectively called Senkos by most anglers, though a Senko is technically a trademarked name and product of Gary Yamamoto Custom Baits. The Senko, though, is responsible for spawning a whole genre of fishing lures, and thus, it gets the flattery of a lot of imitation. There were a few lures similar to the Senko before its creation—namely, the Slug-Go—but none were exactly like the Senko. And none have since come close to having the impact on the sport that the Senko has.
There have been dozens of baits brought to market by companies looking to capitalize on the Senko craze. Most have been direct knock-offs. A few have elevated the bait design in one way or another, bringing something new to the table. None have unseated the all-time great. The Senko still reigns supreme in the soft plastic stick bait game, but there are some other great ones, too. Here are the best Senko-style baits and what sets them apart.
Best Overall: Yamamoto Senko
Best for Ned Rigs: Z-Man Finesse TRD
Best Scented: PowerBait MaxScent The General
Best New: Rapala Crush City Pig Stick
Best Overall: Yamamoto Senko
Specs
Size: 5 inches
Count: 10
Popular Colors: Watermelon, Black, Green Pumpkin, Bubble Gum
Pros
Expansive color selection (130)
Time-proven effectiveness
Best action
Cons
Not as durable as other baits
The greatest of all time, the Yamamoto Senko, is unparalleled in action. The salt content and profile are the two key elements that create this perfect rate of fall and shimmy. A Senko is the best all-around bait like this, meaning it’s well-suited for techniques like a weightless Texas rig or wacky rig along the surface, as well as deep water techniques like magnum shaky heads and Carolina rigs. Likely responsible for millions of fish catches at this point, and with 130 color options available, no one has a chance of knocking off the Yamamoto Senko.
Best for Ned Rigs: Z-Man Finesse TRD
Specs
Size: 2-¾ inch
Count: 8
Popular Colors: Black Blue Flake, New Money, Canada Craw
Pros
Extremely durable
Buoyant
Cons
A little hard to rig straight
When looking at pint-sized stick baits, the Z-Man Finesse TRD is the best. This bait is made with the same ElaZtech material as the FattyZ, which makes it ideal for a Ned rig. Ned heads are designed so that they’ll stand up on the bottom. The buoyancy of this bait helps the rig do this. Ned rigs also get tons of bites, so it’s easy to go through several packs of baits in a day. Not with the TRD—you can catch dozens of fish on a Ned rig paired with a single Z-Man TRD, which saves time and money.
Best Scented: PowerBait MaxScent The General
Specs
Size: 5-inch
Count: 8
Popular Colors: Baby Bass, Black Blue Fleck, Green Pumpkin, June Bug
Pros
Strong scent
Durable
Cons
Limited colors (11)
Price ($1.25/5-inch bait)
The MaxScent General from Berkley PowerBait is another top performer. This bait has the same basic profile, colors, and sizes as several other brands, but the MaxScent makes it worth mentioning. When you pull one of these baits out of the pack, you know it. The General has a pungent smell, representing something on the bottom of the lake, whether dead or alive. For a lure as subtle and slow as a stick bait, scent can make all the difference when trying to get a fish to bite.
Best New: Rapala Crush City Pig Stick
Specs
Size: 5-inch
Count: 8
Popular Colors: Baby Bass, Black, Black/Blue Flake, Green Pumpkin
Pros
Unique design with notch for O-ring/Crossover Ring
Price ($0.88/5-inch bait)
Packaging
Good scent
Cons
Only available in the 5-inch version
The most recent stick bait to catch my eye is the Rapala Crush City Pig Stick. This bait has a lot going on when you look at the profile that has ringed sections from head to tail and four thicker knots spread out along the way. In the center of the bait, you’ll find a slick section between two of the knots, where you can add an O-ring (or Rapala’s unique Crossover collar) to wacky rig the bait. The two bookend knots on this section keep the O-ring (or collar) from sliding down the worm, like it could on a slick, cylindrical worm.
Strike King KVD Perfect Plastics Ocho
Specs
Size: 4-, 5-, 6-inch
Count: 8
Popular Colors: Green Pumpkin Candy, Black Blue Flake, Amistad Special, Big Tex
Pros
Good color selection (25)
Price ($0.75/5-inch bait)
Proven effective over time
Cons
A little soft
A runner-up to the Yamamoto Senko, the Strike King Ocho is another fantastic soft plastic stick bait. Going with eight (ocho) flat sides instead of a rounded body, the Ocho is slightly different. For what it’s worth, the bait has a coffee-flavored scent, though I think the latte smell is more effective on the anglers than the fish. Regardless, the Ocho is among the softest and saltiest baits on the market. It has a great action on the fall, and it is a fantastic fish catcher.
Yum Dinger
Specs
Size: 3-, 4-, 5-, 6-, 7-inch
Count: 12, 10, 8, 6, 7
Popular Colors: Pumpkin Groove, Dirt Purple, GB Haze, GB Plum, Green Clown
Pros
Best price ($0.50/5-inch bait)
Vast color selection (65)
Proven effective over time
Durable
Cons
A little tough
The Yum Dinger is another long-standing staple in the soft-stick bait genre. With 65 color options and five sizes, this bait sets itself apart from most others when it comes to variety. But it’s the price that makes it so popular. Compared to the Senko, the Yum Dinger is about half the price. These baits are also a bit more durable than others out there.
Z-Man FattyZ
Specs
Size: 5-inch
Count: 6
Popular Colors: Watermelon/Red Flake, June Bug, Green Pumpkin, California Craw
Pros
Durable
Buoyant (great for weighted presentations)
Cons
Floats (not good for wacky rig)
Z-Man created a truly different bait with the FattyZ while staying in the same vein as Senko-style plastics. Looking at the lure, you’ll immediately notice a different profile with clearer head and tail sections. But the material this bait is made with puts it in a lane of its own. Elaztech is a super-durable, highly buoyant material. This makes the FattyZ great for fishing on shaky heads and Carolina rigs. The tail stands up in the water when the bait is rigged on a jighead, and the whole bait floats up off the bottom a bit on a Carolina rig. And thanks to the durability, you can catch a lot more fish per bait.
Nothing Beats the Original Senko
You can take a 5-inch green pumpkin Yamamoto Senko and do 85 percent of what you could do with any of these baits in any size or color, down to cutting it in half and sliding it up on a Ned rig. That being said, there are many options and a few baits that offer something the original Senko does not. It’s up to you how far off into the weeds you want to get with this style of bait. But if you’re looking for some good ones, these are the best Senko-style soft plastic stick baits on the market.
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