The neko rig
A neko rig has a nail weight pushed into the head of a stick worm, which is then wacky-hooked through the middle. The weighted nose drops the worm head-down on the bottom and the tail stands up and waves with the smallest twitch. A Japanese finesse rig for largemouth and smallmouth, fished slow and vertical.
| Component | Spec |
|---|---|
| Main line | Light fluorocarbon, 8 to 12 lb; or a light braid main line to a fluorocarbon leader |
| Hook | Finesse wacky or extra-wide-gap hook, size 2 to 2/0: a #1 to 1/0 suits most stick worms. A weed guard helps in cover |
| Nail weight | A nail weight, 0.9 to 2.6 g (1/32 to 3/32 oz): lighter for a slow fall and the shallows, heavier in deeper water or wind |
| O-ring (optional) | A small silicone O-ring round the middle of the worm, hooked under the ring; makes the worm last many more fish |
| Soft plastic | Straight-tail stick worm, 10 to 15 cm (4 to 6"). Natural tones (green pumpkin, watermelon) in clear water, darker in stained |
What it's for
Largemouth and smallmouth bass on the bottom, in clear and pressured water, when you want a finesse worm worked slowly and almost on the spot. The nail weight in the head sinks the worm nose-down so it stands tail-up on the bottom, and the lightest twitch of the rod makes the tail shake and wave while the worm barely moves. That subtle, vertical, tail-up quiver is hard for a wary bass to ignore, and it lets you fish a single spot, a rock, a stump, a hole in the weed, for as long as it takes. It came out of Japan's hard-fished bass lakes, alongside the jika rig, and it shines anywhere the fish are pressured, the water is clear, or the bite is slow.
The rig at a glance
Read top to bottom, the way it sits. The main line (light fluorocarbon around 8 to 12 lb, or a light braid main line to a fluorocarbon leader) comes down to a finesse hook tied straight to the line with a Palomar knot. A stick worm has a small nail weight, 0.9 to 2.6 g (1/32 to 3/32 oz), pushed into its head, with a touch of the weight left showing so you feel the bottom. The hook passes through the middle of the worm, often under a small silicone O-ring so the worm lasts longer, with the point set facing up toward the tail. The defining detail is that the weight is in the head, not on the line: it makes the worm stand nose-down with the tail up, so a small twitch waves the tail while the worm stays almost in place.
How to build it
- Push the nail weight into the head. Push a nail weight into the head end of the stick worm, in line with the body, leaving a little of the weight showing at the nose so you can still feel the bottom. The weighted head is what stands the worm nose-down.
- Tie on the hook. Tie the finesse hook to the end of the line with a Palomar knot. The Palomar is strong and simple on light fluorocarbon and braid.
- Wacky-hook the worm. Roll a small silicone O-ring onto the middle of the worm if you are using one, then pass the hook under the O-ring, or through the middle of the worm, with the point facing up toward the tail for a better hook-up. The worm now hangs from the middle, head weighted, ready to stand nose-down on the bottom.
How to fish it
Cast it to a spot worth working: a rock, a stump, a dock post, a hole in the weed, a steep bank. Let it fall on a slack line and watch the line, because the weighted head drops it nose-first and bass often take it on the way down. When it lands, the worm stands nose-down with the tail up. Now twitch it gently and almost in place: small shakes of the rod tip make the tail shimmy and wave while the worm stays put, then pause and let it settle again. You can drag it a few inches and let it stand, or hop it slowly along the bottom, but the killer move is the on-the-spot tail-wave over a piece of cover. Keep the line fairly slack so the tail can work. Takes are soft, a tick or a slight weight, so watch the line and lift into anything different. Reel down to a tight line, then sweep the rod up to set the hook.
Where this rig works
The neko rig came out of Japan's pressured bass lakes alongside the jika rig, and that is where it leads: on Lake Biwa and Lake Kawaguchi, worked over rock, weed and dock posts where the fish have seen everything. Across the rest of the atlas it does the same job for largemouth and smallmouth: the smallmouth around the islands and reefs of Lake Erie in Ohio, and the flooded trees and points of the Alqueva reservoir in Portugal. As the atlas grows, every new water that uses a neko rig will link to this same page.
Neko rig questions
Working a finesse worm slowly and almost on the spot for bass. A nail weight in the head stands the worm nose-down with the tail up, and a small twitch makes the tail wave while the worm barely moves. It suits largemouth and smallmouth in clear and pressured water and over isolated cover, especially on a slow bite.
Both hook a stick worm through the middle. A wacky rig has no weight, so it falls slowly and flat with both ends quivering. A neko rig adds a nail weight in the head, so the worm falls nose-first and stands tail-up on the bottom, where a small twitch waves the tail. Wacky for the slow flat fall, neko for the weighted, vertical, bottom presentation.
A nail weight of 0.9 to 2.6 g (1/32 to 3/32 oz), pushed into the head of the worm. Go lighter for a slow fall and the shallows, heavier in deeper water or wind. Leave a little of the weight showing at the nose so you keep contact with the bottom and feel the take.
A Palomar knot, tied straight from the line to the finesse hook, is the only knot you tie. The nail weight pushes into the head of the worm, no knot needed there. Then wacky-hook the worm through the middle, ideally under a silicone O-ring, with the point facing up toward the tail.
Up toward the tail of the worm. With the hook through the middle and the point facing the tail end, you get a better hook-up when a bass takes it, because the worm folds and the point clears the body cleanly on the strike. A silicone O-ring round the worm, hooked under the ring, holds it in place and saves baits.