Jika and Tokyo weedless SP rigs

[savit]

Hi All. Just wondering if anyone used Jika and/or Tokyo weedless SP rigs (both are popular over the pond,  and are easy DIY project) on local estuary/saltwater species,  and what is the opinion/results?

[Little_Flatty]

Haven't heard of these but I do have a few comments re weedless plastics.

I have been fishing a lot more recently with EWG hooks and a weedless presentation. Because I'm mostly landbased, snagging is a part of fishing life for me and I hate the wasted time of re-rigging, considering most of my fishing is local and my sessions are often <= 30 mins. The other benefit I like of fishing this way is that you don't need to carry 1000 different weight/size jighead combinations - just a few different sizes of ewg hooks and a handful of sinkers.

Initially I was allowing the hook to clear the plastic but found it still snaggable. I've been hiding the hooks a progressively more and found significantly less snags and have had a few trips in a row where I didn't get snagged! That said, I did miss the only decent hit I got the other morning, so maybe there's a price to pay for the weedlessness. It's still a work in progress. Probably the best compromise is to allow the hook to clear the plastic and then stretch it and gently hide the barb, but this works better for some plastics (e.g. Z-man) than others, which might break.

Edited July 24, 2021 by Little_Flatty

[Little_Flatty]

Further, thanks for bringing up this topic! I think the Tokyo rig might be my answer to one of my previous questions regarding wire forming!

[savit]

30 minutes ago, Little_Flatty said:

Haven't heard of these but I do have a few comments re weedless plastics.

I have been fishing a lot more recently with EWG hooks and a weedless presentation. Because I'm mostly landbased, snagging is a part of fishing life for me and I hate the wasted time of re-rigging, considering most of my fishing is local and my sessions are often <= 30 mins. The other benefit I like of fishing this way is that you don't need to carry 1000 different weight/size jighead combinations - just a few different sizes of ewg hooks and a handful of sinkers.

Initially I was allowing the hook to clear the plastic but found it still snaggable. I've been hiding the hooks a progressively more and found significantly less snags and have had a few trips in a row where I didn't get snagged! That said, I did miss the only decent hit I got the other morning, so maybe there's a price to pay for the weedlessness. It's still a work in progress. Probably the best compromise is to allow the hook to clear the plastic and then stretch it and gently hide the barb, but this works better for some plastics (e.g. Z-man) than others, which might break.

I dont take all 1000, just those applicable to the fishing area/targetted species and a few spares. 

If I was out of weighted weedless hooks - I was  just clipping large splitshot or halfcut ball sinker on a hook. 

Hidden barb/hook tip of a weedless hook in ZMan SP worked well for me as well.  

 

22 minutes ago, Little_Flatty said:

Further, thanks for bringing up this topic! I think the Tokyo rig might be my answer to one of my previous questions regarding wire forming!

No worries. For more inspiration, have a look at Ocean Angler Cyclops jigheads, Nitro Elevators jigheads, Mustad Fastach  clips, Mustad Fastach Football Weight.