another great video, and outstanding explanation of the components and technique by Ike!!! I've mulled around the pros and cons of this rig in comparison to texas rigs, drop shots, wobble heads, and jika rigs... the ability to do what ALL of the techniques do only better just really makes sense. Let's hand it to VMC and Ike for bringing this here so we can all benefit... OUTSTANDING!
Thanks for the comment and open mind Greg. We also thought Ike delivered some legit points. Our staff is looking forward to digging in and expanding our education on the system as well.
I've made these litteraly for years. With paper clips and barrel sinkers. Mainly for drifting cut bait for catfish. But it's the exact same thing. That's awesome to see something so close designed and sold!!
Fished it for the first time last weekend here in NC. Solid set up. Fished it in the narlyist laydowns and it punched right through it. Pulled out a few lunkers too ;)
First time hearing about this rig and it looks fantastic. I’m gonna buy some right now. Thanks mike your the man and thanks wired for letting him shared the info.
Hey Ike / Fellow Anglers , I been fishing this rig a while now . Got a tip for ya .Try putting a clicker and bead between the 2 weights , similar to a Carolina rig , works great !!!
Thanks Stuntman, if you're interested, here are a few other recent and informative videos using the rig: 1) Tokyo Rigging Bass Shallow to Deep - First Impressions - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-6f4T8pkQnks.html 2) The Bluegill-Bass Connection for Early Summer - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE--oPU3XnlwiM.html 3) Busting Matted Grass Bass With the Tokyo Rig - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-H505iPnNJSc.html
Lol! tax forms with a little fishing talk mixed in maybe. Yeah, for this vid, he just went off like the radio -- didn't eliminate any of the audio, just all really interesting info and pointers on this rig.
I love this rig. But if plan on changing weights on the fly, have 2 pairs of needle nose. It’s hard to get that wire straight enough to take weights off without 2 pliers. 👍🏻
Reminds me of a Salmon rig (for steelhead with noodle rod), where 3 way swivel used, pencil lead for weight (cut to length to change weight to match the flow). Main difference is no line leader. Could attach hook to 3 way with split ring. Interesting! Often thought about using a steel head rig for bass. I have to check out what a Tokyo rig costs.
Seems like a less discreet drop shot. If you let the line go slack, it will fall to the bottom whether it's wire or line. But maybe in spring I'll do a Tokyo Rig vs Drop Shot head-to-head.
It looks like it would land more fish with the weight being free like that. It seems it would reduce the leverage that a fish has versus a normal pegged Texas rig. Have you found that to be the case with your hookup to land ratio on it?
Absolutely. That's a major strength of the Tokyo Rig. No interference from the weight. Letting the hook penetrate first minimizes the leverage a fish has to throw the bait and also increases the odds for a solid hookset.
I was thinking the same thing. Maybe using a thick mono wire instead of metal....im thinking super clear water. Theres gotta be a way to make this less visible. In dark water this is awesome im sure. But in the ocean down here in the Keys......hmm
So is the devil spear that he was using to demonstrate this rig discontinued or not? Because I’ve been searching for that thing every where and heard it was then see he has them in this video
Yes, most anglers are going to keep it moving. Definitely worth experimenting with floating plastics like Z-Man to see how it counterbalances the weight of the hook at rest.
We have fallen in love with it in the Great lakes region. Practically replaced some Texas rig and flipping situations. AND.. You can fish it on deep rock for Smallmouth. Stay tuned!!
1st, I'm sure when this technique catches on, VMC will expand and do straight shank flippin models. there's plenty of videos out already about making your own too
It's not any diffrent...either way if you go slack on a drop shot or a tokyo rig its gunna collapse and if you keep it tight it's going to stand up just the same..buuut if you punch with it like Ike said its not going to blow the fishes mouth open and that can be a game changer
I punch grass with a heavy drop shot. 65 pound braid and a 1oz torpedo weight and it works just fine. Just because the Tokyo rig has a wire leader most seem to claim that it keeps the hook off the bottom because of the rigid wire. Nonsense...Cast it out and drop your rod tip after the rig hits bottom and see if the wire is holding the bait off the bottom on a slack line. A rigid line is what keeps the bait above the weight and It doesn't matter if you have a braid leader or a wire leader. Whoever came up with this rig is very smart because it is just a wire leader drop shot, nothing more and they are selling a bunch of them.
Fluorocarbon or braid depending conditions and angler preference. Works well with both. We have noticed a performance enhancement using braid on long casts (retrieving swim baits deep) - swinging jigs situation. Better feel and hook sets.
Hey Gaga, your standard fluorocarbon or braid flipping and pitching line works great. We've swam swimbaits across the bottom in 30 feet of water using 15lb fluorocarbon but 20lb fluoro is probably the most common for shallow, heavy cover applications. If you're a braid person, then 30-65lb will work depending on the cover. In general, favor the smaller diameter lines in deeper water or where heavy cover isn't as much of an issue and scale up based on the cover. Thanks for watching!
It's a welded steel O-ring. This VMC product video breaks down the actual bait specs in greater detail with some graphics: wired2.fish/RapRU-vidTokyoRig
