by Keith Hamburger

Created on: February 04, 2009

The Texas rig is the most traditional way of rigging a plastic worm. It is one of the most productive rigs used for black bass; however, they can also be effective on many other game fish.

To tie a Texas rig you will need a slip sinker, preferably a bullet style and a worm hook. Other than your bait, that's all. Slide the sinker onto the line with the point towards the rod and then tie the hook on the end. That's all there is to tying a Texas rig.

Putting the bait on the hook is done in a weedless style. The worm hook has a short offset on the shank. Run the hook into the center of your plastic worm and in about a quarter of an inch or so before bringing the point of the hook out the side of the worm. Slide the worm onto the offset portion of the hook shank.

To complete baiting the hook lay the worm alongside the hook to get a good idea where the hook will go into the worm. Reinsert the hook back into the worm so where it will lie naturally and strait. Push the hook all of the way through the worm to puncture a small hole through the worm and then pull the worm back to cover the point of the hook.

This rig covers the hook so it won't hang up on obstructions. When you have a strike, however, the fish will bite down pushing the hook through the worm.

If you wish you can peg the sinker with a toothpick. Sometimes the action of the sinker sliding up and down the line as the worm is pulled over obstructions will entice the fish to bite. Other times the action of a weight fixed in place will be more successful.

With the sinker allowed to slide on the line you might also benefit from placing a glass or brass bead between the sinker and the hook. This will add a clicking noise to your rig as the sinker slides back against the bead that sometimes will drive bass to strike.

As any fisherman knows different colors of plastic baits will work at different times in different places. You can also try different types of baits. There is a near limitless variety of shapes and sizes of soft baits. Anything of an appropriate size to match your hook might be effective. Lizards can give an action that will be more successful in some cases. Plastic crawdads might also be effective.

By experimenting with subtle differences using a Texas rig you could find a technique that works well in nearly any situation. Always a standard of tournament anglers it is likely to be one of your favorite rigs for fishing soft plastics as well.

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