I should mention that I probably won't cover a lot of techniques using softbaits on this site. There was a time in my fishing career that I loved using plastic worms and caught many fish using various softbait techniques; however, as I got older, I started to notice that the chances of gut-hooking fish were higher using plastics, and I came across fishing articles about how many fish die from ingesting old plastic lures on the bottom of lakes and ponds. That being said, I'll be the first to admit that there are some situations where softbaits are required to coax a strike. For example, sometimes you know that the bass are in the grass, but not sure where. If your not getting strikes ripping and popping a lipless crankbait and not getting bit punching or working a swimjig, then most likely the bass are suspending in the middle of the grass and are not in feeding mode. In situations like this, this rig might save your day. I call it a ball point pen rig, but it's basically a pegged Texas rig, but I use the cap of a ball point pen instead of a bullet sinker. What the ball point pen cap allows the bait to do is slowly crawl through the middle of the grass without digging in too deep, collecting grass and the worm getting balled up around the hook.
Whenever I get my hands on a ballpoint pen at the office, I often unscrew it see how much it weighs and the shape of it. You want one that's about the same diameter of the size of worms you use. Most of the time, you simply have to unscrew the cap and it's ready to use, but sometimes you have to cut off the bottom screw end of the cap. Next time before you throw away a pen that's out of ink, save the cap for your tackle box.
The best way I can explain how I like to work the bait is creating an action like a shaky head or fishing a mini
-jig when fishing for trout. But, see what works for you. I prefer a rod with a soft tip and often use my index finger to tap the rod to create a subtle vibration to make the tail of the worm undulate. I add a glass bead for sound and a bobber-stop to keep the pen cap pegged and the entire rig compact. The size or worm depends on how big the bass are in your area. I usually cut off the head of a 4 inch floating worm when it's hard to get bit and use spinning gear with 4lb. mono.
Next time, when the bass seem to ignore everything you throw, find a grassy area and try working a ball point pen cap rig!
