Texas rigging those big worms is a no-brainer for summer fishing, but have you given much thought to the notion of pegging that sinker? Todd Faircloth sure has, and the Bassmaster Elite Series pro offers some insight worth considering.
Faircloth’s technique actually takes us back to what is probably a common lesson we all learned from our earliest angling mentors who taught us to stick the tip of a toothpick into the top of a bullet weight to peg it in place and avoid sliding. That worked fine until rubber bobber stops came around, but Faircloth has a flair for the old school and his contemporary use of wooden toothpicks has a legitimate tactical explanation.
Citing weight positioning, bait mobility and better hookups as his drivers, Faircloth actually uses a piece of toothpick at the top of his weight and another at the bottom. This allows him to create strategic space by pegging his sinker about ¼-inch above the hook with the confidence of knowing it’s not going anywhere.
“I feel like it makes [the bait] more lifelike and it’s a lot simpler too; you have a toothpick versus rigging a bobber stopper,” Faircloth said. “But I don’t want that big weight crashing down on my plastic because it’ll wear it out and I’ll eventually have to change it out because my bait won’t stay up on my hook.”
When he’s retying a rig or replacing a piece that’s looking haggard, Faircloth has two methods for toothpick peg removal. He can usually reach the bottom piece with a hook point, but the top one requires a gentle shove with a thin finishing nail or a small piece of thin wire.
If you’re still not convinced of pegging’s value, hear this from Faircloth: “If the weight is not crunched down on the bait, the fish isn’t going to have as much leverage to throw the bait.”