# Power/scented worms vs unscented worms



## richg99 (Apr 20, 2012)

I've got this pond that I fish every few days. It is full of the dumbest and hungriest bass in Texas. 

The last week or two I've caught larger and better bass than in most years. There are a lot of theories about why that is so, here in TX...but...that is another discussion.

For this last week, I've been using a couple of packages of OLD black Powerworms. They sat in my super-heated workshop for years. The packages were still intact, but the scent seemed somewhat less than a new package. So be it. They caught fish. Lots of fish. 

This morning, as I dropped the yak into the pond, I realized that my last few packages of the magic worms were in the shop, and I was too lazy to walk the fifty feet to get them. I had a package of "ringworm" tan unscented worms with me. I told myself that they will work just fine. 

I throw these worms, un-weighted, under overhanging trees and next to anchored paddle boats.

Well, to my amazement, they did seem to work well. EXCEPT for all of the missed bites; all of the instant rejections of the worm when I did my usual "tap; pull; tap; pull". I could feel the fish there, then they were gone. The ones that I did catch were lightly hooked. I missed more fish on jumps than is normal. Most of the fish were smaller than those caught just a few days ago.

So, my simple conclusion is that the Powerworms encouraged the fish to hold on longer; and attracted larger fish, rather than the smallest in the pond.

My answer is pretty much what all of the advertisements have been saying. It was just interesting to do my own experiment and prove the bait-makers right. I have no idea if the Powerworms are markedly better than any other scented worm, but scent does matter, IMHO.

regards, Rich


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## 200racing (Apr 20, 2012)

it has to be weird for a fish to inhale a piece of food and it not have flavor. like a bite of steak tasting like rice cake.
i use powerbait jig trailers. i put the jigs in with the trailers so the skirt gets the scent.

also on baits a bought for carolina rig that will be thrown in deeper water i put a little cooking oil and garlic salt in hopes a catfish might grab it. i do the same thing to hotdogs for catfishing.


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## richg99 (Apr 20, 2012)

*" hotdogs for catfishing"*.....Ha Ha Only in America, I guess! Love it!

I often have a "Slim Jim" sausage in the car. Maybe I should carry a couple on the boat for when the bass aren't biting...Thanks for the idea. regards, Rich


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## 200racing (Apr 20, 2012)

i buy the cheapest ones at the store.cut them up about a 1'' in size. put them in a bucket.add the oil and garlic then shake them up.let them ripen a bit in the sun.


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## Loggerhead Mike (Apr 20, 2012)

200racing said:


> i buy the cheapest ones at the store.cut them up about a 1'' in size. put them in a bucket.add the oil and garlic then shake them up.let them ripen a bit in the sun.



That makes me Hungary


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## ChitownBasser (Apr 20, 2012)

Rich, I would assume you're right in your original post. Any scented bait would give the fish an extra flavoring and taste thus holding on to the bait just enough longer to set the hook, IMO. I always try to use scented baits. I also will be trying out a spray bottle shad scent from YUM for my crankbaits and spinnerbaits. Keep on catching 'em.


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## Clinton78 (Apr 20, 2012)

My opinion is that bass hold on to power worms better...sometimes swallowing it if I wait too long to set the hook. 

I prefer using Culprits though...specifically I use 10" Culprits unweighted. The Culprits have a longer tail and seem to make for a nicer action when swimming it along suspended.

Anyway, I found out that if I put a few Culprits in the Power Worm package overnight or longer, they retain the smell and presumably the taste...even after using them for a while.


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## dyeguy1212 (Apr 20, 2012)

I wish I believed in power worm scent. It doesn't make a darn bit of difference on the lakes I fish.

I find the consistency of the plastic makes a huge difference though. Throwing nearly identical colored and sized senkos on the same day has led to widely different bite and hookup ratios. I've found BPS and ZMan senkos far outperform zoom, yamamoto, or off brands.


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## Captain Ahab (Apr 20, 2012)

I do not think it had anything to do with the scent - I think it was the difference is density )fall rate and how much the float) size and shape.


Try a senko the same size and shape as your power bait and I bet they eat and swallow that just as well


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## richg99 (Apr 20, 2012)

Ain't fishin' grand? One guy throws a Senko and it works for him. Another throws a powerworm and it works for him. Maybe that is why I own so many tackle boxes...mostly filled with lures that worked once and then, never again.

True story, though you don't have to believe it.. 

I've said, many times, that this little pond holds the hungriest and dumbest bass in Texas. One time, I brought home a big rattling SHE-DOG in a kind of luminous color. I intended to use it on the saltwater flats.

As I do often, I stood on my shoreline and threw that lure 12 times. I caught thirteen bass in a row. Yes, one of the catches was a double. None of the bass were much larger than a pound or so...

I was so pumped that I put the rod up and went in to tell my wife. She had dinner ready about then.

After dinner I went back and threw the same lure in the same place dozens of times...NO BITES. For the next week, I fished that lure nearly every day. I NEVER got another bite on that wonderful lure again.

Ah fishing....the mysteries of life, all in one little sport. 

regards, rich


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## xbacksideslider (Apr 27, 2012)

Rolling the tip of a salted worm between your fingers seems to help. When drop shotting, changing out for a new salted worm also seems to work.


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