What is it?
VMC Tokyo Rig
What sets it apart?
Combine the brute force technique of punching with the precision of dropshotting and you have the Tokyo Rig’s inspiration — punch-shotting. Think of it as heavy-duty drop-shotting through thick vegetation, and unlike the heavy Texas rig used for punching, the Tokyo rig keeps the bait and weight separated. This offers a couple of distinct advantages: 1) your bait holds horizontally, rather than nose-down on the bottom; 2) the weight won’t pop the fish’s mouth open on the hook set — a common bite-wasting issue with heavy punch rigs.
How do I use it?
The Tokyo Rig features a VMC Heavy Duty Wide Gap Hook fitted with welded O-ring, which holds a barrel-swivel and a rigid 2 1/2-inch wire dropper arm to which anglers can attach one or more weights. A single bullet weight sized according to depth or vegetation thickness is standard, but some may chose a football head for dragging presentations or two back-to-back bullet weights, which slip in and out of cover easily and create fish-tempting clicking sounds. With any weight choice, you simply bend a crook in the end of the wire dropper arm.
How much?
$3.79 (2)
More Information:
Angler’s insight:
The Tokyo rig opens up a diversity of presentation opportunities. One of the most obvious techniques is fishing this rig like a short leader dropshot, however, the wire stem holding your weight(s) eliminates the common vexation of line-damaging zebra mussels or other harsh habitat features. Similarly, you can drag the Tokyo rig like a football head jig, but with the line tie riding higher, you won’t risk knot or line damage.
