Biwaa Fishing Performance's Prism

Zac Guerinoni of Santa Rosa, California, is the vice president of Biwaa USA, LLC, which is the American branch of the international tackle manufacturer by the name of Biwaa Fishing Performance.  And when we were working with Guerinoni on a Midwest finesse gear guide about Biwaa's four-inch Venum Tail Worm, he alerted us to the fact that the Biwaa's Prism is a very effective soft-plastic stickbait that is suitable for Midwest finesse applications.

Here are some of Guerinoni's insights about the Prism.

Biwaa introduced it to the angling world at the 2016 International Convention of Allied Sportfishing Trades show.

There are two sizes of the Prism. One is 3.8 inches long, and the other one is 4.8 inches.

Rather than possessing the round motif of most stick-style baits, the Prism has a hexagon shape.

The tip of one end of the 3.8-inch Prism has a diameter of 7.5 millimeters or about five-sixteenths of an inch, and the diameter of the other end is five millimeters or three-sixteenths of an inch. Both ends are flat.

Its torso is encompassed with 15 significant groves. Between those grooves, there area series of pronounced segments that are five millimeters or three-sixteenths of an inch long.

The torso's dorsal area has two hook slots.  Its ventral or belly has two hook slots.  The two hook slots on the thicker section are 35 millimeters or about 1 3/8 inches long, and the two hook slots on the thinner section are 32 millimeters or about 1 1/4 inches long. Guerinoni said the hook slots are shallow and described them as small indentions rather than slots, and they provide a handy visual guide for anglers when they affix it to a hook. But they are deep enough to provide hook point protection when anglers employ a Texas-style tig.

At its widest spot, the torso is eight millimeters or about five-sixteenths of an inch wide.

The groves and segments accentuate the torso's ability to gyrate and undulate as an angler executes a variety of retrieves. The groves and hook slots also provide space for anglers to insert gel-type scents.

According to Guerinoni and Vincent Alexandre, the Prism's flat belly allows it to glide alluringly during a retrieve.  Its other flat sides reflect light, which Alexandre and Guerinoni say is another alluring and unique feature. (Alexandre is the proprietor of Biwaa, and he is a Frenchman who lives in Shenzhen, China.)

It is available in the following colors: Apple Mint, Black and Blue, Green, Okeechobee, and Orange.

It is impregnated with salt and B2A Shrimp scent.

Biwaa It is manufactured with a soft and durable plastic that is free of bisphenol-A and phthalate.

Alexandre prefers to wield it three ways: a weightless Texas-style rig, a weightless wacky rig, and a neko rig.

But Guerinoni has discovered that the Midwest finesse way of affixing it to a mushroom-style jig with an expose hook is an exceedingly efficacious way to rig it. Of course, most Midwest finesse anglers will shorten it, creating a 2 1/2 to three-inch Prism.

When Midwest finesse anglers shorten soft-plastic baits, they prefer to use ones that do not have hook slots. The reason for that is the hook slots prevent the soft-plastic bait from being easily and firmly affixed to the collar or bait keeper of the jig, and moreover, it is difficult to get it flush to the head of the jig.   But when Midwest finesse anglers shorten the Prism, Guerinoni says, its hook indentations will not be a problem.

Guerinoni notes that either end of the Prism can be affixed to the shank of the hook and collar of a mushroom-style jig. When the jig is affixed to the bigger end, Guerinoin says, the smaller end vibrates delicately and erratically.  When the jig is affixed to the smaller end, the bigger end wobbles as it glides towards the bottom. (See endnote No. 3)

A package of 10 3.8-inchers costs $5.99. A package of eight 4.8-inchers costs $5.99.

Endnotes 

(1) Here is the link to Biwaa's website: https://www.biwaa.com/.

(2) Here are  links to the Midwest Finesse gear guides about Biwaa's Venum Tail Worm and Patate: http://www.in-fisherman.com/midwest-finesse/biwaa-fishing-products-four-inch-venum-tail-worm. http://www.in-fisherman.com/midwest-finesse/biwaa-fishing-performance-patate/.

(3) In a Feb. 5 email, Guerinoni said that he usually affixes the Prism 3.8 to a mushroom-style jig without shortening it. But he has shortened it at times. When he shortens it, he rigs the bigger or thicker end of the Prism onto the hook and collar of the jig.  He employs it with either a deadstick or a dragging presentation. (Many Midwest finesse anglers will experiment with affixing the smaller end of the shortened Prism 3.8 onto their mushroom-style jigs, and if that is not fruitful, they will reverse it and affix the bigger or thicker end onto the hook and collar of the jig. They have found that there will be spells with shortened or customized stickbaits when one of the riggings is more fruitful than the other.  Therefore, Midwest finesse anglers will experiment with both styles of riggings throughout an outing. And they will employ the Prism with all six of the standard Midwest finesse retrieves or critical improvisations of those retrieves: http://www.in-fisherman.com/midwest-finesse/six-midwest-finesse-retrieves/. )

(4) In a Feb. 1 email, Vincent Alexandre attached these photographs of the Prism 3.8.

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