Kicker Pickle Kick PK-5 Soft Swimbait — 5 Inch, 4 Per Pack

The PK-5 is the size most calico bass are eating most of the year. Five inches of paddle-tail profile — big enough to move water and get noticed over structure, small enough that a fish doesn't have to think about it.

Short version: 5", half an ounce, four baits per pack, weedless through a 4/0 or 5/0 hook. This is the workhorse in the Pickle Kick lineup and the default choice for open water, boiler rock, and umbrella rig arms.

What It Does in the Water

The body shape and tail were developed through computational fluid dynamics testing, which in practice means the tail kicks at slow speeds instead of needing to be burned to come alive. That matters over structure, where you want the bait crawling through the zone rather than racing past it.

The plastisol is on the firm side of soft. It costs you a little tail action compared to the softest baits on the shelf, and it buys you fish per bait — a calico that would shred a soft plastic in one grab tends to leave this one fishable.

Rigged on a swing head or a weighted EWG, the hook point tucks into the body slot and the bait comes through kelp stringers and rock without loading up.

Where It Earns Its Keep

• Slow-rolling boiler rock and kelp at Catalina and the outer islands — the bread-and-butter calico presentation.
• Open water over schooling bait, where the 5" profile matches most of what's swimming.
• Surf fishing on a lighter head, worked through troughs and along structure.
• Umbrella rig arms — the standard bait for a five-arm A-rig. See below.

Rigging It

Match a 4/0 or 5/0 hook to the body. Run the point up through the belly and out the top so it sits in the slot — buried too deep and you lose hookups, sitting too proud and you lose the weedless advantage.

Head weight sets the fall speed and the depth you can hold. A Warbaits Neck Breaker Swing Head in 1/2 oz is the general-purpose pairing; drop to 1/4 oz for shallow calm water, go 3/4 or 1 oz for deeper structure and current.

How many packs a five-arm umbrella rig takes

Buy the baits in one color if you want the school to read as one school. Some anglers run four matching and one odd bait as a target — both work, and two packs covers either.

Picking a Color

Color names are fun and mostly not the point. What matters is contrast against the water you're in:

Pro Tips from the Tackle Express Crew

• Slow down. The tail works at a crawl. Most anglers fish this bait faster than it wants to be fished and never see what it does.
• Keep the hook point in the slot. Buried in the plastic costs you hookups; riding proud costs you the weedless advantage. It should sit flush.
• Re-seat it after every few fish. The bait slides down the shank and starts running crooked long before it looks damaged.
• Buy two colors, not five. One natural and one dark covers most SoCal days better than a box of one-offs.

Common Mistakes

• Too much head for the depth. A heavy head drags the nose down and kills the tail. Use the lightest head that holds your zone.
• Wrong hook size. Under 4/0 and the gap won't clear the body on the hookset.
• Buying one pack for an umbrella rig. Four per pack, five arms. One pack leaves you an arm short.
• Fishing a torn bait because it still looks fine. A split at the hook slot lets the bait spin, and a spinning bait twists your line.

Specifications

Colors are listed in the selector above and change with each production run. Hooks and jig heads are sold separately.

What's Included

Four PK-5 swimbaits per pack, in the color selected. Hooks, jig heads, and the umbrella rig are sold separately. A five-arm rig takes two packs.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many baits come in a pack?
Four.

What hook size does the PK-5 take?
4/0 or 5/0. Anything smaller and the gap won't clear the body on the hookset.

What jig head weight should I use?
1/2 oz covers most calico fishing. Drop to 1/4 oz in shallow calm water; go 3/4 or 1 oz for depth and current. Use the lightest head that holds your zone.

Is it weedless?
Yes, when the hook point sits flush in the body slot. That's what lets it come through kelp and rock without loading up.

How many packs do I need for a five-arm umbrella rig?
Two. Five arms, four baits per pack — you'll finish with three spares, which you will use.

PK-3, PK-5, or PK-7 — which one?
PK-5 is the everyday size and matches what calicos eat most of the year. Drop to the PK-3 inside harbors and bays when the bait is small. Go PK-7 when you want a bigger meal and you're on a rod that can throw it.

Can I use it in freshwater?
Yes. It's a saltwater bait by design and market, but the same slow-roll presentation works on largemouth.

How long does one bait last?
Depends entirely on what eats it. The plastisol is firmer than most soft baits specifically so a fish doesn't end the bait's day in one grab, but no soft plastic is permanent — change it when the hook slot splits.

Gear That Goes With It

• Warbaits Neck Breaker Swing Head — the standard head for this bait, two per pack.
• Kicker PK-Rig Umbrella Rig — five-arm rig with quick clips.
• Kicker Pickle Kick PK-3 — harbor and bay size.
• Kicker Pickle Kick PK-7 — larger profile.
• Kicker Booty Spin — same body with a spinning blade instead of a paddle tail.

Buy It From People Who Fish It

We sell Southern California saltwater tackle from our shop on Soledad Canyon Road in Santa Clarita, and we fish these baits on the same water you do. Not sure which color for the conditions you're headed into, or how many packs your setup takes? Call us or come in — we'd rather work it out at the counter than have you guess.