Hooks

[bigmark]

Hi all, went to go fishing the other day and needed some hooks to nylon for my float fishing. As Ive been using size 14 hooks as recomended by the shop owner I looked for some more of the same only to find he had none in stock, I asked the owner who said try size 12. So off I went with my size 12's and some maggots. During the day I had many bites but could not hook hardly any of them, every time I reeled in I found the maggot had been sucked empty just leaving the skin on the hook. Why was this ? was it because they were small fish and my hooks were to big or that I was to slow in striking.

[iamlucky18]

It is likely that you were slow in striking. It would be more helpful if you tell us what setup you're using. i.e. bait, line, float etc.

[Dick Dastardly]

Mark,Im afraid the guy hant given you very good advice.You will catch a lot more (especially when using maggots for bait) with smaller hooks and lighter lines.A good starting point is an 18 or 16 hook tied to around 1.5lb hook length.

 

Give it a go and you will see what I mean!

 

You should always try to match your hook size to the bait you are using.For example if you was using a large bait such as a grain of sweetcorn then yes a 14 or 12 would be fine,for a big lump of luncheon meat then you would have to look even bigger at 8-6. For a very small bait such as a single bloodworm then minute hooks of 24-26 would commonly be used.

 

The things to remember are that you want to keep the hook as small as you can so it isnt "obvious" to the fish or affect the way the bait behaves yet big enough so that the bait doesnt "mask" the hook and affect hooking.

 

Ive simplified it as much as possible but give it a try and as your experience and confidence grows you will start to learn about all of the other factors that influence hook pattern selection.

[les middy]

Hi all, went to go fishing the other day and needed some hooks to nylon for my float fishing. As Ive been using size 14 hooks as recomended by the shop owner I looked for some more of the same only to find he had none in stock, I asked the owner who said try size 12. So off I went with my size 12's and some maggots. During the day I had many bites but could not hook hardly any of them, every time I reeled in I found the maggot had been sucked empty just leaving the skin on the hook. Why was this ? was it because they were small fish and my hooks were to big or that I was to slow in striking.

 

first of all i would change tackle shops with advice like that

 

but as the other posters have said size 16/18 or even 20's

[bigmark]

Thanks guys for the advice, I'll get some smaller hooks for when im using maggots next time.

The thing is the fishing shops around here are 90% for sea fishing and not a lot of stock in for coarse fishing. I thought with asking the guy who owned the shop that I would be getting good advice and took his word for it as I wasn't sure where to start ? Anyway thanks once again.

 

Mark.

[Waveney One]

I asked the owner who said try size 12. So off I went with my size 12's and some maggots.

 

 

Typical tackle shop assistant ( I am sure it wasn't the owner). I am sure that half of them have never put a maggot on a hook! If that is the advice you are getting, find yourself another tackle shop pronto!

[chesters1]

if your not using a 16 or smaller (16 for corn or meat) then youl sit watching a static float all day at my local pond.

i asked a new member how he was getting on and he said he had only tiny bites all day ,i told him to shot his float right down (4" sticking out of water) till he could hardly see it and use an 18 with a single maggot or pinch of bread ,he was using a 10 straight through on 5lb line

alright for places where the fish are hungry but this pond has a high degree of natural food so getting them to switch over is difficult except for perch ,groundbait is a no no too if your using much more than a handfull every hour or so . as the waters so clear this year it scares them off

when the old group of old boys used to fish it was half a slice on a size 8 and catch all day but they have died or got too frail so the fish reverted to small baits thinking it was natural.

the year before last corn never caught on! the fish just turned their noses up at it! this year and last it catches everything ,strange thing fishing

i always use bread ,i always catch