barbed or barbless hooks

[james17]

Talking to a tackle dealer the other day about this very subject he reckoned that the barbless was responsible for most of the lip damage today, I couldn't quite see his theory.

 

I've heard people say that barbless hooks can cause the hook to move around too much in the fishes lip which is why some fisheries ban them.

[Guest tigger]

I've always used barbed, probably co's i was brought up using them. To be honest i've usually removed the hook without causing too much damage. But Like anyone else I have lost a few fish over the years if they've been deep hooked and alkward to remove.

[corydoras]

I've always used barbed, probably co's i was brought up using them. To be honest i've usually removed the hook without causing too much damage. But Like anyone else I have lost a few fish over the years if they've been deep hooked and alkward to remove.

I only use barbeless due to peer pressure. I would prefer to use barbed.

[Steve Burke]

This is a topic that crops up regularly. This is what I posted recently on the subject of barbed v barbless:

 

"I agree with Leon that it's horses for courses and depends on the species/circumstances. It also depends on the size and design of the hooks themselves.

 

In my experience barbless hooks tend to do less damage on unhooking (especially by inexperienced anglers), whilst barbed hooks can do more damage during striking and playing.

 

Why barbed hooks cause more damage then is often debated.

 

Some years ago I was also of the opinion that there should be no differences between barbed and barbless hooks, with for instance each penetrating equally. However, like a number of other experienced perch anglers, I found that barbless hooks were causing some perch deaths. Obviously I was wrong, so what could the problem be?

 

At the time I was in the tackle trade and so talked about the matter with a hook manufacturer.

 

They pointed out that hooks often go in at an angle and thus, although the distance penetrated is the same, the point of the hook doesn't always reach that far below the surface of the skin.

 

However the angle can subsequently change, especially during the playing of the fish. A barbed hook would tend to stay in the same place and at the same angle. On the other hand a barbless one would be more likely to move and thus the angle change, with the point of the hook possibly ending up further from the surface.

 

Additionally, as barbless hooks can move about more easily, they would be more likely to pierce vital organs anyway.

 

This suggestion seemed to be a logical explanation.

 

However, whatever the reason, what to me is more important is results in the field - and these showed that barbless hooks are not the best for perch.

 

Only a tiny barb seems to be needed, and in fact the pattern of hook I prefer for perch fishing has a miniscule one. In fact the barb on the size 6 is about the same size as a normal microbarbed size 16!

 

Having said that the state of the mouths of some UK fish is deplorable. This is all too often the case on overfished waters where fish are caught repeatedly, especially by beginners. If I managed a commercial water (God forbid!) I might well insist on barbless hooks for this reason.

 

On the other hand, an increasing number of specimen waters are now banning barbed hooks.

 

At Wingham I allow a free choice on the Carp Lake as it doesn't contain perch. However the Coarse Lake does, and here I ban barbless hooks above size 10. In each case I state that I prefer microbarbs.

 

So if you want to come to the next Forum Fish-In at Wingham, you'll either have to obey the fishery rules or I'm afraid decide not to come!"

 

Anyone interested in this subject may like to do a search of past topics for "barbless".