Circle hooks for pike

[Sportsman]

I know that this has been mentioned before, but not for a while.

I've got a new river to fish and intend to try deadbaiting over the winter.

As well as pike there are large Wels catfish so I don't want to use the normal snap tackle or trebles.

I am thinking of trying circles which I am happy with for the cats, but does anyone have actual experience of using them for pike. They seem to get mixed reviews.

[Steve Burke]

Dave, you may remember I did a short trial of circle hooks for pike some years ago and missed quite a few fish with them. In fact I probably missed a 20lber on a circle but caught it later in the day on a treble! The story is part of this blog type topic: http://www.anglersnet.co.uk/forums/index.php?/topic/1064490-wingham-pike-survey/.

[philocalist]

One of the problems with using circle hooks for pike is that for the circle hook to work effectively and actually take hold, you don't strike - the hooks are designed to turn and enter the flesh of a fishes mouth as they are pulled from the mouth - they were initially designed for commercial use in long set lines at sea, where a single line might hold several thousand baited hooks, left unattended. Fish takes the bait, swims off and hooks itself as the hook is pulled outwards.

Not sure at all whether that would work too wellwith pike and all their teeth, designed to clamp and hold before swallowing? (Though I have tried it)

The next issue you face is how to mount a relatively large bait on a circle hook (there are ways, most quite fiddly) that leaves the hook relatively exposed.

Then of course there is the hairy subject of traces - few would risk pike fishing without a wire trace (though I realise that heavy fluorocarbon is used by many anglers, particularly outside of the UK, and when fishing for sea predators), but not using one in deference to the catfish would almost certainly produces bite-offs from pike.

I've used them with livebaits for pike (with a wire trace), effectively hair-rigging the bait through the top lip and lobbing the bait rather than a hefty chuck at the horizon, not striking at bites but simply clamping down as a pike runs and letting the hook do its job.

Can't say I caught any more fish or less, and never deep hooked anything. Best benefit was that live baits stayed that way for hours unless taken ... and had several large bonus perch at times too, taking 4 / 5" livebaits complete with trace!

Edited September 5, 2017 by philocalist

[Sportsman]

Thanks for the info.

I am quite happy and confident to use trebles for pike but I am informed that there is a good liklihood of contactng a Wels when deadbaiting, so I am looking for a compromise.

I am happy to use a standard J hook for the wels but I worry about deep hooking pike on that so the circle is the compromise.

I use sakuma hooks for wels and carp and one of their models, the Chinu, is a sort of semi circle hook so maybe I will get the best of both worlds. It certainly works for the cats.

http://www.sakuma.co.uk/p/442/sakuma-450-chinu-hooks

[Phone]

Sportsman,

 

Or the worst of both worlds.

 

Steve and Philo pretty much said it all IMO.

 

Phone

[Vagabond]

These days I only fish for pike with lures (I remove some trebles, and de-barb others as most lures are over-armoured)

 

Were I to baitfish for pike in the presence of catfish I think I would opt for a single J hook. and strike early

 

Ease of unhooking is in the interests of both pike and angler.