A hook question

[Urbanflyguy]

I was out lastnight and had some nice pick ups on 9-10 inch suckers, they picked up just like all the other flatheads out of that hole have but they where very short lived hits. Every time I reeled in (about 10 min after the hits) the suckers where crushed almost flat right up to the hooks, im guessing they felt the hooks and that was the end of that. Last fall we where using Gamakatsu big river hooks 10/0 and they didnt seem to care at all, after all we use 9-12 inch suckers and they make the hook look about right size. Is this too much metal for the spring , should i switch back to 6/0 circles in the spring? It was just to much of a coincidence that all thee fish dropped right as they hit the hook in the tail in my opinion

[ILLIFIED]

Fly,

I would not use circle hooks with live suckers rigged up. How long were you waiting to set the hook? It could be a coincidence. What size weight were you using?

[DTro]

Flats don't bite, they inhale. I'm guessing it was channel cats (they like to crush) plus they have been on a tear the past couple of nights.

[ILLIFIED]

DTRO,

Any idea when the flathead fishing will be in fullforce in Pool 2? Late or Early may?

[DTro]

Nope

Based on the past 4 or 5 years, we are a good 2 weeks ahead of schedule.

With a holding pattern on the weather front, I would guess them to start turning on big time mid to late May.

[SteveD]

Fly,

I would not use circle hooks with live suckers rigged up.

That is not a correct statement. All I use for flats is circle hooks and I have an excellent hookup rate. Circle hooks work fine for live bait so I wouldn't give up on them just because you missed a few short runs early in the season.

[Urbanflyguy]

I was wondering if you guys think the big steel is a turn off for them when the water is still colder like it is or not. Actually i like the circles too (we tailhook the suckers) but was just trying something a bit diffent mainly because of the size of bait we use and i have yet to find anything over 6/0 for circle hooks and the guy i go with the most is a musky guy and cant get over not setting the hook. I would have to agree with you mostly on the flats inhaling vs biting statment darren but the place i told you about has had a 50/50 on the flatheads hitting and running vs getting 2-4 good hard tugs then running (the crush patterns on the tuggers are identical to what i had lastnight). Oh and they are active there now so anytime you want to come check it out the offer stands.

[Urbanflyguy]

oh my bad i forgot to mention we where using the big river 10/0 lastnight and thats the hook in question

[demetrius]

whats the best method of catching flats with circles, I strictly use circles and tend to miss flathead bites due to this, generally I will start cranking as the rod loads up, but with flatheads, that have a tendency to set there and pull up and down several times but not load the rod up. When do you guys start reeling, do you swing to the side or just lean on them some with the rod??? very curious as to how the best way is?

[Urbanflyguy]

On all my lnaded fish i have let em run out the baitrunner for 30 or more seconds depending on how fast they are running, when they slow i just start reeling till i feel the wieght and then raise the rod tip upwards as im reeling and kept it there and keep on pressure until we had them out of the water. Everytime and i do mean everytime there was a hook set they where lost. But this is just whats worked for me

[blakeb]

First off, no matter what dang hook you use, there will be some dropped/ non- hookup fish, be it circle, khale, or heaven forbid treble (please dont go that route) high mortality rate.

My method has been to get my rod high, i made some rod holders that are three to four feet above the water, with the rod near vertical,.

I like to think this puts the line in less contact with the snag prone river bottom.

I run a clicker as do many others, not required but strongly advised.

But i can say i have never let one run for longer than 8-10 seconds,

again to much snags for them to drag my line into.

[Borch]

Originally Posted By: ILLIFIED

Fly,

I would not use circle hooks with live suckers rigged up.

That is not a correct statement. All I use for flats is circle hooks and I have an excellent hookup rate. Circle hooks work fine for live bait so I wouldn't give up on them just because you missed a few short runs early in the season.

Steve,

What are you running for circles with the bigger baits?

[Urbanflyguy]

k well it may not be 30 seconds on a clock but is sure feels like it but i do let them run longer than 8-10 and would never ever ever stick a terrible hook in a cats mouth. Regardless of time i let them run till they slow up after the initial burst of glee they get at finding something tasty

ooh and to answer your question about weights i am using illified, im using 5oz no rolls pretty much all season

[blakeb]

i wasnt accusing you of treble hookery, just realize that there are lurkers on here that have oursame problems, i just dont want any one to think that they are a solution to the prob.

And i hear ya in the heat of the moment it seams like 30 seconds.

i use big 10 size circles with big baits

im using 5 oz now but soon try a three oz when current slows, i think that if they are pulling line and they feel a heavy weight they will spit it

[DTro]

Watch this guys:

[Urbanflyguy]

Oh i was just exclaiming my shared disdain for those evil hooks and i agree i really hope no one resorts to those either. Say where have you found the 10/0 circles and whats the brand. I have never seen em and i hunted around one day a few differnt places including the bait store down off 58th or 59th an nicollet ave in minneapolis which seems to catter to us cat guys.

[blakeb]

if i use gama octos i go with #G024's its for large bullhead cutbait

if i use gama #G225 they are called the Big River i like them for live larger bullys they sell them in a 10 and a 12

them to have the offset in the hooks lots of gamas dont have it (for instance if you lay it on a table it lays flat), i dont like them.

I buy from them catfish connection,

[blakeb]

check out the big rivers tho, not a true circle more of a hybrid circle/khale, they have a flat spot that hold nice in the back of a bully, they aint cheap tho, 2 bucks a piece

[Urbanflyguy]

Actually thats i started this post about was the big river 10/0 and wether they are too much metal for spring fishing or not. I really like the looks of them when using larger size live baits and started using them last fall.

[rushing]

Those big river hooks can do some serious damage to a fish without swallowing it but eventually you'll get a fish that swallows one and that pretty much means its dead. Not a C&R friendly hook IMO.

Oh and more than flat will hit your bait. Crush marks and fast runs tend to mean its channels.

[blakeb]

not my first pick for ealy season, i wont use em till i am consistatly catching flats, way to much hook for channels imo

[SteveD]

Steve, What are you running for circles with the bigger baits?

Hi Borch - Like the video showed I normally run the 2-Hook Cat Harness rig when running large baits for flatheads. I tie my Cat Harness rigs with the main hook a Gamakatsu 8/0 Octopus circle hook and the Stinger Hook a 5/0 Gamakatsu Octopus Circle hook. I use a snell knot on all hooks. I add a small spinner and a few beads to make it a legal rig and to be honest the extra hardware adds some attractant to the rig. Last year I had real good luck with the 2-Hook Cat Harness - that extra stinger hook has saved the day on a number of nice flats.

This year I am going to experiment with a new Bridle Rig which is a technique used by saltwater fishermen when fishing large live or dead baits. What sometimes happens when fishing large baits with a traditional bait hooked set up is that the hook will turn on the hook set and embed itself back into the bait causing you to miss the fish. I've had this happen on more than one occasion and it is pretty frustrating. I've been doing a lot of reading on the web about Bridle Rigs and there are some new fishing products out there that hook on to the bait and hold your hook free of the bait fish so that it will not foul hook the bait on the strike and the hook set. I bought one Bridle Rig product to try out and I've already used it to design a Bridle Rig of my own which I can make myself for pennies and that I think will work even better. I'm going to experiment with it this season and I'll do a cat tip on it should it work out OK. On the St Croix I can fish two rods so I'll have one rod with a Cat Harness and the other rod with a Bridle Rig. This way I can experiment with different techniques and see how they work out.

[Surreal Deal]

Watch this guys:

Thanks for re-posting that video, DTRO - I'm not sure how I missed that one!

[Urbanflyguy]

Ya thanks for the video DTRO. Think im goin back to circles and gonna try that method out

[Borch]

Thanks Steve.

I haven't seen any gammi circle hooks bigger than 8/0 so I was wondering if that was what you where using with your harness rigs.