Best release tool?

[Dan L]

What do you guys like best for a release tool? I have the needle nose plier type right now but it is time to replace it. I mostly fish pike and bass. Is there something better than a pliers for the deeply hooked fish?

[goose89]

Nice quality long handled forceps for me. Easier to slide up / under the gills plate and twist out deeply hooked hooks. Much easier on fish than reaching down through the mouth with a needle nose.

[thatoneguy]

If it's too deep to get with a pliers or a hook-out thingy, your best bet is to just cut the line.

[goose89]

I haven't cut the line on a hook in 10 years. Run a forceps up under the gill plate, grab the hook and twist it out. Learned it from an old In-Fisherman article around the 2002 suicide bite on Mille Lacs. Small hooks and this "thru the gills / forceps" method = no fish swimming around with hooks and very little to no damage to the fish. The very few fish I haven't been successful with, I've cut the line and kept them.

[Nick Kuhn]

Use the through gill trick on the deep hooked pike. I just use one of those 10" fishing pliers from Berkeley or Rapala.

[goose89]

Depends on what you fish for I guess. I use a forceps mostly for walleyes and smaller hooks, but the 10" pliers or needle nose works fine for bass and pike with larger hooks. This video shows the method very well. It also speaks to the "fallacy" of cutting the line because the hooks will rust away. Maybe 20 years ago, but no longer.

[Comit 2]

I have two Rapala hook removers. The small one is great for Small crank baits like Salmo Hornets and Frenzy shads. The big one works well for spoons. Once you have it on the hook it is as good as locked on.

[IamZombie]

I like hemostats for most hook removal.

[fish_eat_sleep]

Id probably use the water if you want them to be alive! Haha, bad joke.. Any tool is fine if its made with quality components that wont flex under pressure. Rapala makes a few spendy but trusty tools. look on their HSOforum. Berkley has some new tools i think too.

[Orlip]

What do you guys like best for a release tool?

Miller Lite.

[Rick G]

I like hemostats for most hook removal.

I also use them, just not the cheepie ones that are sold at most bait shops. Looks foe German, Swiss or American made ones. I own a few from a company called Magnum Medical, they work great to do the In Fisherman method of removal of smaller hooks.

[Beets]

I been using this for years and have done the hemo's with a twist under the gill plate too, both good tools.