Hook lengths

[Andrew Thomas]

Since I took up fishing again about a year ago I've obviously read as much as possible,none of my friends being anglers. I mainly fish for barbel,and to a lesser extent,chub, on the Teme and Severn, as both are nearby.
I must confess to finding the whole leger hooklength business a puzzle, particularly the optimum distance between hook and legerstop/swivel.It seems to me that the angling press is full of conjecture and theory dressed up as fact.Presently I'm using hooklengths of about 12" to 18" in braid and mono.Is there any definite criteria that apply or is it a case of hit and miss?.....I have found that longer hooklegths in braid tend to tangle.
Also is prebaiting with hemp/partiblend/pellets as important in winter as in summer? And,finally does anyone have any tips for rigging/hooking pellets?
All advice gratefully received!!

 

[GrahamM]

Hooklengths are best used as short as possible. You hook more bites on short hooklengths - providing - you can get the bites in the first place. So it is always a compromise between length to get bites and shortness to hit bites. The average 'best' hooklength is about 12ins, but as with everything there are factors that need to be taken into account, ie, species, conditions, etc, etc.

Long hooklengths are best when the fish are coming off bottom to grab baits as they sink.

Baitbands are good for hooking pellets, otherwise use drilled pellets on a hair rig. Soft pellets can be hooked direct.

 

[Paul Williams]

Andrew,
What a refreshingly honest question!! you may have only been back in fishing a year but you ask the right questions! i personally don't use braid anymore, those Teme barbel conviced me not to!! if you do use it though keep it shortish or as you are finding you will get in a lot of tangles.
My own fishing styles for barbel and chub lean towards shortish hooklengths, in the range of 3" to 18" but to discuss it would take all night and i have a feeling you aint far away anyway!!
I have tried all sorts with pellet as a hookbait, drilling them seems to cause them to break down to quick so i have found the best way is to flatten the one side of two pellets and superglue them to a hair.
Prebaiting is only ever important if you think the fish are on the move and you want to hold or attract them, it can be a pig deciding! generally i put in a lot less in winter, but a warm flood could just see a nicely baited swim pulling in a few whiskers.
Andrew, sorry if this reply is a little sketchy but Saturday nights and all that....hic.

 

[Paul Williams]

Graham,
Your reply wasn't up when i sent mine, a friend of mine is also happy to drill his pellets so i think it may well be down to the manufacturer or type used, the type i used when i first tried drilling were a very "dry" type and they appeared to split to easily when recast.

 

[Carp Angler]

I soak my pellet hookbaits in pellet oil which seems to take the brittleness out of them.
It also boosts the attraction.
I drill mine and put them on the hair, my hair being a bait band attached to a ring, this means the pellet has no slack and is constantly tight to the ring, which is usually on a sliding D rig.

That was nonsensical, but it is 1.30 and I've just driven from Worcester to Southampton in a snow storm and I've got a headache.

 

[Philip Inzani]

Generally I agree with the rest and keep hooklinks fairly short for Chub and Barbel but I have also had some fish on mega long hooklinks to sort of trundle the bait down under cover as well.

The particle thing is interesting for me as this is something I have been thinking about quite a bit recently, further fuelled by an experince this weekend. Ok I know its more Carp orientated but I was out for two nights - I am not sure what its been like over there but it was bloody freezing over here...first time ever I have had both the outside AND inside of the bivvy covered in frost! Anyway I thought I was on a blank so piled particle in around two of the rods and had a fish off both of them. The other rods where blank....luck ? Dont know, but I am beginning to think they eat a fair bit more than we imagine in winter.

 

[DAVE COOPER]

What has been said is all based on particles or meat. But don't forget good old feeders. Hemp and caster still catches a fair share of barbel.

Hook links for this method is also important, depending on how close to the feeder the fish are willing to feed. Wary fish may well warrant a hook length of several feet, whereas when they are really on the feed with confidence they will attack the feeder and therefore a hooklink of only 3 inches or so is required or your hook bait is behind the fish.

 

[Paul Williams]

Coops,
you have opened up a whole new line of disscussion! though my own thoughts still go the short hooklink way, i would sooner fish the feeder for a couple of hours or more without a hook and get the fish totally switched on to my bait and trying to eat the feeder! though i do concede that it can depend on the time available......as an after thought i usually use a 3inch hooklink (fixed)when stillwater roaching along with a minimum 11/2oz feeder, the drop back indications from even an 8oz fish can be very dramatic on a weighted indicator.

 

[DAVE COOPER]

Brummie

Do you fish your feeder 'in line' when roaching?

 

[Paul Williams]

Coops,
When i am stillwater roaching (pits and res's)i use a 11/2- 2oz feeder fixed at the end of the main line, just above this i use one or two very short hooklinks, the hooklinks are attached to small swivels that are trapped in place by small rubber beads and those rubber line stops that grip on to the line.
There is another good way of setting up a similar rig with the brstles of a broom but whilst being simple it is a bit awkward to discribe, i'll incorparate a diagram into an article for FM.
For river roach (remember rivers?) i use a paternoster rig with small feeder or lead, this is one area where i do experiment with longer hook lengths, a few years ago i was having some nice roach from the Wye and found i did pick up bigger fish with a long hooklink, but i did nail the hooklink down with shot mind.....i'm waffling on sorry i just love roaching!!!

 

[Rob Brownfield]

I tend to use hooklengths of around 100 metres...or is it classed as freelining )
Fishing the Lea for chub and barbel I found 14-18 inch hooklenghts the best, but thats was with using casters or worms. Never tried meat or paste.

I think the way u should go is to fish 2 rods...one long, one short, and experiment.

 

[Paul Williams]

I never freeline at distance anymore, i always have some sort of weight on the line, but thats another debate!!)

 

[DAVE COOPER]

Brummie

Interesting rig your stillwater one. Presumably it still acts as a 'bolt rig' with the hooklinks above the feeder, and give drop back bites nearly all the time, as when the feeder is moved it must cause slack line unless the fish moves directly over the feeder. Correct?

 

[Carp Angler]

It's only the same as a sea rig Coops.
Lead at the bottom, 2 snoods above.
It's futile fishing it with light indicators and slack lines.
It's a bolt rig, heavy indicators and wait for drop backs or churners.

 

[Paul Williams]

Coops,
Rik is right it is a pure bolt rig to be used with weighted indicators, to be honest the first time i was shown it i thought it could never catch roach! so i only toyed with it for a year or two but when i did happen to find the roach at 50yds one day i gave it a try and i was gobsmacked, even small roach were moving 11/2oz and difficult to hit bites were no more.