Unhooking problems

Andyw · Jun 5, 2005

HI guys,

I went up the canal again yesterday afternoon/evening... Again on my whip but took some maggot this time.

Had out 5 perch and a roach, my problem being that I had alot of problems unhooking the perch, they seemed to take the hook way down and I'm ashamed to say even may have damaged a little fella whilst disgorging him. For which I feel really guilty :-(

Please can you give me some guidance as far as this goes. To be honest I'd rather target the larger fish to hopefully avoidt his problem, but all I seemed to get were diddy ones..

Thanks in advance from a guilty new guy....

jason fisher · Jun 5, 2005

use barbless hooks, they will come out easier, use a disgorger which is larger than the gape of the hook if you can also, this helps to stop it recatching on the way out, unfortunately small perch do this and there's no way round it really other than practice. or using a bait which they won't take. the only one i can think of is bread, i've never heard of anyone getting a perch on bread.

Andyw · Jun 5, 2005

they are barbless hooks... but they took them down so deep inside... i really feel bad... not big fish but very "pretty" to look at!!

Thing is maggot where i fish is a dead cert!!! Spose I'll go back to corn??

jason fisher · Jun 5, 2005

it's one of those things you won't be able to avoid, small perch swallow maggots very fast.

you could try worms, you might just turn up a big perch.

jason fisher · Jun 5, 2005

believe it or not i've had a couple of small perch on corn.

Andyw · Jun 5, 2005

Thanks Jason.... I feel better knowing "it happens"...

I suppose its a hazard of the sport??

Baz · Jun 5, 2005

Andy,
Dot your float right down so it is more or less a dimple on the surface. The bites will register quicker, and help in not letting the perch swallow the bait too far down.
Also shallow up slightly, so there is not as much line on the bottom.

Andyw · Jun 5, 2005

Thnaks Baz.... I'll give it a go

jason fisher · Jun 5, 2005

even that still won't eradicate the problem completely.

Joskin · Jun 5, 2005

Do as Baz said and you should find that the problem dosnt occur half as often.

Andyw · Jun 6, 2005

What size hook would be better to use when i break out the float rod to avoid the smaller perch taking down the hook?

The largest I have are 14, should i continue the maggot or go with corn?? Shall i still fish on the bottom?

Obviously I'd like to get some larger fish, I have some small clear wagglers and 4lb line??

Is all this goingto be ok??

Thanks guys

Andy

Baz · Jun 6, 2005

Andy,
it isn't so much the size of hook that you use to avoid the perch, but what bait you use.
White maggot especially will attract perch.
Try corn on a sze 16 or 14 hook, about six inches on the bottom. This will attract roach tench bream and carp. it is only the very odd time that perch will go for the corn.
Bread is a good bait for roach bream and carp as well.
Usually if I am fishing maggot, the perch will be the first fish in the swim. shortly afterwards the roach will move in, and then the bream. When you start catching the roach, that usually means the perch have moved out.

Andyw · Jun 7, 2005

Thanks Baz,

Spose I'm doing everyones heads in with my incessant questions!!

jason fisher · Jun 7, 2005

not at all glad to help.
perch do tend to take caster less readily than they take maggot as well so that might be worth a try.

Wolfman Woody · Jun 7, 2005

A very old (90) friend and very wise sage once said to me, always ask questions even when you think you are sure. It's a good policy.

What's been said is fine, carry on enjoying your perch catching. Just be careful unhooking the little beggers because with perch their kidneys are very close to the throat and it's easy to puncture them when using a disgorger. If you do puncture them, it's almost certainly a dead fish - sometime soon after.

They're wriggly little characters as well, but one way to give you a little more time is to hold them firmly upside down. Somehow
this seems to disorient them and for anything up to 2 minutes they lie absolutely still giving you time to carefully remove the hook. If it's so far down you can't see it, forget it and cut the line as it will stand more of a chance.

Wolfman Woody · Jun 7, 2005

Just read your other thread and saw your details, you're in MK.

I fell in love with that at the age of 9, %) years ago now (if you can work that out) down at Stoke Hammond and the Three Locks. Caught some lovely perch in there to over 2lbs but as a kid they felt like monsters. Sadly many died off in the 60s through diseases and stuff, maybe even the big freeze of '63.

Andyw · Jun 8, 2005

I'll keep that in mind Woody, thanks...

I was dead chuffed with my first perch... great to look at... going to go up the canal before work tomorrow so I'll put all the advice into practice... well, hopefully!!

Kev Truman · Jun 24, 2005

This will also help me a lot guys. I was getting quite a few perch the other day and having the same problem

. I think i will try my luck with some corn and bread next week. Ill take half a pint of maggots just in case

Les Clark · Jun 24, 2005

Andyw , you don`t say ( I don`t think )how you are useing the shot ,is it all under the float or are you useing the shirt button style ?

Andyw · Jun 28, 2005

i sometimes have shot bulked 18 inches from the hook... sometimes dotted along the line...

To be honest I'm unsure as to the uses for both....I understand that dotted drops the bait slower through the water...

Any advice on this would be good...

Unhooking problems

New member

jason fisher

Guest

New member

jason fisher

Guest

jason fisher

Guest

New member

Banned

New member

jason fisher

Guest

New member

New member

Banned

New member

jason fisher

Guest

Wolfman Woody

Guest

Wolfman Woody

Guest

New member

New member

Les Clark

Guest

New member