Hook tear in carp! Is this normal?

Just been to a comercial and caught my first carp all mirrors and in a nice order under( 1 lb didn't weigh it) then 1.5lb,2.5lb and 4lb this is my bigest fish so far .

I am very pleased to have brocken the 2lb barrier but the 4lb carp had a big sort of rip in its mouth where the hook was as if it had torn a bit and taken off a barble is this comon or did I do somthing wrong ?

It did put up a good fight and I now want to see what a big one would be like it felt very big to me and took three atempts to get in the landing net .

They seem to have very soft skin and mouths compared to the roach and perch I have been catching.

I also had two hook lengths snap at 4.5lb which was a bit strange in both cases it was almost on the initial strike that the line snapped though another looked like it had come undone at the hook end .

These were all pre tied big fish size 16 barbless hooks to 4.5lb line my main line was 8lb and the fish in this lake are only carp from 8oz to 18lb so I was told (it's the ponds at brailsford horseshoe lake)

look forward to another trip there .

No, it's not an irregular thing to see at commercials.

Was the dammage fresh or was it old, also what rods are you useing?

did you "play" the carp out ?
sounds like a wee bit of bullying
as Noknot says it could be rods
slacken you clutch off more so when you or the fish pull hard line is given

I was using an old daiwa quintet float rod 12ft and a okuma interceptor pro reel.

I have thought about the clutch and tried setting it with the scales ,I thought from reading a book that the clutch is just to let line out when absoluotly necessary to stop the line breaking .

I have found that this reel seems very big compared to what I have been used to so feeling if I am draging swimfeeders into weeds etc has been an ishue .

As you can tell I am not pretending to be an experianced angler I thought I had done a fairly good job of playing the fish ,seemed to go on for about a minute or so bearing in mind all the fish were caught under the tip of my rod but I do think the damage was fresh and caused by me unfortunatly.

Is this the wrong rod?
I am thinking about getting a ledger and a carp rod .

On the plus side I keep lots of rare and oddball tropical fish and it is supprising what will grow back .

Should I start with the clutch a bit more loose then tighten up as the fish gets more tired?

I will be using a centre pin on my next trip to this venue as well so reel control should not be as much of an ishue .

what do others say around you ?

---------- Post added at 11:46 ---------- Previous post was at 11:46 ----------

in other words do they suffer ?

Cakey said:

what do others say around you ?

---------- Post added at 11:46 ---------- Previous post was at 11:46 ----------

in other words do they suffer ?

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Not sure I understand fully what you mean.

That was my first time at that venue as well as first time after carp and I only spoke to the bailiffs or owners at the begining before I started also there was only no body else to talk to.

Though I know someone who goes there and I have been recomended that I go there by the local tackle shop so I could ask there.

I don't want to damage the fish thats the reason for my post .

I just wondered if others suffered the same problems

---------- Post added at 13:19 ---------- Previous post was at 13:11 ----------

and yes I agree with you about what grows back ,I used to keep carp in a huge tank and Ive seen split tails and missing scales grow back and even more suprising is the speed at which it happens but we dont want to hurt the poor mites more than we need to so tell me more
what hooks? what hooklenths ? hair rigged ? and what venue ?

The hooks are called
FisXtail ,
Hooks to nylon,
BIG FISH,
Barbless hair,
size 16,
BS:4.5lb,
DIAo.14

They were not cheap and come in a black packet I have been cuttting the hair of and this might have contributed to the hook that looked like it had come undone at the hook but does not explain the other hook lengths that snapped mid length.

I have been on the whole impressed with these hooks and last week swapping to these after some malarky size 18 s meant I was suddenly converting bites to catching and I got 5 perch.

The hook length s were 4-8 inches and I had already used these hook lengths but never caught anything large.

The venue is known locally as the ponds at Brailsford in derbyshire near Ashbourne but I think it has an official name as well seemed like it was a popular place for pole fishermen on the mixed lakes.

Hope this helps.

mmmm could be just a problem with barbless hooks which is why more and more places are banning them

useing a larger hook and learning how to tie your own hooklengths may help i also belive that barbless hooks can do a lot of damage to fish during the fight i would use barbed or microbarb if they are allowed if they arent find somewhere else to fish preferably not a commercial where the damage may already have been caused previously but dont worrie we are all still learning and i have been fishing over 50 years

Cakey said:

mmmm could be just a problem with barbless hooks which is why more and more places are banning them

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I would have thought banning barbed would make more sense why would a barbed rip less in a fish ?

I know I was glad I was not using barbed when catching perch as 4 out of the 5 swallowed the hook.

a barb on a hook holds the hook still ,a barbless hook moves around a does a sawing action ,Ive seen a demo on a piece of meat .....
dont know how big your carp are but 16 seems really small
I only carry 2,4,6,and 8's

Oh no, the dreaded barbed versus barbless.

I've used both, i always used Kamasan B175 Salmon and Trout Hooks for my Carp fishing, but i did try Drennan Continental Boilie hooks, but i stopped using them because the carp i caught on them always had blood oozing out of the hook hold.
I only ever use Barbless hooks now and i have never, "hand on heart" never, seen what dayglowfroggy is describing.

If you are snapping line on the strike something is wrong especially when the line is 4.5lb BS.
I would suggest the following.
1) Dont strike so hard, a firm lift into the fish is often enough to set a small sharp hook.
2) Take your time when playing the fish it not a race to get the fish in.
3) Set the clutch so that it is on a soft and gentle setting not set so that it will prevent the line from snapping as 8lb line and a size 16 hook can cause so much damage.
4) Once the clutch is set as you play the fish in be aware the hook hold get elongated as the hook hold slips a little, therefor as you start to get the fish close to the bank do not be tempted to tighten up the clutch. Loosen the clutch to cope with the last minute lunges at the net.
5) If you still are cuasing damage to the fish then stop fishing and go and get some coaching so you can enjoy your hobby without causing horrendous mouth danmage to the fish you are trying to catch.

Tight Lines and good luck

Ian i would suggest that if your rigs are working correctly then all you should ever have to do would be lift firmly into the fish regardless of hook size.
Clutch settings are so very important when playing fish as is correct playing and netting of the fish large tears will still sometimes occur though its par for the course, Anyone know of a way of catching a fish on a hook without leaving some damage please let me know.

The hook size and line you're using is fine for mid single figure carp, although I'd use barbed hooks with the barb crushed down to a bump. This has the same effect as a barb in that it stays put throughout the fight but doesn't do any more damage on the way out.
You'd be best advised to use a match rod for fish of this size as you want the tackle to be balanced, a specimen type rod won't perform as well on the smaller sized fish and bullying without the shock absorption of the match rods tip, this could explain the mouth damage you describe. Your drag should only kick in according to the breaking strain of the main line.

I can see a few reasons for the mouth damage:

1/ A totally unbalanced set up: 8lbs main line turns a match rod into a fast taper animal which is not forgiving when playing Carp, a 1-1.25 TC compound taper rod would be much better IMO.

2/ Uncontrolled striking and breaking 4.5 test mono (far too heavy) and the rod action, also heavy handed playing of the fish.

3/ The wrong clutch setting, as the fish should be able to take line way before max B/S is reached and finger pressure on the spool is used to control the runs of the fish.

4/ A match rod used with such small hooks and heavy line will tear mouths.

I would say change your rod, up your hook size and hooklink to say 6lbs.

Good luck!

Probably the most important thing to realise here is, that you have recognised that you might be doing something wrong.
I use a Leeda icon Power Waggler that has a recomended Main Line of 6lb, the max i use on it is 5lb, with varying size hooklengths but for the type of fishing you have mentioned i would probably use 4.6lb breaking strain for a hook length.
A size 16 Kamasan B911 Barbless spade end hook (and i would be confident of causing any unnecessary mouth damage)
I usually set the Drag on my reels to roughly reflect the breaking strain of the hook length and not the mainline as the hooklength is weaker.
I don't strike, but gently lift in to the fish, as most carp have already hooked them selves anyway.

Here's my set up :

13 foot power waggler (6lb rec main line)
4000 size reel
5lb maxima Chameleon
Float (waggler) size optional
Quick change float adaptor.
size 22 preston innovation match swivel
4lb or 4.6lb hook length (i use middy lo-viz)
size 16 or size 14 Kamasan B911 depending on the size of my hook bait.

In open water i have had carp to over 10lb on this set up, yes i had to play them, but that's the fun of it. I let them take there first initial run on the drag and then i play them by switching the anti reverse off and i back wind if it wants to take any more line after that first run.

My rod new was only £50.00p (Leeda Icon Power Waggler)
My reel with 2 spare spools was £40.00p new (Okuma Payback 040 Front Drag)
Maxima Chameleon is about £6.00p for 250 metres (Mainline)
Middy lo-viz line is about £2.99p for 100 metres (HookLength)
Kamasan hooks in packs of 10 are 99p or for pre tied hooks to nylon about £1.99p
Match Swivels and Quick Change Float adaptors are both about a couple of quid.

There is another thought to ponder......are carp in this type of water....eg, they rely on angleers bait.....prone to developing soft mouths?