First Time Steelheading (A Noob's guide on what not to do)

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i use size 10-12 hooks all the time, even use a size 12 for salmon, just find strong hooks that are sharp, anything Japanese, not Chinese, is usually really good. I tried out some eagle claws last season, they were OK, but after one salmon they looked like this. on the left is normal, the right is..well

 

[BackwoodsBassr]

Thx man! As it happens the hook I was using was an eagle claw 84 model...I buy them in bulk when I'm testing out different lures because they're dirt cheap but you're absolutely right, gammys or owner hooks would dust them up in a strength competition.

 

[rich_ace_G]

i think the smallest size hotntots i have has size 6 treble hooks not sure. if you're using spinners. replace the treble with single siwash not bigger than #6. i use the #2 "bigbelly" panther martins...replaced with single hooks #6...red belly...i'm not sure if #6 hooks are too big for steelheading but they somehow work proportionate to the spinner and i fish for browns more than bows.

 

[Clab]

I broke my hardware virginity on a chocolate milk trib last thursday. Hit a nice big hen on a mepps aglia with a bright chartreuse blade. I'm no expert on hardware steelheading by any means but I allways had the mindset that in blown conditions something with vibration is your best bet.

This is my number one bass lure. Hands down more smallies than I can count.

 

[iamnickevans]

When fishing for trout I always try to use the heaviest equipment that I can get away with without compromising my presentation. My normal setup includes #8 quality hooks, you can get away with #10 or #12, just don't be surprised if you lose the odd fish for unknown reasons. For my leader material I use anywhere from 6lb-10lb leader. I see so many anglers using very light leaders 3lb-5lb on a regular basis only to see them get snapped off by a larger fish on a regular basis. I find that using light leaders do have there time and place...usually later in the spring when the water temps are warmer and the fish have a little less spunk in them. When I use heavier leader material and slightly larger hooks I am able to bank the fish faster and I have zero chance of my hooks bending straight, this causes less stress on the fish as well. If you are fishing clear water than there may be times when you will fish light leaders but you must be careful as to not snap off. I recently caught a small 5lb brown trout that had 2 broken off hooks and lines in it's mouth......both leaders looked to be under 6lb test.

 

[BackwoodsBassr]

Thanks Rich and Nick!

Rick I'm glad you say that because I have a ton of #6 hooks I can swap with. I was really surprised when I snagged a fish using a #6 single with a plastic rigged on it...barely any exposed hook at all...so it's good to know others do the same and I wasn't just being reckless.

Nick, I hear what you're saying for sure. My friend, who is an avid steelheader, advised me to go with 4lb fluoro and I was reluctant because I have had trouble bringing in bass on 6lb fluoro and thought that 4lb for trout that can easily reach 14lbs was a bit too soft.

Cheers gents.

 

[fishing89]

in response to your question, i replaced the treble hooks with gamakatsu singles

 

[goodentight]

Basically BWB,

You will never find two guys using the same set up. Period. Everyone has quirks, different skill levels, abilities and biases.


What is an extremely common for the average float fisher... is a 8-10lb mono main and a 5-8lb fluro leader. I think 95% of us fit somewhere into that category. I personally run a 8lb back to a 5 or 6lb leader. Invest in high quality line, and you won't snap it, if you are doing it right.

I mentioned earlier to be confident with smaller hooks. After a few replies here, I feel I need to elaborate. If I was you, I would throw those size 6 hooks out. I fish 12 and 14s, and have never looked back. Here are 3 pinnacle reasons large hooks suck.

-snagging fish: Straight up. You are going to snag a higher % of fish, the bigger your hook is. Fact.

-losing gear on trees and snags: Again. the bigger your hook, the greater the hook ups of trees and branches you will hit on the bank and in the water. Snap. Hope you enjoy retying and frequenting a gear shop.

-spooking fish: I know their brains are the size of a peanut or so, but they are smarter than we think sometimes. A nice juicy beautiful roe sack floats by with an ALARMING hook the same size of it, or a small hook off to the side that maybe they don't even see, which one is the fish going to take, and which one is the fish going to swim away from?

I can't tell you how many times I snag on someone elses line (that is already snapped off and could have been there for a day or two or a week) and end up pulling up their rig, only to see hooks that are way to big for the system presented. Not only did that person lose their gear and time retying, they have set a boobytrap for the next person to drift that run.


But hey man, its all up to you. Feel it out. When I first started I thought small hooks were impractical. "Ill never hook up!" I said. I agree with NickEvans, be prepared to lose a fish or two with a "WTF happened" from time to time. But, you will also be saying that with large hooks too! Remember, float goes down, rod goes up! Hook set hard. The best things in life are free... happiness, love, and HOOK SETS. so set em!


Hope this helps

 

[rich_ace_G]

Just want to point out that #6 hooks I use is mainly for the spinners that I have. Now If i'm drifting roe or beads...I don't go bigger than #10 gama hooks. but for the spinners I have, #6 or #8 is the perfect fit. nothing smaller or bigger.

 

[fishing89]

good has it right, no one has an identical set up. Thats why some people cath fish and others dont. The basic rules are having a light, clean leader and a clean set up. Using beads, roe, spinners, worms , flies is ALL good. Just make sure the fish cant see the leader and the hooks are small and the world is your oyster.

 

[NADO]

6 is a good size for a big juicy dewy, in the raven specialist at least.

 

[BackwoodsBassr]

G&T thanks for the advice. Very well put. I guess trout fishing is a lot like bassn in the sense that it is more of a subjective "art" as opposed to a science. I actually find that I land more bass with a smaller hook because they stick better...maybe it's the same for trout (although I never really go smaller than a #10 for bass and that is usually a move of final desperation when all else fails lol).

Rich that makes sense to me too, thanks again. The diameter of most spinner bodies/beads means that the lure would act as too much of a lever on a hook under size 8 and imo it would be hard to hook a fish properly using a #10 on a spinner, spoon, or crank.

NADO & Fishing89 thx again for the tips, it's been many many years since I've broken out the bobbers but next time I'm on a trib I just might throw down some floats and experiment with a few different presentations.

 

[rich_ace_G]

NADO & Fishing89 thx again for the tips, it's been many many years since I've broken out the bobbers but next time I'm on a trib I just might throw down some floats and experiment with a few different presentations.

Experiment is key. I've seen a lot of unfamiliar stuff just going out on a trib. I saw an old timer float fishing with spinner a couple of years ago and was catching trout. I'm pretty sure not a lot of people do that nowadays. Sometimes 1 presentation works when others don't. sometimes all of them work.