Subtle hookset...or just whip it?!

[streamside88]

yeah im not a hard setter either , when im drifting for salmon ill pull up if its tight and kinda twitch's then i give it a quick snap upwards and keep a tight line unless they jump then i slack it, yes ive lost lots of fish but lets just say the amount of anger that rushes through me when i bird nest a tree is unreal..... ruins my day lol

 

[rocheleauc]

Ae mentioned depends on the rod's action you are using.

With my CTS and fireline crystal I just lift the rod up and that's it. No crazy ripping of the float which drives me crazy.

This. If I'm fishing my raven, I crank it as hard as I can to bury that hook as far as I can into that fishes face :mrgreen:

With the CTS I just have to do a flick of the wrists unless there's a lot of slack line out, then I'll crank it as far back as I can. With the XST I just lift it. Took a while to get used to that rod, first few outings I had my float and everything under it fly back at my face multiple times lol.

 

[streamside88]

the hook makes all the difference.... then the leader..... i like seaguar abrazx fluo , barely any stretch and it can take a beating.....

 

[Knuguy]

It really depends on the action of your blank. My sage I can lift the tip and that sets the hook. With my loomis IM6 rods, I have to lay into it a little more. With my sons shimano 11.5 footer, I need to lean hard into the hook set to drive them home properly! This sometimes leads to the float rocketing backwards at me on a missed set!

Very true! What matters is how much force is applied to the hook and how fast it's applied.You can pluck the tip of a long float rod back a foot or so and it would put very littl force on the hook. If you did that with a short stiff rod you'd probably pull hard enough to break the rod. That also means you can set the hook faster with a stiffer rod because you don't have to bring the tip as far back. I'm not saying stiffer is better(at least as far as FISHING rods are concerned) because hook-stting is just one of many considerations in selecting a rod.

 

[IR4Jflyfishing]

This. If I'm fishing my raven, I crank it as hard as I can to bury that hook as far as I can into that fishes face :mrgreen:

With the CTS I just have to do a flick of the wrists unless there's a lot of slack line out, then I'll crank it as far back as I can. With the XST I just lift it. Took a while to get used to that rod, first few outings I had my float and everything under it fly back at my face multiple times lol.

I agree with this, with my im6 raven I tend to use a fast sweeping hookset but when I am fishing my lets say im8 switch rod it is just a fast flick that maybe moves the rod tip a foot (to bury the hook and tighten the line)

 

[beef]

I set hook sooo hard I rip there lips off sometimes and others all I have when I reel in is fillets skinned and ready. For the oven its sweet you guys should try it some time works well for me

 

[FisherGirl]

Setting the hook is my favourite parrrt!

Most people (including myself until recently) seem to set the hook in an upstream direction which essentially rips the bait right out of the trouts mouth. Trout always face into the current and eat things that float towards them. The whole point of fishing is to set that hook into the side of the trouts mouth, and your chances of hooking up will dramatically increase if you set the hook down-current (not the same as down stream).

It can feel like natural instinct to lift, flick and pull with all you've got.... but next time take a minute, watch the flow of the water and plan to set the hook downcurrent (in same direction as the flow).

 

[rich_ace_G]

find that with chinooks and browns...sometimes it kinda feel like you snagged a log....a log that can leap a foot out of water....

 

[FisherGirl]

find that with chinooks and browns...sometimes it kinda feel like you snagged a log....a log that can leap a foot out of water....

Well arent you a show off. I've yet to catch either...

 

[staffman]

It really depends on the action of your blank. My sage I can lift the tip and that sets the hook. With my loomis IM6 rods, I have to lay into it a little more. With my sons shimano 11.5 footer, I need to lean hard into the hook set to drive them home properly! This sometimes leads to the float rocketing backwards at me on a missed set!

x2

 

[rich_ace_G]

Well arent you a show off. I've yet to catch either...

Oh FG...well don't worry. It's March already...it's pike season...then opener for trout...then bass...that will keep you busy before the salmons & browns return although you can still catch brown in the mouths of tribs. Not a big fan of salmon in fact I don't go after them but if they take my bait...it can be a hell of a day.

So far only a chinook has me rolled my pants and wade barefoot...

 

[xxxSIBxxx]

Setting the hook is my favourite parrrt!

Most people (including myself until recently) seem to set the hook in an upstream direction which essentially rips the bait right out of the trouts mouth. Trout always face into the current and eat things that float towards them. The whole point of fishing is to set that hook into the side of the trouts mouth, and your chances of hooking up will dramatically increase if you set the hook down-current (not the same as down stream).

It can feel like natural instinct to lift, flick and pull with all you've got.... but next time take a minute, watch the flow of the water and plan to set the hook downcurrent (in same direction as the flow).

So what if you're float is 20 ft downstream of you are you gonna run down river to below your float and set the hook? I don't understand what you mean, please explain.

 

[FisherGirl]

So what if you're float is 20 ft downstream of you are you gonna run down river to below your float and set the hook? I don't understand what you mean, please explain.

thats a good point. its just a tip, wont work in every situation. maybe its more of a fly thing....i've read a lot :wacko:

 

[Brian]

Alot of times a fish would rise in an upstream direction as was said to take an offering, then head back in the downstream direction to its previous position. Setting the hook in an upstream direction would work in this case.

 

[Shmogley]

Alot of times a fish would rise in an upstream direction as was said to take an offering, then head back in the downstream direction to its previous position. Setting the hook in an upstream direction would work in this case.

this is what i find too.
they look for food floating down towards them but when they go to hit they rush ahead a little bit out of excitement, then turn around, usually to head back to their post. like 7/10 times this is the case


and back on topic it really depends on the rod. i use a 11'5 and i have to set it pretty hard to the point where im dodging my float sometimes if im not careful.
having handled a longer better make of rod(what she said ) i could get a solid hookset with half the effort and no flying floats

 

[steelhead101]

the down stream hook set is a flossers hook set, if a bait is in a fish's mouth a pull in any direction is going to result in a hook up.

 

[FisherGirl]

the down stream hook set is a flossers hook set, if a bait is in a fish's mouth a pull in any direction is going to result in a hook up.

Wrong

 

[[email protected]]

from personal experience, the straight up hook set is the fastest and most efficient way to set the hook, often times i find the fish will turn after biting to reposition itself in the current, so when you think you pulling the hook into the mouth, you are actually pulling the hook out of the mouth.. so for me, i always lift straight up and the hook is either in the roof of the mouth on the front lip or in the corner