How do you like yours?

[Nige]

Been touched on a few times before,a nd it seems that anglers have a different view on this one. So which do you see as more damaging; barbed or barbless hooks, and why?

[Northern_monkey]

On one water i fished there was a barbed hook ban, and after only a few months the fish where in a bit of a state. The fishery manager changed it to barbed hooks only and the fish showed a vast improvement

[bigted]

Originally Posted by Northern_monkey

On one water i fished there was a barbed hook ban, and after only a few months the fish where in a bit of a state. The fishery manager changed it to barbed hooks only and the fish showed a vast improvement

this reply say's it all for me nice one NM

Stoke is the first club ive fished in that has allowed barbed hooks........the fish in the waters are probably in the best conditon ive seen...........is this due to barbed hooks?..............

I am getting better hookholds on all my fish with a barbed hook as i think the barb keeps the hook from turning/rocking side to side.............therefore less damage to the mouth..........

[Deano]

Had a nasty experience with barbless hooks quite a few years ago at Cudmore fishing the speci lake....I had two pristine double figure commons and the hooks (Barbless) had ripped gaping holes in their soft mouths I never use barbless unless the club strictly enforces their use due to this experience....barbed hooks go in and stay put

[Bet]

I am getting better hookholds on all my fish with a barbed hook as i think the barb keeps the hook from turning/rocking side to side.............therefore less damage to the mouth..........

When I moved from barbless day ticket waters onto lakes which allowed barbed I noticed this too.You only have to look at the fishes mouth's at Gorsty hall and the like to see what damage barbless hooks do.I only use them if rules state I have to.

[Stig]

The only time i am glad of using a barbless hooks is when 1 gets embeded in my leg or finger and you can just slide it out where as in the past i have had a trip to hospital to have it cut out .Fished the rest of the day with it stuck in my leg and went to casualty on my way home.

[bigted]

Originally Posted by Stig

The only time i am glad of using a barbless hooks is when 1 gets embeded in my leg or finger and you can just slide it out where as in the past i have had a trip to hospital to have it cut out .Fished the rest of the day with it stuck in my leg and went to casualty on my way home.

EEEERMMM YES !!, i'd fully agree with that!! i'd just like to give a big shout to Sir phil highlander for the use of his forceps on our last top pool sesh! i wish'd that hook was barbless that day

[Northern_monkey]

Just like to say, when fishing with barbed hooks especially, it is very important to carry a pair of wire cutters with you on the odd occasion that a hook will go through twice etc, it is much easier to simply snip the hook in half at the bend than it is to try and remove it properly

[Chesh]

phil matey in reply to your comment on fish mouths, literaly all the Yateley fish have perfect mouths and they also operate a no barbless rule

in my opinion, i now use barbed i feel more at home more secure with them with a fish on the end

The end of the day though if a fish wants to sehd the hook then it will do regardless

[Dan]

I'm on a club committee made up of mainly course anglers and it took me 3 years to convince them to allow barbed hooks. I think its easier to believe (without looking into it) that a barbless hook is better for fishing. However, anyone who looks that bit further into the subject, will find both in theory and practise that barbed are better for the fish. The only time i would say barbless should take priority is on commercial style venue's where course anglers regularly get snapped due to fishing too light and the fish can get rid of the rig faster.

[garethh]

I think small course hooks should be barbless. Small roach, perch and chub have really delecate mouths.

But then again, that contradicts what were saying about using barbed hooks for carp

Confused myself now?

[philntomo]

Originally Posted by garethh

I think small course hooks should be barbless. Small roach, perch and chub have really delecate mouths.

But then again, that contradicts what were saying about using barbed hooks for carp

Confused myself now?

I agree with you... I think its down to the sheer fight & also the weight with say Carp, e.g you bring a 4oz Roach in with barbless, no struggle hence no hook twist, mouth rip etc but playing a large Carp for 20 minutes which is diving, twisting etc, the hook has every chance to move about and cause damage, but on a barbed hook hold i think its more under control hence less chance of damage.

Originally Posted by philntomo

I agree with you... I think its down to the sheer fight & also the weight with say Carp, e.g you bring a 4oz Roach in with barbless, no struggle hence no hook twist, mouth rip etc but playing a large Carp for 20 minutes which is diving, twisting etc, the hook has every chance to move about and cause damage, but on a barbed hook hold i think its more under control hence less chance of damage.

dont you think that its all relevant to the size of fish ?.......just cos its not on for 20minutes doesnt mean its having less effect from being hooked...............

If you were to scale things up from roach etc to carp proportions how big would one of these smaller hooks look ? i reckon it would look a hel of a lot bigger than my average size 6

[Sloaney]

Think the main problem, especially on waters that once operated on barbed hooks but now have a ban is that the angler (myself included in this, but luckliy very rarely fish barbless only waters) thinks that a barbless hook is more likeley to fall out if any slack line is given and therefore plays the fish that much harder to avoid this happening. Obviously the harder the fish is played the more likely it is that mouth damage will occur.
How many anglers have actually landed fish that have ripped mouths that have been caused during the fight. I can honestly say that I have never ripped a fishes mouth during a fight. There may have been minor damage inside the mouth where the hook has come out and caught again, but this has been very rare.This begs the question after seeing some of the horror stories that do exist. Where does the damage take place. Is it during the unhooking process? or is it all down to tethering? Or is it anglers who just play the fish too hard?


Sloaney