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| What hooks are you using on your own homemade quick strike sucker rigs. I for the most part use suckers in the 10-12" range. Looking for a good sturdy hook that is not very big |
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Location: Contrarian Island | I've been using some 4/0 for smaller suckers....I think mine are vmc round bend 2X
for suckers under 12" I usually only one run treble as two trebles tends to make them less lively/die quicker...... |
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Posts: 165
Location: tHe LaKe Of PrIoR, mN | I saw on one of the muskie shows they were using circle hooks on smaller suckers I might try it if i hit slump in the summer.... I try not to run the smaller suckers since where I fish they seem to be size queens but on my 16"ers I use 5/0 so I think 4/0 would be good |
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Posts: 833
| That ciricle hook comment is going to get you some fun responses... In general single circle hook sucker fishing is very bad for the fish as you have to wait for them to swallow the sucker before you can set the hook. This means gut hooking and very high mortality. The Lee Tauchen Big Fish 365 episode from last winter showed this technique using very small minnows. They claimed they could set the hook without harming the fish, and maybe they could. But those guys are pros with 100s of fish under their belts. For us "regular guys" the liklihood is we'll gut hook the fish and likely kill it. Just think, if you can't see the fish, how do you know it hasn't completely swallowed your minnow? Very bad news for the fishery IMO.
I run 3551 7/0 on my rigs. I rarely run a sucker smaller than 16" though. I like to "T" my hooks and then shrink wrap a safety pin on to attach to the minnow. I think I get more action out of the sucker this way, but there is certainly more than one way that catches fish. |
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Posts: 165
Location: tHe LaKe Of PrIoR, mN | Brad P - 4/2/2013 8:24 AM
That ciricle hook comment is going to get you some fun responses... In general single circle hook sucker fishing is very bad for the fish as you have to wait for them to swallow the sucker before you can set the hook. This means gut hooking and very high mortality. The Lee Tauchen Big Fish 365 episode from last winter showed this technique using very small minnows. They claimed they could set the hook without harming the fish, and maybe they could. But those guys are pros with 100s of fish under their belts. For us "regular guys" the liklihood is we'll gut hook the fish and likely kill it. Just think, if you can't see the fish, how do you know it hasn't completely swallowed your minnow? Very bad news for the fishery IMO.
I run 3551 7/0 on my rigs. I rarely run a sucker smaller than 16" though. I like to "T" my hooks and then shrink wrap a safety pin on to attach to the minnow. I think I get more action out of the sucker this way, but there is certainly more than one way that catches fish.
It was pete maina in WISCONSIN SHALLOW WATER RIVER MUSKIES if i remember right. I cant find a full video though, but no he didn't let the muskie swallow the sucker first basically the muskie took the sucker like normal and he lifted the rod not even a real "quick strike" hook set I am interested in this technique when using small suckers... With circle hooks don't they almost always hook the corner of the mouth
I know the "old timers" would use a single regular hook and do the smoke a cigarette then set the hook bit letting the muskies swallow the bait first which like the cigarettes are but a thing of the past... |
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Posts: 165
Location: tHe LaKe Of PrIoR, mN | I found the episode you were talking about with lee http://bigfish365.com/page/episode7
seems easy enough I am going to try it this summer smaller suckers are cheap enough and are easier to keep alive i think |
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Location: The Yahara Chain | VMC 2/0's |
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Posts: 8844
| I use a single 2/0 hook. Seems like the more hardware you have hanging off them the more often they get ignored. Not sure if the muskies actually see all the hooks and #*#* or if the suckers just tend to sit there instead of swimming around.
Tried the circle hook thing. First fish I caught was hooked in the throat. Even if they did work like they are supposed to every time, waiting and waiting? No thanks. |
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Posts: 165
Location: tHe LaKe Of PrIoR, mN | it does seem that the more active swimming suckers find themselves a friend faster... I hate the play dead suckers they swim swim swim swim then they see a muskie and... dead .... |
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Posts: 165
Location: tHe LaKe Of PrIoR, mN | when you guys use the 2/0 single hook setup are you using a nose hook ? and where you place the hook ? |
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| Any body use the Boucher hooks that are on the reg size shallow raiders?? I believe that they are a VMC? |
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| I thought that there was a new regulation that you had to use treble hooks for musky fishing with suckers. Could be wrong but I thought it passed last year |
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Posts: 165
Location: tHe LaKe Of PrIoR, mN | I dont think you have to but they made the quick strike legal to use
I personally don't see a problem with a single circle hook if you watch the big fish 365 episode you will see they don't even really set the hook or let the clicker go like I do with the quick strike |
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| looking at the new regulations for wisconsin you have to use a trebble hook quick strike or a non offset circle hook for bait larger than 8 inches, and you must immediately set the hook on indication of a bite. |
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Posts: 833
| crix - 4/3/2013 10:02 PM
I dont think you have to but they made the quick strike legal to use
I personally don't see a problem with a single circle hook if you watch the big fish 365 episode you will see they don't even really set the hook or let the clicker go like I do with the quick strike
The risk is that you are using a smaller minnow and if you are not fast, the fish could easily swallow the bait which will result in a very deep hookset and very high risk of fish mortality. Can it be safe? Sure. But IMO, it is much easier to have a bad situation with a single circle hook than a quick set rig. Given the ease of damaging a musky population, I choose the quick set rig. I just figure, why add the extra risk if it isn't needed?
This also illustrates why, IMO, it was irresponsible of Lee Tauchen to produce that episode of his show. Sure, they put a ton of fish in the net, but they are professional guides who have handled hundreds of fish. The average joe sees that show and thinks "hey, I can save a nickel by buying smaller minnows and using the circle hook" without knowing the potential higher risk to the fish if he doesn't know how to propely handle the hookset.
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Location: Grand Rapids, MI | If you use a true circle hook it should/will NEVER hook a fish deep. The problem starts with offset hooks, octopus circle hooks, etc. The hooks used in that 365 episode were not OK to use for that method.
This is a true circle hook that would be OK for muskies:
http://www.mustad.no/productcatalog/na/product.php?id=2779
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Posts: 833
| IMO, I'd rather just use the quick set rig and not have the issue. If you are going to hook the minnow in the mouth, you will either need a very small minnow in order to set right away or wait until the bait is swallowed to get a hook into the fish. Either way, I think the risk is just greater than using a quick set rig on a big minnow. For me that is enough to not use the single circle hook style of rigging.
FYI, Larry Dahlberg showed video of a deep swallowed circle hook in a Musky's gullet at my club's banquet in 2011. The only way he was able to safely remove the hook was by having an additional eye welded to the shaft of the hook that he could then use to remove the hook from the fish via a differnent point of leverage. The point here is that the hook still hooked the fish deep. For me the risk of this happening is just greater with this type of rigging, which is why I prefer a quick set rig with trebles. |
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Posts: 165
Location: tHe LaKe Of PrIoR, mN | I guess I really am having a hard time understanding how a fish that grabs the bait on a rod with the reel engaged is ever going to swallow the minnow... every strike I've seen they grab and go not swim to the boat so they are going to set the hook themselves anyway ?
FYI pete manias episode "shallow river muskies" where he was using a small sucker and circle hook was on yesterday they had an example of how they were using the bait and instantly hitting them with no issues and not like they do anything special just hit them quick and here in MN the sucker guy sits and watches it anyway since its 1 line here
saying this method is for "PROS" only is a bit narrow minded how do we learn new methods without trying new things for all you know this will be the ticket in a few years !!! |
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Quick strike rig hooks