Good hook to use so panfish don't swallow it...

[Mad_Dog]

Fishing with my son for sunfish today, using #8 Mustad hooks with a Gulp! maggot on them, and the 4-6 inch sunfish were swallowing the hook each time. Any way to avoid this, we're just fishing for fun, and I hate to see them hooked like that. Maybe it's me, I set the hook to late, or those maggots are too small? Any advice is appreciated....

[muskymatt]

Pretty much the only hook proven to not gut hook a fish even when swallowed is the circle hook. They will be swallowed but when pulled they hook the corner of the mouth every time.
I've seen them small enough for pannies.

[mitch]

try using a carlisle hook, which will allow you to easily unhook the fish. Mitch

http://www.google.ca/imgres?imgurl=http ... ty=34[url]

[dead_weight]

I had the kids out to the lake a few weeks ago and we must have caught in excess of 40 panfish ... I find you have to set the hook right away with these little guys ... we only lost 1 fish all week and that was because someone let it sit there for a while unattended ... also we pinch off the barb in the hook ... you lose a lot more but 10 times easier to get off. We also fish with slightly larger hooks than you might think ... brook trout hooks actually ... again you lose a few because they just bite the worm and can't quite bite the hook, but you don't lose many fish.

My 2 cents.

[Mad_Dog]

I had the kids out to the lake a few weeks ago and we must have caught in excess of 40 panfish ... I find you have to set the hook right away with these little guys ... we only lost 1 fish all week and that was because someone let it sit there for a while unattended ... also we pinch off the barb in the hook ... you lose a lot more but 10 times easier to get off. We also fish with slightly larger hooks than you might think ... brook trout hooks actually ... again you lose a few because they just bite the worm and can't quite bite the hook, but you don't lose many fish.

My 2 cents.

What size and brand do you use? I'll be looking for some of this stuff soon, thanks for all the advice!

[Mad_Dog]

What size and brand of brook trout hooks do you use? Thanks for the other ideas guys, I'll be looking for that stuff soon.

[Dore]

circle hooks are ur best bet !

[bradford2]

You could try to use a 1" tube..... it's a bit bigger so they can't take them as far down...... you'll still get lots of fish on them as well.

[dead_weight]

Hi mad dog .. I used # 4 hooks .... they are some Cdn tire special (kind of no name brand) ... but really any brand will do ... it's the "snelled" hooks style that just fits on a swivel real easy .. that with a tiny bit of bit of worm and you are in business. I also use a bobber ... more for the enjoyment of the kids ... ah heck I find it exciting too !! I let the bobber go under a few times before setting the hook ... then I hand it to my kids to reel in ... they are only 4 and 2 so they are too young to set a hook.

Hope all this helps.

[Mad_Dog]

Hi mad dog .. I used # 4 hooks .... they are some Cdn tire special (kind of no name brand) ... but really any brand will do ... it's the "snelled" hooks style that just fits on a swivel real easy .. that with a tiny bit of bit of worm and you are in business. I also use a bobber ... more for the enjoyment of the kids ... ah heck I find it exciting too !! I let the bobber go under a few times before setting the hook ... then I hand it to my kids to reel in ... they are only 4 and 2 so they are too young to set a hook.

Hope all this helps.

Thanks, it does. Anything is exciting with your kids, my son is 2, and he likes 'letting it swim away' more than the catching.

[beachburger]

Pinch the barb on the hook and get a set of hemostats if you don't already have them. You'll get 99% of the hooks out of the pannies without difficulty

You'll be needing the hemostats for your flyfishing career.....

[Todd B.]

Circle hooks are definitely the way to go. I've used #10s and even letting perch run with the bait, the hooks have always engaged in the corner of mouth. Just remember that you do not set the hook when using circle hooks. Just reel in and apply pressure. It takes a bit to get used to but you have to let the fish take your bait and turn away from you. If it's still facing you the hook will simply pull out of the fish's mouth without engaging.

Todd