# Hooks?



## Jimmy Durham (May 25, 2004)

What type of hooks do you like for fishing straight down with liver? size?

Any different hooks for shad?

Thanks in advance.

JPD


----------



## lean 2 (Mar 6, 2007)

i dont fish liver, but with shad i use 1/0 long shank eagle claw stainless. they dont swallow the hook near as often


----------



## muleherder (Mar 7, 2006)

4/0 Circle Sea .. liver or shad.


----------



## dbullard (Feb 13, 2008)

For shad I like 1/0-3/0 wide gap.


----------



## shadslinger (Aug 21, 2005)

I all most always use shad for bait and for jugs the khale type or long shank & wide gap with some circle to it are my favorite. It holds cut shad well and gets a good hook up ratio.
R & R in the lake I like to use a gold 3/0 or 2/0 crappie hook. A big cat will usually crush it up in its lips and it will hold well and come out easy with pliers. But if I'm trying to catch a big ole mama in the lake I use the silver strong steel Khale hook. In the river I use a hook that is close to a circle like I use in the surf but smaller. I don't know about liver, its it bait? Because there is shad which is bait, and there is not bait.


----------



## shadslinger (Aug 21, 2005)

Here are some pics of the hooks that i like to use. Of course I spelled kahle wrong, but here it is 4/0 and circle 4/0.


----------



## dbullard (Feb 13, 2008)

SS that is why I said wide gap couldn't remember how to spell kahle!! You are right about not missing many fish with them.


----------



## bueyescowboy (Apr 10, 2005)

I laugh at myself because I put any hook i can on the line. I bought a bunch last year. I do like the circle hooks, but I ended up buying just regular hooks last year. It does seem on my circle hook that the ends wear out quicker. Dulling the hook. I do run through hooks pretty good. Dull hooks don't catch fish...sharp hooks do. Keep fresh hooks on your line especially now with the catfish running. Fresh hooks and tight lines catch cats.


----------



## capn (Aug 11, 2005)

Only circles for jug lines, 5/0 and bigger. Kahle hooks are too weak and straighten out to easily. You got to remember that when you have a big fish on a jug line, you have no stretch line and all force goes against the hook and swivels.

For rod and reel I primarily use 2/0 to 4/0 Kahle hooks and get a much better hook up rate than straight shanked hooks. If I'm catching smaller fish or using a bait that's hard to keep on the hook I'll use a #6 treble hook.


----------



## shadslinger (Aug 21, 2005)

capn, do you always anchor your jugs?


----------



## DMC (Apr 2, 2006)

I try to avoid using two different style hooks at the same time when one of them is a circle hook. I either fish all circles or no circles. That's because you don't set the hook with circle hooks, and you have to remember which rigs have them.

For tight lining liver, I would use circle hooks with just enough weight to get it down.

I also use circle hooks for shad, because I fish several rods at once and cannot rely on me seeing the bite and getting to the rod in time to set the hook. With circle hooks, you don't have that knee jerk response to a bite.


----------



## capn (Aug 11, 2005)

shadslinger said:


> capn, do you always anchor your jugs?


Until yesterday, yes I did. Now that I got some flaggers, I have both anchored and free floating rigs. I wanted to fish some free floaters with the kids to provide a little more action than rod and reel. When we go for big fish, we anchor them with railroad spikes, not heavy weights. A big fish will still drag the jug a long ways.


----------



## shadslinger (Aug 21, 2005)

I use both and some days the floaters will outfish the anchored(thought that I was going to sinkers huh?)jugs. The floaters are more fun and easier, but some days the anchored ones kick their butt. I use 1lb weights and have had some 30lb+ blues drag em pretty far.


----------



## dbullard (Feb 13, 2008)

ANYONE use Mustad Demon catfish circle hooks.I put some 4/0 on my free floaters and they are the smalles 4/0 hook ever with a very small gap between the point and the shank.I have not used them yet so I am wondering how they will work. As short as they are it would be hard for a fish to straighten them out.


----------



## capn (Aug 11, 2005)

I don't like using weights heavier than railroad spikes. If a big fish pulls the jug off into deeper water, it become too easy for them to sink the jug for an extended period of time.

The good thing about anchored jugs is that you can put them right on structure (holes, ditches, creek channels, main lake drops, etc) and they will stay put. If you are fishing for big fish, you'll do much better right on that structure than off it. For smaller fish, and particularly in shallow water, the freefloaters are more fun.


----------

