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Lidl garlic sausage

Stephen Goderski said:
I use size 2s for fishing with meat baits in floodwater without any issues
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I'm sure you would have issues if the hook was being yanked into your mouth.
Ok, jmo I know, but I see no reason/excuse to use such a huge hook to catch even the largest of barbel.
Barbel have relatively small mouths, so half a tin of meat has to be whittled down in size before it can be consumed so whats the point of it?
A sticky mix on a method feeder would work just the same and a much more sensibly sized hook could be used in conjunction with it.
As I said.....jmo.
 
Ian Woods said:
I'm sure you would have issues if the hook was being yanked into your mouth.
Ok, jmo I know, but I see no reason/excuse to use such a huge hook to catch even the largest of barbel.
Barbel have relatively small mouths, so half a tin of meat has to be whittled down in size before it can be consumed so whats the point of it?
A sticky mix on a method feeder would work just the same and a much more sensibly sized hook could be used in conjunction with it.
As I said.....jmo.
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To be fair, the fish I had the other day could have fitted half a tin of spam in its gob quite happily. I was also sometimes bringing baits back in that hadn’t been whittled down at all, so there’s a decent chance it did have the whole thing.

Not sure I can visualise how the method feeder would work the same? For me that’s always been a really unselective method, although productive.
 
Ian Woods said:
I'm sure you would have issues if the hook was being yanked into your mouth.
Ok, jmo I know, but I see no reason/excuse to use such a huge hook to catch even the largest of barbel.
Barbel have relatively small mouths, so half a tin of meat has to be whittled down in size before it can be consumed so whats the point of it?
A sticky mix on a method feeder would work just the same and a much more sensibly sized hook could be used in conjunction with it.
As I said.....jmo.
Click to expand...
Hi Ian, both me and my daughter enjoy eating malteser’s and jam doughnuts, I’m 50 yrs old and can fit a whole doughnut in my mouth in one go and eat it 😁 my daughters 13 yrs old and cannot fit a whole doughnut in her mouth 😉 a 8lb + barbel can easily fit half a 200g piece of meat in its mouth, I’ve caught such fish within 10mins of introducing a bait. The large hook size is not only for presentation but also to insure a good hook hold therefore less chance of damage. IMO
 
Ian Woods said:
I'm sure you would have issues if the hook was being yanked into your mouth.
Ok, jmo I know, but I see no reason/excuse to use such a huge hook to catch even the largest of barbel.
Barbel have relatively small mouths, so half a tin of meat has to be whittled down in size before it can be consumed so whats the point of it?
A sticky mix on a method feeder would work just the same and a much more sensibly sized hook could be used in conjunction with it.
As I said.....jmo.
Click to expand...

Well, I'm not sure where to start here? Yes, I would have issues if a hook was yanked into my mouth but I'd struggle even more with the breathing underwater thing because - and I suspect you already know this - I am not a barbel.

If you have ever caught a barbel you will notice that it pulls against the force being exerted by the angler. This tends to suggest that the fish does not feel pain when hooked. If it did (which I do not believe), what is the difference between hook sizes? Or is it only my hooks that hurt the fish, whereas yours are ok?

I also don't agree that barbel have relatively small mouths - relative to what exactly? An eel? Oh no, eel anglers routinely use size 2s......

I have also never used half a tin of meat as bait - it doesn't suit my preferred style of fishing, I'm not saying I never would.

I don't understand the method feeder point. It could certainly work but would it be any more effective than my single flavoured meat bait? We will never know but even if I was using a method feeder in flood conditions, I would still be using meat on a size 2.

What is the point you are trying to make exactly? That a size 2 hook is too big for a barbel? Although I clearly disagree, what would you suggest is the maximum hook size that you think anglers should be using and why? In my opinion, using small hooks is potentially more damaging to our favourite species.

Steve
 
Graham Tremble said:
If you think that fish feel pain when hooked then why not start another subject on this forum although I am sure most of us have commented about this previously.
Having a different opinion on subjects promotes debate, nothing wrong with that.
G.T.
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Hi Graham,

I agree that the last thing we need is yet another do fish feel pain discussion but when I am asked how I would like it if a hook "was being yanked into your mouth" I felt it inappropriate not to answer.

All I said at the outset was that I also used size 2 hooks occasionally. Ian obviously thinks this is an issue so I asked him to explain why. He has not yet done so, which is fine, and I am obviously not going to press for a response. But I am genuinely interested why he, or anyone else, would have a problem with it.

Steve
 
At the end of the day we are fishing.
We place a sharp bent piece of metal into a fishes mouth by tempting it with one of the things it needs most.
Then, in some instances, the fish has to be rested to ensure it does not go belly up.
Some people fill up a keep net as well. You simply cannot get away from the fact that we are fishing, "Catch & Release" or not. If someone is concerned with using a large hook, maybe the actual act of fishing is pricking their conscience?
Hook size is a personal choice. Large hooks don't concern me. It shouldn't move at all and although having a slightly wider diameter than my usual size 6 hooks the actual "wound" will only be very slightly larger.
Repeating what I said at the beginning, we are fishing. Fact.

Steve
 
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Surely, Large hooks although looking large overall have a negligible increase in the gauge of the wire (in most cases) which is the only thing that affects a hooked fish. The actual length and width of the hook make no difference?
I rarely use anything larger than a 10 but thats due to my bait size. I tried the BIG MEAT method last time i went (only 1/3rd tin!) and used a large (size 2) ‘drop shot’ type hook buried in the bait without any worries.
 
Re hooks and the mentioned Partridge Barbel Hooks, if they are the same as the original Patridge Barbel hooks, then IMHO, they are the best meat hooks on the market, having a straight eye and long shank. When they were originally discontinued, which coincided with Loan Angler closing down, I grabbed their remaining stock and still have a good supply at hand.

My other must have component is Drennan Carp Dacron, which is long since discontinued. It doesn’t cut through large baits like cheese wire, which other braids do in my experience. Fortunately I have a good supply of this too, some of which was kindly donated to me FOC by BFW members, following an appeal 😍

And regarding a Barbel’s ability to deal with half a tin of meat, dont be under any illusion. I’ve fished the method on a regular basis for the last 7 years and very occasionally, I’ve had a take within a couple of minutes of swinging a bait out! I also previously mentioned that occasionally you will catch a Barbel, where its spat the full half tin up the hook length, including two fish in one session I had. So Barbel in landing net, along with full half tin, sitting around 12 inches up the line. Again, I cannot get my head around how that happens under the law of physics, as it makes no sence?

My other observation is that some Barbel are better than others at dealing with a large bait. Some takes are absolute butt slammers, whilst on other occasions, a Barbel can mess about with the bait for 20+ minutes, before taking it confidently.
 
Neil Blood said:
Re hooks and the mentioned Partridge Barbel Hooks, if they are the same as the original Patridge Barbel hooks, then IMHO, they are the best meat hooks on the market, having a straight eye and long shank. When they were originally discontinued, which coincided with Loan Angler closing down, I grabbed their remaining stock and still have a good supply at hand.

My other must have component is Drennan Carp Dacron, which is long since discontinued. It doesn’t cut through large baits like cheese wire, which other braids do in my experience. Fortunately I have a good supply of this too, some of which was kindly donated to me FOC by BFW members, following an appeal 😍

And regarding a Barbel’s ability to deal with half a tin of meat, dont be under any illusion. I’ve fished the method on a regular basis for the last 7 years and very occasionally, I’ve had a take within a couple of minutes of swinging a bait out! I also previously mentioned that occasionally you will catch a Barbel, where its spat the full half tin up the hook length, including two fish in one session I had. So Barbel in landing net, along with full half tin, sitting around 12 inches up the line. Again, I cannot get my head around how that happens under the law of physics, as it makes no sence?

My other observation is that some Barbel are better than others at dealing with a large bait. Some takes are absolute butt slammers, whilst on other occasions, a Barbel can mess about with the bait for 20+ minutes, before taking it confidently.
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Agree re the Partridge hooks - I wondered where they had all gone and now I know!!
 
Neil Blood said:
Re hooks and the mentioned Partridge Barbel Hooks, if they are the same as the original Patridge Barbel hooks, then IMHO, they are the best meat hooks on the market, having a straight eye and long shank. When they were originally discontinued, which coincided with Loan Angler closing down, I grabbed their remaining stock and still have a good supply at hand.

My other must have component is Drennan Carp Dacron, which is long since discontinued. It doesn’t cut through large baits like cheese wire, which other braids do in my experience. Fortunately I have a good supply of this too, some of which was kindly donated to me FOC by BFW members, following an appeal 😍

And regarding a Barbel’s ability to deal with half a tin of meat, dont be under any illusion. I’ve fished the method on a regular basis for the last 7 years and very occasionally, I’ve had a take within a couple of minutes of swinging a bait out! I also previously mentioned that occasionally you will catch a Barbel, where its spat the full half tin up the hook length, including two fish in one session I had. So Barbel in landing net, along with full half tin, sitting around 12 inches up the line. Again, I cannot get my head around how that happens under the law of physics, as it makes no sence?

My other observation is that some Barbel are better than others at dealing with a large bait. Some takes are absolute butt slammers, whilst on other occasions, a Barbel can mess about with the bait for 20+ minutes, before taking it confidently.
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My take on that Neil "the barbel hooked with the meat left sliding up the line" might have been sucking on the meat and sucked the hook out....maybe? I can't think of any other explanation for that scenario.
I'm just going off some types of fish in an aquarium when they can't get the food in their mouths.

The barbel messing with the meat for 20+ minuites might have been the barbel that actually takes it or its highly likely smaller fish were pecking bits off it before a barbel came along and took it?

Meat is a soft bait so the fish can whittle it down easy enough, if it was a smaller size they could just suck it up easily.

Recently i've been freelining meat for barbel and chub. I've been using some hefty chunks of meat, some about 1 1/2 inches by up to an inch thick.
I push a baiting needle through the meat and pull the hook through it and just use a bit of stiff grass stalk under the bend of the hook to prevent it pulling out on the cast. The hooks i've been using have been drennan super spades in sizes from a 12s down to an 8s and i've hooked every fish that i've struck at.
 
The meat ball as big as a ping pong ball on a size 6 used last night touch ledgering.
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