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Hook for Snag Fishing

Steve Walker

Steve Walker

Senior Member
I have done quite a bit of fishing near sunken tree roots in the last couple of seasons as there are some big barbel and the odd carp that like the sanctuary around them.

This is hit and hold fishing at it's best and requires immensely strong tackle(and a good heart) as it places extreme pressure on all of your gear.

I have settled on the rod,reel,line,hooklength and knots to use,it is the hooks that have given me the most problems.I am using standard hair rigs with pellets or boilie as baits,nothing too complicated.

Most carp hooks are strong enough to cope without opening up,however I have suffered some inexplicable hook pulls with wide gape,short shank hooks and the occasional hook opening up(ESP Raptor D7).After trying several patterns I have reached the conclusion that a curved shank hook is the best for actual hook holding properties.

The Korda kurv,Gardner mugga and Korum S5 have all performed exceptionally well catching barbel to above 12lbs and in my opinion there is little to choose between them-a size 8 S5 accounting for a bonus 20lb 3oz carp.

I would be interested to know what hooks other members have had success with for this type of very demanding fishing.
 
Drennan continental, owner c5 x, had some good fish in difficult swims with those two, only used em in a 6, dont subscribe to the small hook theory, d7s have a bit of a reputation of not standing up to severe tests
 
Pallatrax the hook, it is super strong and has landed huge fish I'n all sizes
Take a look on the website, www.pallatrax.co.uk There is an art...f 14lb 4 oz was landed with ease on a size 10
 
My preferred heavy duty hook is the OWNER C3 TSUYOSHI
But if your choice is working well I suggest don't fix what is not broke!
 
It's funny how attitudes change, if this thread had been posted 5 years ago the advice would have been not to fish for them in the snags but to attract them out into clear water. It seems anything goes these days in the hunt for glory.
 
Dave Burr said:
As Adrian said, times and attitudes seem to have changed.

I dare say that the fish you land will all have torn mouths and if you are happy with that then find a big, strong hook (maybe a treble would be better :rolleyes:) and good luck to you.
Click to expand...

It didn't take long for the self appointed barbel morality police to enter the debate with some crass comments did it ?

I am a strong advocate of barbel welfare and would not use this style of fishing if there was even the smallest chance of a fish being damaged in any way.

For your information I am using strong hooks but in relatively small sizes-a korum S5 in an 8 and the gardner mugga in a 10 as they are on the large side anyway,a 10 being more like an 8.

I can honestly say that I have never damaged a barbel's mouth using the hit and hold method.The advantage in fishing with heavy tackle is the fish is subdued and landed fast so recovery time is much quicker.

I have also removed hooks and terminal tackle from several barbel because anglers are not using appropriate gear-these are the people that you should be criticising with your holier than thou attitude.:mad:
 
At risk of being also being labelled by that old, boring cliche..

You've suffered some hook pulls. How do you know that they didn't cause damage? Did those fish arm themselves with disgorgers before taking the bait, in case they were about to get skull dragged out for a cuddle...

:p
 
PS I am being Tongue-in-cheeky. I'm not really in a position to discuss moral issues of angling. I just couldn't get past the contradiction. Im pedantic, if you will.

Take it easy
 
Darren George said:
You've suffered some hook pulls. How do you know that they didn't cause damage?
Click to expand...

Darren,there is no way any of us can answer that question,I am sure we have all suffered from the inexplicable hook pulls in the past and none of us know if it has caused any damage to the barbel's mouth.

If you are remotely worried about it then it is perhaps better not to fish for barbel.

I try to reduce that possibility by using balanced gear i.e. a powerful rod with just enough give in it and yet the backbone to stop barbel going on one of those ''express train runs''.Once they have picked up speed it is very difficult to turn them so it is best to stop them in their tracks in the first place.

All I can go on is my personal experience that this style of fishing has never damaged a barbel's mouth that I have landed,in fact the recovery time for the fish has been much quicker so surely it is better from the fish welfare aspect.
 
Steve Walker said:
It didn't take long for the self appointed barbel morality police to enter the debate with some crass comments did it ?

I am a strong advocate of barbel welfare and would not use this style of fishing if there was even the smallest chance of a fish being damaged in any way.

For your information I am using strong hooks but in relatively small sizes-a korum S5 in an 8 and the gardner mugga in a 10 as they are on the large side anyway,a 10 being more like an 8.

I can honestly say that I have never damaged a barbel's mouth using the hit and hold method.The advantage in fishing with heavy tackle is the fish is subdued and landed fast so recovery time is much quicker.

I have also removed hooks and terminal tackle from several barbel because anglers are not using appropriate gear-these are the people that you should be criticising with your holier than thou attitude.:mad:
Click to expand...

Wow........Straight back with the barbel police defence and followed up with the 'haul em out with a tow rope' is better for em argument.
Looks like we've got a live one.:D
 
'hook and hold'

Hi Guys,
I wonder if people who have suggested that hook and hold tactics damage the Barbels mouth have ever tried this method? I have used this method on the Teme and have never noticed any mouth damage. I did find plenty of 'old ' hooks embeded though ( which I extricated ), most were small hooks tied to inappropriate breaking strain lines. I would have thought that trailing this ironmongery around would be of more danger to the fishe's wellbeing. Just a thought;),
Regards,
Graham.
 
In all seriousness, I have tried it, yes. It wasn't for me, I didn't enjoy it, felt too brute force for me and I decided I didn't need to catch a barbel that bad.

If you enjoy it and don't cause undue harm, then good for you.

if I had to fish that way, I'd look at Nash fang x or fox SSBP, but step up the hook size. Go for a four or at least a six. Your hook needs to grab some flesh to avoid tearing. Smaller the hook, the less flesh, the more tenuous the hookhold. If youre riggy then consider the use of shrink tube to help the hook find the bottom lip.

Because if you have a hookpull when using hit n hold you will be causing damage - no doubt about that in my mind.
 
Hook And Hold

Hi Guys,
Try Drennan Specialist ( or Super Specialist ), they have been around since God was a boy, probably for a good reason ...

Hi Darren,
Each to their own, eh:) enjoy your fishing,
Regards,
Graham.
 
Hmmm? Doth he protest too much?

Couple of points you raise Steve. I've been barbel fishing long enough to have an opinion on most aspects of the sport but do not consider myself as 'self appointed barbel police'. However, I do care about the actions of many so called barbel anglers and I know that if one person advocates a method - no matter how crass - which will catch a few otherwise secure fish, then the idiots will be follow in their droves with scant disregard for any fish's safety.

Secondly, you state that you are using stepped up gear including a powerful rod yet you are directing all of that force through a small hook. That does not make sense especially if you have the fish's welfare at heart.

My last point. You say that you have never damaged a barbel's mouth whilst using hook and hold, well I don't believe you. Some minor damage is inevitable whenever a fish is hooked, increase the pressure especially with the wrong design or gauge of hook and damage is increased. Those fish that you 'inexplicably lost' could quite possible be due to your hook ripping through the flesh in or around their mouths.

To anybody else reading this, snag fishing runs the risk of damaging fish and more importantly, it makes the fish 'spooky' in the only place where they have any sanctuary which, in turn, makes them much harder to catch anywhere else on the fishery. If they are tucked under a bush or a snag I suggest you leave 'em there and catch them when you have learned to feed them out into the open.
 
I'v always enjoyed the challenge of drawing the fish away from the snags just as much as I have catching them, it just doesn't seem right or fair to drop a bait tight into the sanctury of some snags although I'm sure it would up my catch rate.
 
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