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Hooklength choice??

Terry Simner said:
....and I guess many/most of the better/larger fish which those "babel nobility' catch are caught after dark. And that being the case, how might the 'invisibility' of fluoro be of any advantage? I'd have thought using fluoro (which is generally stiffer than other lines) at night is the worse of all worlds : are they using a line for its invisibility ...when it's already pitch black on the river bed?
It does sink well, but personally I'd never use it for its 'invisibility'.
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Well I dont buy into the invisible line thing either Terry...I guess the reaction to anything unusual to a feeding Barbel would evoke caution or flight, its what they cant see that spooks them ... if you get my drift :oops:.
 
Neil Smart said:
Well I dont buy into the invisible line thing either Terry...I guess the reaction to anything unusual to a feeding Barbel would evoke caution or flight, its what they cant see that spooks them ... if you get my drift :oops:.
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Proven very many times to me on clear waters like the Loddon Neil.
 
interesting to read your thoughts, I have caught using Mono, braid and flouro, who knows if I would have caught more in them situations using something different :D
 
It could be said that green or brown braid will be mistaken for weed, or other underwater debris. Camouflage is often a better option than invisibility - particularly as the latter is beyond even fluorocarbon's capability.
The thought that these chaps who inhabit the 'barbel nobility' echelons (something I really don't aspire to, personally) seems unlikely, whether they say so or not.
 
Tony Stone said:
How do you begin to choose what hooklength choice is right?
By that I mean hooklength material - Mono, flouro, braid, coated braid?

I never seem to know what to use, I have tried all of them but as my catch rate is so low I’m always unsure what to change.

I’m fishing the Thames and Hampshire Avon if that helps.
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Combis exclusively based on convenience if nothing else - 4' 10-15lb CamH20 Flurocarbon and a quick change doubled up 4" length of 8lb Drennan Gravel braid.

Took my own advice and started using compressed 2" PVA sticks on the braided section last week on the WAvon - had several mini hooklinks pre-threaded with sticks made up in advance so I could re-cast every 30mins with minimal faff / a continual application of bait = first fish of the season at just under 10lb!

Not sure whether the presentation is specifically better than just nicking on a small mesh bag however the hook itself is always protected by being buried in the PVA and my normal habit of touching up hooks with a file mid session (some rivers seem to blunt hooks quick) was definitely mitigated. The shorter quick change braided links also make threading on mini sticks a doddle mid session . . .
 
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Chris Belcher said:
Combis exclusively based on convenience if nothing else - 4' 10-15lb CamH20 Flurocarbon and a quick change doubled up 4" length of 8lb Drennan Gravel braid.

Took my own advice and started using compressed 2" PVA sticks on the braided section last week on the WAvon - had several mini hooklinks pre-threaded with sticks made up in advance so I could re-cast every 30mins with minimal faff / a continual application of bait = first fish of the season at just under 10lb!

Not sure whether the presentation is specifically better than just nicking on a small mesh bag however the hook itself is always protected by being buried in the PVA and my normal habit of touching up hooks with a file mid session (some rivers seem to blunt hooks quick) was definitely mitigated. The shorter quick change braided links also make threading on mini sticks a doddle mid session . . .
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I like combis but it all depends on what style of barbel fishing I'm doing. I'm going after work for an overnighter but I'll be fishing small baits, light feeders and a simple twizzled boom/ loop-to-loop arrangement. There will also be chub present, which I'm happy to catch on this lighter set up. At some point I might change to bouyant rubber casters or maggots and want a slower drop through the water column which is where the mono works better than braid or fluoro. And for sure at this time of the year, barbel will take baits on the drop. Not sure how they do it with the underslung mouth but they do - need to keep hold of the rod as the bites are brutal.
 
How may rivers now run clear enough for the fish to actually see any hook length? Probably only the northern ones and maybe the odd tributary.
 
This is very true @Chris Guy Some parts of the Thames are clear at times of the year, but as I said previously, I think im just over thinking it due to my lack of catches!!

Need to get some fish in the net!!
 
Neil Smart said:
Well I dont buy into the invisible line thing either Terry...I guess the reaction to anything unusual to a feeding Barbel would evoke caution or flight, its what they cant see that spooks them ... if you get my drift :oops:.
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It can't be invisible. Hard to see maybe. But not invisible.

Good job barbel and carp for that matter cannot see what they are eating. I feed koi carp for a customer. They aim at the floating pellets as they close in, but often miss them if they are drifting in the current caused by the pumps. Sometimes they just swim about gulping in the hope of sucking a pellet in. It was the same when barbel were feeding on hatching insects on the Wharfe. They would try to intercept the rising insects, but often missed them.
 
Clive Kenyon said:
It can't be invisible. Hard to see maybe. But not invisible.
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It's actually balmy IMO. Ok the refractive index is very close to that of water, but that's about it. But put a piece of it in a glass of water and voila'! ... you can see it, and the line of air bubbles that adheres to its surface. And that in clean water. In most (not crystal clear) water it gets instantly coated in a film of detritus ... well, dirt. And anyway, if a fish happens to brush against it (or any other line) without seeing it, it'll scare the holy shite outa them.
 
'
Clive Kenyon said:
It can't be invisible. Hard to see maybe. But not invisible.

Good job barbel and carp for that matter cannot see what they are eating. I feed koi carp for a customer. They aim at the floating pellets as they close in, but often miss them if they are drifting in the current caused by the pumps. Sometimes they just swim about gulping in the hope of sucking a pellet in. It was the same when barbel were feeding on hatching insects on the Wharfe. They would try to intercept the rising insects, but often missed them.
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Yes but that is refraction in water, they miss because of that not because of poor eyesight.
 
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