barbed or barbless
Submitted by Ashenfall on Wed, 2010-01-13 00:54
after a few encounters with my hooks getting stuck right into various fabrics, and having to cut a piece off my rag to remove said hooks, i'm tempted to crush the barbs on all my hooks to save me the hassle (and also making general unhooking easier). however i'm not too sure of the implications this would have on keeping fish on the hook.
what's everyone's experience with barbless hooks? is the convenience worth the possible lost fish? (if it happens at all?), or keep the barbs on to maximise the chances of landing a catch? i've read several articles claiming that the chances of landing fish are unaffected by the presence of barbs but i can't confirm this easily
Faulkner Family
Posts: 18328
Date Joined: 11/03/08
if you are fishing to keep
if you are fishing to keep your catch i wouldnt be going barbless . the main reason people squash the barbs is to reduce the damage to the fishes mouth when c and r style of fishing. without the barbs there is a higher risk of loosing your fish especially when you dont keep the pressure on all the time.just got to look at how many times the barra fishos loose their fish when it is jumping around , they tend to throw the hooks as they have no barbs
RUSS and SANDY. A family that fishes together stays together