Thread: What's the best rod/reel/hook setup for big redear?

Originally Posted by deathb4disco

I'm not sure that hook size is the problem. You can land pretty big fish on small hooks.

For bait fishing, the biggest hooks I use are #10's, and those are my carp hooks! :D (My biggest carp -- a 20-pounder -- came on a #14 fly hook.)

For gills/crackers, I normally use a #14 or #16. My biggest brown trout (a 20-incher) came on a #20 nymph.

As long as the line and rod are matched to the hook, small hooks hold just fine.

Exactly. People even catch large trout on #28 midge patterns....