Thread: hook advice

Hey buddy

Reading here and Jig Craft - folks are using 8, 10 and 12. Your problem is that folks want regular, bn, sickle or a specific brand. so you have to carry way more than us.

I personally like sickle hooks because they tend to be sharper and have the eyes completely closed. However, a good quality Aberdeen is just as good; they are just less common in store bought jigheads.

I also like different sizes of hooks depending on what size plastics I am putting on them. For bluegill I would say a #10 Aberdeen or #8 sickle would be my choice most of the time, but if I want to use a really super small bait I prefer a smaller hook. I actually regularly use 1/32 jigheads with #6 sickle hooks for bluegill, and they don't seem to have any trouble at all getting it in their mouth. But like Fatman said, everyone has their personal preferences.

i like 10 sickle. IMHO

I haven't used sickle hooks much, pretty much preferring the Aberdeen bends in size 8, 10, and 12. I match my jig head weight to the line and plastic tail I am using and will vary the hook size depending on how fussy the fish seem to be. That pretty much means I like to have a variety of hook sizes available in all the weights I use, which normally don't exceed 32nd oz.

You will see some of the little shad darts with the hook bent down opening the hook gap, like is done by CMT on the little shad darts they make. I like that a lot. That gives a lot of hook sets into that solid meat pad on the roof of the crappies' mouths. I have had no trouble with that not holding or tearing out not even on over-sized bonus species fish. For vertical fishing I like my hooks hanging horizontal to slightly depressed from horizontal rather than vertical. I think one gets more self hookups that way, rising fish are not as likely to be able to spit out your offering.

As small as you are going I would say 10s and 12s for hook size. Maybe 14s.

I like 8s for bream best, usually use 6s for crappie.