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Foul hooked fish

David Maddison

Senior Member
Not sure if any of you guys can help but so far this season i have pulled out of about 6 or so barbel (I believe foul hooked) Twice coming back with scales, once with a bent point. I am using links around 4 foot, some flurocarbon some mono some combi-links and the pellet around 5mm from the bend of the hook.
My only theory is that because i am using some micro pellets in the feeder this season, the fish are grubbing around more for these tiny pellets, and as a result more foul hooked fish the usual?
My hooks are sharp and are korda kaptor wide gape.

Any Idea's?

Dave
 
Change your link to 9 inches.My normal length.

You are pulling through fish that are grabbing your feeder and pellets. Its not a hook problem.

If bites cease superglue 4 minipellets to your hair.
 
Sounds like you might have hungry fish possibly picking up/attacking the feeder,rather working their way up,sometimes they come straight to the feeder and you end up with the hook then down by the body.Try cutting down the hooklength to a foot or really short.Possibly they are as you say grubbing about more and a long hooklength is waving about in the flow.You could also omit the small pellets,to see if it sorts your foul hooks.
 
switch from feeder to bags ;)
 
Sounds like the fish are rattling the feeder. Try using feeder first cast then change it to a lead. Hook length is irrelevant really.
 
Sorry guys. Certainly cant agree hook length is irrelevant.

Its key according to the mix used and river flow.

In this case can't see the relevance of backleads.

Marks description is exactly whats happening.

Graham.
 
You may be right Graham,..but you shouldn't get too many hookups on fish shaking a feeder unless a strike is made.
Striking a liner could lead to foul hooking..especially when confident barbel are grubbing a swim and when reaching the top turn on their sides and glide( still sideways) downstream through an unwary angler's line.
Not saying this is the case here,..but worth bearing in mind.
dt.
 
I heard from the landlord of the pub that does the book openings by the Loddon that some of there anglers were using 20ft hook lengths??? I also hear from friends using 3 inch method rigs on the same river. Personally I think it's a confidence thing. The only time I've known hook length to be a problem is with maggots on trimpley.
 
Change your link to 9 inches.My normal length.

You are pulling through fish that are grabbing your feeder and pellets. Its not a hook problem.

If bites cease superglue 4 minipellets to your hair.

This could be the issue Graham. I will tie up some shorter links and see if that helps. I have had the most success so far with single 8mm pellets, although i have superglued a cluster of smaller pellets as a change.

Thanks
Dave
 
Sounds like you might have hungry fish possibly picking up/attacking the feeder,rather working their way up,sometimes they come straight to the feeder and you end up with the hook then down by the body.Try cutting down the hooklength to a foot or really short.Possibly they are as you say grubbing about more and a long hooklength is waving about in the flow.You could also omit the small pellets,to see if it sorts your foul hooks.

I think they may be moving closer to the feeder but not attacking it and they are swimming over my hook missing the pellet. The groundbait i am using is very pungent(smells like vomit to me :eek:) but it seems to do the job and the they may be drawn to those tiny pellets drifting from the feeder. Also i am using korum cage feeders instead of open end which will be allowing feed to be released sooner, so that may be part of the problem combined with the 4 foot tail?

Thankyou
Dave
 
Dave T. No I was being lazy.

What is happening is not strikes from the feeder activity but exactly as Mark described.

David. I always use open end feeders as they allow me to control the food release better, according to the flow, by increasing dampness and composition etc of mix. A Very important point that many ignore.
 
After we've agreed that Mark's post got it about right I might have to pop down to the Land's End pub to work out how a 20 foot hooklength works. My rod is only 12'
 
After we've agreed that Mark's post got it about right I might have to pop down to the Land's End pub to work out how a 20 foot hooklength works. My rod is only 12'

Just coil the leader up ( neatly ) then tie some pva tape to hold it in place.

Thats how 20' plus zip rigs are casted out. well thats one way :)
 
The funny thing is in a month's time most of your barbel will come on a longer hooklength again Dave.The fish will have wised up to getting caught short,next to the feeder.Its always worth changing hook length up to about 6 feet whilst fishing to see if you get more action than with a short one.
 
Or a longer cast with no groundbait in the feeder later in a session as they are not competing so aggressively after taking in some food and conserving enegy allowing the food to come to them.

Always ensuring a few filled feeder casts to the original spot now and again.
 
Agree with Graham on this one, I have never felt the need to use anything longer than a 20 inch hooklength ever, and thats a bit long, irrespective of flow or conditions.
Having said that I mainly fish rocky snaggy rivers, where a long hooklength is the kiss of death !

Oh, and I cant remember ever foulhooking a barbel, so maybe it is the hooklength.

I use widegapes myself, so apart from the hooklength it cant think it will be anything else.

Dave
 
Just coil the leader up ( neatly ) then tie some pva tape to hold it in place.

Thats how 20' plus zip rigs are casted out. well thats one way :)

I think Nick may have been referring to the difficulty you'd have landing fish with more than 20' of line extending from your rod tip.

You might be okay on a really high bank, I suppose! Or if you've got someone to help land the fish.

Sounds pretty silly to me...
 
Hi David. Thought I would measure my hooklinks and in fact they are nearer 18 inches not 9.

Re feeding. My whole idea is to actually bring the fish up towards the feeder that has mainly stiff ground bait and few particles. This especially on harder rivers where you are seeking better fish in a low density population.

On prolific rivers I would simply increase particles levels in the feed to keep the interest going. The biggest error I see is other anglers on big rivers with decent flow feeding the fish many yards downstream of where their bait sits.

Try making a mix that stays in the feeder by being dampened down and pressed in very firmly after a couple of casts with a drier mix and pulling the feed out as it hits bottom.

My mix stays in the feeder for about 20 mins and on big pushes often is still in the feeder when the fish is landed.
 
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