Anyone seen the latest in fisherman? There is an article in there about rigging circle hooks for livebaiting flatties. He is tying a smaller hook to the circle hook bend then the smaller hook is put into the bait with the circle above the bait. I have always thought there must be a better way than sticking a 10/0 in a small baitfish. I would be worried about the smaller hook being the only one hooking up but it is an interesting approach.
That certainly sounds like a good idea, especially for the more delicate bait fish. You’d think you could put a hook the diameter of a broom handle and a bully would still be kicking, but I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to do as little damage to a bully as possible.
Thanks. Thats a cool rig. Never heard of it before.
I suppose I’d have to put a spinner on it to make it legal in MN 
Theres an old catfish article from 4 or so years back where a guy would use a saltwater rig that I think is called a bridle rig. He would tie the bend in the circle hook to a line that was threaded through the nostrils of a sucker or shad. Its supposed to keep bait alive longer, plus the hook is more exposed. I might try both rigs this year and see how they work.
Yeah, I think it’s a great idea! But, I’m assuming it’s illegal in MN (two hooks) 
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Anyone seen the latest in fisherman? There is an article in there about rigging circle hooks for livebaiting flatties. He is tying a smaller hook to the circle hook bend then the smaller hook is put into the bait with the circle above the bait. I have always thought there must be a better way than sticking a 10/0 in a small baitfish. I would be worried about the smaller hook being the only one hooking up but it is an interesting approach.
Maybe I would have to see this setup, but I don’t see any benifit in it and frankly it makes no sense at all to me at this time.
So you use a smaller hook then the Circle hook for your Flathead bait…. 
I can’t wait for the experts/pros to chime in on this one.
Basically your 10/0 circle hook is free–it’s not stuck through the bait, thus leaving the gap open so you don’t have to worry about the bait clogging the gap of the circle hook. The bait is then hooked on a small aberdeen style hook tied to the bend of the circle. The advantages are that your circle hook is free to do it’s job and you have much less damage to your bait because the diameter of the aberdeen hook is much smaller.
It’s a neat concept and I can see it working. Pick up the March issue of In-fisherman to check it out.
I did… 
even if it was legal I doubt I would use it I’m not much of vertical jigger for Flatheads and I don’t see this working so good laying on the River bottom in the places I fish. I’m sure it has it’s place though.
Good, you saved me the effort of making an MS Paint diagram
Great article it was
Check out this use of a circle hook.
I bye the way love circle hooks. Last year was my first time using them. Caught my first flat (17 lbs) with a 12/0 daichi on a bullie, no problems and the hook went right into the corner of its mouth. This year I will be using 8/0 to 10/0 gami circles for flats. and 3/0 to 4/0 circles for channels.
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Check out this use of a circle hook.
I bye the way love circle hooks. Last year was my first time using them. Caught my first flat (17 lbs) with a 12/0 daichi on a bullie, no problems and the hook went right into the corner of its mouth. This year I will be using 8/0 to 10/0 gami circles for flats. and 3/0 to 4/0 circles for channels.
I’m out of breath just watching that 
For the last couple of years, I have used circles exclusively. I do think there is a time and place for different types of hooks, but I’ve had pretty good luck with the circles……especially with a big chunk o meat.
I don’t think you need anything bigger than a 10/0 and most of the time I use an 8/0.
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Check out this use of a circle hook.
You know when the fish breaks not only your rod, but sends your toes out the front of your shoes – it’s a heckuva day!
It was an interesting article, its too bad that its illegal to use 2 hooks in MN. Plus is would be a fair amount of work and time tying up the rigs including putting a spinner on.
The one point that I did get that would be beneficial is how they showed hooking the bait. I know that it was touched on last year putting the hook in at an angle to get it to lay against the bait so as not to stick out as much.
There were a couple other useful tips in the article that could come in handy, that I will have to give a shot this next season.
I have to admit, I used circles my first year of Catten exclusively, now I only use them for channels.
I’ve seen people use them very successfully, though I would not say that the hook up ratio is any better.
I do like getting a good hook set when fishing for flats.
Marc, cool video!! That one gets you fired up.
I am intrigued about the pictures posted with the baitholding hook. I will try to toy around with that idea this spring for channel cats to make sure it doesnt have a negative effect on the circle hook and what it needs to do.
I have been using octopus hooks the most in the last couple years, but I have used circles extensively, and even with live bait I have a lot of confidence in them. How you hook your bait while using a circle is very important.
I love my clicker, but I am going to do a little fun *research* this year tightlining for flatheads with live bait and circles to see the hookup ratio compared to other tecniques. When I started fathead fishing in the mid-late 80’s.. I didnt know anything of clickers, and it was a bit of a chore to get the rod out of the holder most nights.. but I didnt miss, or lose many fish on the trusty old creek chubs.
It worked then, why shouldnt it now? I often wondered this year after missng my fair share of fish.. if picking up the rod and messing around is losing some wary fish. If I need to hear the clicker that bad I can back off the drag a hair and turn it on while tightlined(drag going out).
Back to the extra hook concept..
Years back when we made very long cast with light mono we would use walleye type stinger hooks(treble on a mono leader and connect that to our main hook eye to get a 2nd, small diameter hook in the bait to increase hookup ratio when we had to deal with 75 yards of line stretch.
Why couldnt the same idea be incorporated into a live bait rig? A small single hook on a 2″ mono leader that clips onto the large circle hook eye? The small hook(#2 or so) would be ideal to hook the bullhead by the lip, and the circle would just hang free. As soon as a fish picked up that bullhead, its going to inhale the circle at the same time, but the circle hook action would not be restricted by the bait.
In theory, it should work. My only question is, what is to keep the main hook from getting fouled on/in the bait?
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In theory, it should work. My only question is, what is to keep the main hook from getting fouled on/in the bait?
My thoughts as well, the article touched on that also.
You also run the risk of the extra hook fouling on any debris or snags in the area of the bait. Not that I don’t think it would work……..but R&D is really the only way to find out for sure.
As most of you know I use the Gamakatzu 10/0 exclusivly for flats and generally circles for channels.
The reason I’ve never believed in circles for flats is that their mouth is SOO big…and when setting the hook, the circle has to pull out of the bait and then catch on the fish. Using a circle the way it’s intended, one would just let the rod load up…but my bait is filling up most of the gap of the circle and there’s (too much IMO) bullhead in the way for the point to stick into the flat.
The photo above looks like it could eliminate that problem being that the circle is fully exposed(?) But then there’s a cost/time/snag factor.
My boat had a very high hook up ratio last year…(except why Ralph was with me )
You guys give that system a try and let me know how it works…
PS I’m all for not hooking a flat deeply as circles are intended to do…but the guys I’ve talked with that use them tell me that using a circle is no guarentee that you won’t gut hook a flat…that’s more of a “paying attention” thing.
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My boat had a very high hook up ratio last year…(except why Ralph was with me
That’s a low blow 
I’ll lay the blame on my guide 
I’ve used circles exclusively for flatheads, but as a guy who was used to setting the hook on a Texas rigged worm for bass, the whole loading up on the rod is unnerving whenever I get a bite. There is a certain amount of not trusting the technique. I do like that the circles seem a little less snaggy. But I am going to use Octopus style hooks more this year. It’s just going to depend on where I am fishing.
On one of the flats I caught last year, I think I owe the hookup to using a circle. There was a lot of debris on the bottom and I set the hook 2-4 times before actually setting it on the fish. Every time I thought I was tight on the flat, I’d load up only to feel it pull free of the sticks and leaves. I can’t say with any certainty that a J wouldn’t have worked though, it’s just a feeling. Sure enough, when I landed her the hook was right in the corner of her mouth.
Using plastic worms for bass, I used to get a lot of bad hook sets that would be deep, especially with the new biodegradable soft plastics that taste good to them when they bite it. That doesn’t feel good as a catch and release practitioner. There is a little bit of satisfaction pulling in a cat and seeing the hook right there in the corner of the mouth. I don’t think I have ever caught one anywhere but the lip. Not saying it won’t happen, but I have been lucky so far. It’ll be a sad day if I ever feel forced to keep a flathead knowing he isn’t going to make it.
Not too long ago I either saw a show on TV or found something on the web where they had kept records to see how effective circle hooks were compared to the J style. The ratio really depended on the species, but circles almost always had less hookup, but it varied greatly by species. They also didn’t go into the technique they were using.
Last year I tried using what most people would consider over sized circles when compared to the bait. As most of you know, not enough data was obtained to make any conclusions My thought was trying to ensure there was a big enough gap that the bait would not hinder the hookset. I have hooked most of my bait on the dorsal. I believe Larry hooks them through the nostrils, in the mouth and out the upper jaw. I tried that a couple of time. I think doing that you can go to a normal circle size. I think I am going to employ that technique more this year.
What it boils down to is confidence and choosing the hook that suits you. I’ve gut hooked enough fish in my life to want to employ circles, especially because normally I like to let the fish run with the bait a little.
No cats in this study, but good data on other species.
Study
If you attached the aberdeen hook directly to the circle hook instead of using fishing line to connect it would that be ok in MN? (The same as a trailer hook on a spinner bait – assuming that’s legal…)
Maybe use an exta long shanked “cricket” hook like an Eagle Claw 215 and turn the upper shank into a small loop with a long-nose pliers? If it would work ok, it would also be faster than tying all those knots.
Dan
I think this would really shine where you can fish straight down. The deep hole below a dam. I think you could almost do a “Texas rig” with a big bullet sinker above your swivel and slide around keeping your bait a foot or so off the bottom.
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My boat had a very high hook up ratio last year…(except why Ralph was with me
That’s a low blow
I’ll lay the blame on my guide
Don’t feel too bad Ralph, I missed my share when out with him.
Though I don’t recall the exact number Is was highest miss ratio I’ve ever had. 
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