Now that Net Pen silvers are starting to show I'm, again, having to switch out...

This single hook restriction is a pain for sportfishers already using floating crankbaits. I'm using artificial lures in a terminal area; these fish just swim around until they are harvested or die.

I'm fine trolling wigglers, warts, and fatfish. I'm missing out on the strikes on the cast&retrieve as the lure starts to move up from running depth.

My Uncle from Kansas isn't going to be fishing with me this fall, but a cousin and family will come for a visit. Cast-retrieve works for them.

Any ideas???

How many hooks are attached to your lure?

If you have only one(1) hook attached, add another single-point hook so that you are using two (2) single-point barbless hooks on your plug. One in the tail and the other in the belly.

The rules require "single-point hooks" to be used... NOT a "SINGLE hook".

Just the one for trolling. The casting ones seem to foul most times, so I've had little sucess running double singles-unless pitching larger M-2/K-14 size lures.

river fisher open eye ,enough said they're the best books on the market for single use on any equipment

Perhaps a dirrent style of hook might tangle less...

Here is a solution I came up with a couple of years ago. It has a 2/0 on a bead chain. The thing I do is tie a small lenght of mono to the rear of the lure, then just run the mono through the splitring. This holds the hook close to the body.

Last year I fished a River up north that had the same rectriction and used the same bead chain without the mono to hold the hook up and I was 3 for 3. Although this is a small sample size, I actually got a better catch ratio than I normally get with two trebles. These were silvers all caught by casting the plugs.

Bead chain with out the mono choke hold has worked for me.Good luck,
STRIKE ZONE

I put the single hook on the back ofthe plug on a single swivel, with a little yarn tied on the belly hook loop.

When the Chehalis system went to single pointed, barbless hooks, I had to change the hooks on my plugs out . On some, I took off the trebs and replaced them with a barrel swivel and siwash on belly and rear. On others, I took off the trebs, and ran a single siwash off the belly eye with a bead chain.

Both setups work fine for backing the plugs down a hole, or trolling them, but for the cast/retrieve method, the plugs with the single siwash on the bead chain are the way to go. The hook will get fouled occasionally, but not like they do trying to run dual siwashes on the same plug. I matched the bead chain length so that when the plug was running, the eye of the siwash was even with the ass of the plug.

One thing I have found to help is to not swing the instant a silver grabs a plug. I like to crank down on them, then swing. A coho is generally chasing down a plug so his momentum may carry him foward, creating a bow in the line in the time that you are realizing he is there, and then you are swinging on slack. If you remove that little bit of slack by cranking you'll set solid. When trolling the boat pulls the slack out before you can get the rod out of the holder. When you are in a current situation, the fish probablay grabs and drifts back with the current, pulling out the slack. Well at least that is how I imagine it in my head.

Here is a video of a fish taking a trolling herring, you can see his momentum moving him forward as he grabs it. LINK If you are in a stationary boat, you have to load up the rod, like you are trolling.

There is a difference for sure between trebles and singles, in that i feel the siwash can twist flat, and come out of the fishes' mouth. That unfortunatly is unavoidable.

I have found that going with a siwash over trebles on spinners and plugs for coho situations the hook to land ratio sky rockets.Like RR said I keep on retreiving @ the same speed as when the fish took the lure until the rod has loaded up,then set the hook.It hard to do @ times but pay's off."Disaplain".Good luck,
STRIKE ZONE

I use Gami open eye siwash (for all spinner fishing)- and actually switch out the trebles always, but know that there are better hooks out there (can you modify/ clamp down the Owner cutting point siwash to be barbless???). I don't use anything small than a size 1, but like the 1/0 and 2/0 range if you can manage it on plugs.

besides trying to use the Owner cutting points (which are the sharpest hook out there IMO), you can twist the tine from the shank of the hook to be slightly offset which will result in more solid hook-ups- using a needle nose plier. However, it often results in harmful hooking in the case of C&R. often you can get bleeders or even gills on smaller fish with the offset modification.

there is an interesting aritical in last month's STS (August 2008) on circle hooks by B Herzog. The intent is to reduce harmful hook-ups though.

My plugs are set-up in the following manner.....single hook, pinched down barb, and 4 or 5 bead chains.......have worked well for me for more than a few years.....sorry about the "old beat up plugs" but these colors seem to work on my local rivers....

Very tough for a hooked fish to "throw" this hook setup.....especially silvers when they do the "spin move"....they can't get any leverage.

I agree with DrifterWA.... that's the ticket on the Warts!

EXCEPT.... the hooks need to be modified or changed.

If you opt for the siwash, don't forget the Gen'l Zog Bend. Offset the point from the plane of the hook by about 5-10 degrees to increase the hookup percentage. And bend that point in toward the shank for maximum retention when fishing barbless! The other alternative is to swap out for Gami 510's or the Rvrfshr Sickles for a factory-ready "circular" single hook for plugs.

Works for me and my crew!

I still says youes is a good Daddy. Your oldest is sure growing in a pretty lady.

I've taken all my plugs and switched them out with singles on chains from the belly. I haven't givin it a try yet, but my concern is how much tweeking will be needed for the plug to run true? Or is this not even an issue?

If it ran good before.......chain and siwash "shouldn't affect" anything!!! You'll know right away......if it doesn't dive deep and come straight at you....then maybe a little adjustment is needed.

Does it have to be a siwash? How about an octopus?

Is it better to run your line straight from your o ring or switch'em out for duo locks, and for cast and retrieve what size do you prefer. I usually run mid size with duo locks with a 6 bead chain and gami 510's in 1/0.

i'd definately run a siwash. if you put an octopus on a swivel, the direction of pull is off-axis with the point, due to the eye of the hook being offset. a siwash (rvrfshr sickles are the BOMB) will pull directly in line with the point. octopuses are designed to be tied in line (i.e. egg loop) so that you're pulling along the shaft, which is in line with the point.

hope this helps.



willy