barbed or not?

[JSzymczyk 0]

How many routinely mash the barbs of your hooks, and wish the hook folks would just leave them off in the first place?

 

I've noticed quite a few pictures show excellent flies on hooks with the barbs still intact.

 

I found out many years ago that on light tackle (spinning as well as fly) getting a solid hookup was easier with a pointy wire instead of a wedge. Barbless definately makes unhooking simpler, and a lot less traumatic if you're unhooking a human. Back when I used to know how to catch a lot of fish (...) I made several comparisons using barbed and mashed hooks. I'd fight a fish for a while, then let it just go slack line, try to let it come "unhooked" by itself. I found no difference at all in hooks dropping out, using flies as well as spinning lures (jigs, spinners, my favorite of all time- rapala #7 silver floating minnow). I now pretty much mush the barbs of my hooks on everything, except perhaps when I'm drowning a chunk of cut bait for catfish. Really has nothing to do with ease of catch-and-release, I just find I get more solid hookups.

[billb 0]

I routinely pinch down the barbs on hooks, and sharpen them, before I tie on them. I haven't noticed that I lose any more hooked fish now than when I left the barbs up. As long as I keep good contact with a hooked fish, it doesn't get much chance to toss the hook.

 

Bill

[flytyer56 0]

I generally mash the barbs on my hooks. I suppose i might lose a few fish because of it, but it doesn't amount to that many and I'm going to let'em go any way. Some are just that long distance release :hyst:

[ashbourn 0]

A mashed barb helps alot in hooking a fish. A barbed hook requires more energy to set. This can be seen most in streamers, on a weak hook set the hook will not get past the large barb resulting in a lost fish. By far the best hook is a barbless hook because there is not even a bumb from the mashed barb.

Don't forget the barb was created to keep BAIT from falling off.

Joe Fox

[JSzymczyk 0]

 

Don't forget the barb was created to keep BAIT from falling off.

Joe Fox

 

 

right, that's why I wonder after centuries of hook manufacturing, why barbs are nearly universal? Seems hooks would also be less expensive to manufacture without the barb.

[Roninrus1 0]

"Seems hooks would also be less expensive to manufacture without the barb."

 

One of the flyfishing magazines did an article several years ago about this.

According to the article the opposite is true.

If memory serves me right, the barb holds the hook in jigs as they are bent, shaped, sharpened, etc. The machinery that does this requires something to hold the hook and w/o a barb the hook will shift, spin and do other things that cause problems, slows production and causes a lot of wasted stock when it is mis-bent. This is the reason barbless typically cost more.

From what I remember the reasoning given actually made sense.

Me - :dunno:

[sparcegrayinghair 0]

I fish a lot of of #24's through 32's at least from July through Feb. . The 24's have barbs the rest don't. I don't lose many fish. The thing is I hate paying for no barb, the 28-32's I can only get through Teimco (they already cost too much)so not a problem. Wish Mustad would make their's barbless. Seems it would be cheeper!

I crush them, but it sems I'll always find one on the water I missed.

[Joe Hard 0]

I hear you on the hook set, and the removal. I also agree that without a barb a fish can be landed just as well. I do like a barbed hook when I bait fish in the salt. It definitely helps keep bait on the hook. On the other hand my favourite fresh water bait hook is an Eagle Claw barbless Laser Sharp Super Snell. It has a moulded loop and eye. I use the smaller blueish gray earth worms rather than the larger reddish brown dew worms for brown trout

[caddis16 0]

I always mash the barb first. Easier to get out of fish and yourself

[beaverfsu 0]

All my barbs are mashed down on #4's and smaller. It is a whole lot easier on the fish. On a side note, I have bought a few barbless hooks some years ago, I didn't use them because I didn't like the point, it appeared "fragile" to me.

[ashbourn 0]

 

right, that's why I wonder after centuries of hook manufacturing, why barbs are nearly universal? Seems hooks would also be less expensive to manufacture without the barb.

 

The reason for keeping the barb is cost. With a barb, hooks can be made with fewer steps, a barb hook can be turned out real fast and with simple jigs.

With the creation of the barb hooks made a huge change in sizes and quality.

Joe Fox

[Ausable Jack 0]

I guess I’m the lone dissenter here. Call me coordinated or lazy but I have only hooked myself on extremely rare occasions. Basically I only dry fly fish with 14s/16s/18s never seem to have a problem (read damage the fish) unhooking them. When I’m tying I never take the time to mash the barb down. I don’t know why I don’t take the extra 5 seconds to do it.

 

Jack

[burninbriar 0]

At least now I know why barbless hooks cost so much, never could really understand that. I usually ty with the barb and mash them when I ty on to my leader when fishing. Just habbit I guess, or maybe I'm just to lazy to mash them when I'm tying.

[Slacker 0]

I do not mash my barbs.

 

But I can pretty much gaurentee you that I will after the first time that I hook myself.

[Fly1 0]

I flatten all barbs. I fish a lot of C&R only streams that require barbless hooks only. So it's easier to do them all so I don't have to worry about which fly I pick to use.

 

Ken