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afraid not

de-barbing pliers

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I agree with the above. Most states allow the bump after a lightly mashing down of the barb. I personally only press the barb down when the regulations require it as I don't care to catch and release with the fish and animals I fish and hunt for.

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Small sharp-nosed, flat jaw (non-serrated) as others have said. I've flattened tens of thousands of hooks of all types from the side with almost no breaking or damage. USE THE PART OF THE JAW CLOSEST THE HINGE, NOT THE TIPS. In this type of work, the leverage AND control is at the hinge, not the tips. ONLY USE ENOUGH FORCE TO DO WHAT YOU WANT TO DO... no need to be a gorilla and keep squeezing once the tiny little piece of metal is folded over. Even on relatively large hooks, when using the part of the jaw as near the hinge as possible, it doesn't take much to flatten the barb. GENTLY INCREASE THE PRESSURE UNTIL THE WORK IS DONE. Don't try to do it with a quick snap of pressure. Same as with nearly everything else in this world, if you approach it with a tiny bit of thought and understanding, it goes well. If you break a hook by flattening a barb CORRECTLY, that hook was garbage before you started. Flatten the barb before you tie the fly; find the garbage sooner rather than later. Look at a supplier such as Techni-Tool for the right type of plier.

This, more or less.

In my world barbless means smaller=sharper=better penetration=more hookups. There is also the saw out effect the barb has if a fish fights much. A few direction changes and the saw point barb will enlarge the entry hole to point of loss, rarelly does this happen with debarbed hooks.

By debarbing as you tie or debarbing before adding to the boxes I never need to do this when fishing.

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Eliminate or reduce the need to de-barb all together...buy barbless hooks when they are available.

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Relevant to fshng2's comment above -- http://wholesaleflycompany.com has barbless hooks (in some models, not all) for around $7 per 100 hooks. I've ordered several different models from them and they are all good quality. No affiliation, just a blatant plug from a satisfied customer. smile.png

 

QUICK UPDATE: They have two barbless models: Model 3 Barbless Dry Fly, and Model 11 Barbless Scud.

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+1 re wholesale. They're very good on timing (receipt in 3-5 days typically) and shipping costs ($2 per order, though the site says $2 per package). They also have tungsten beads at $11/100. It's not showcase quality, but is more than sufficient for fishing and a decent range of products.

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Needle nose pliers are the way to go. Although I bought the Tiemco tool ( yes I paid $40 bucks for it). They work real good but do no more than the needle nose.

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Most states allow the bump after a lightly mashing down of the barb.

The only State I've fished that required barb-less was California. (Not saying other States don't require it, I've just never fish in those areas)

In California, I was told (by another fly angler) the game wardens carry cotton swabs. To check for barb-less condition, they slide the swab around the inside of the bend until it slips of the hook point. If it leaves cotton anywhere on the hook, it's considered a barbed hook.

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To check for barb-less condition, they slide the swab around the inside of the bend until it slips of the hook point. If it leaves cotton anywhere on the hook, it's considered a barbed hook.

Wow!

 

I seem to recall certain waters that I've fished required barbless hooks, but I don't recall ever having my flies checked by a warden.

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Most waters in ca don't require a barb-less hook, I've lived and fished here most of my life and the only barb-less only place I have ever fished was pyramid abbr that's on an Indian reservation in Nevada.

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I teach classes out there, south of Stockton. I don't remember exactly where I was, but maybe the upper Stanislaus River?

 

Oh, I just checked online ... it WAS the Stanislaus ...

 

"The Middle Fork of the Stanislaus harbours both brown and rainbow trout. At Beardsley Afterbay fishing is allowed year round, with a two-trout limit (with 14” min.). From the Afterbay to Springs Mill Gap, fishing is allowed from the last Saturday in April to November 15th, with no trout limits. In both areas no live bait or barbs are allowed, so stick to using barbless flies or lures."

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Yep. Last year or so the shop guy was telling me they were getting super strict and that he got ticketed while guiding for not having the barb fully squashed. So I was super careful, and then was checked three or four times over a period of just a few months (Sierras), sometimes twice during the same weekend. I asked why so much more frequently (the last I was checked before that was 15 or more years earlier) and the guy says literally, cause I'm the new sheriff in town. Turns out his old boss left and now he's actually got the whole department enforcing the gaming restrictions more regularly. He says they bust lots of what he called poachers, hunting beyond limits of the license. Nice guy, but ay yai yai. Anyway, this same place was just burned up (entire river) from a campfire gone wild.

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I use non serrated pliers. Needle nose for the smaller hooks. I've only been to the emergency room once because I forgot to debarb the hook when I put it in the vise and my hand slipped when packing some deer hair. I've had hooks embedded deep enough to think ER two other times. The first time I numbed the finger with ice and pushed it through and clipped the barb off. A trip to my doctor the next day to let him check it and get a tetanus shot. When I went to the ER they also gave me a tetanus shot. I was actually due for one. The other time the hook was debarbed and it was easily removed from my ear. I'm not sure if PA has any streams that require barbless hooks, none of the ones around here do. Just think it's better for me and the fish. I had to go to the emergency room when I was up at a lodge in Ontario, for another medical reason. While I was lying on the table I noticed there were many, many lures decorating the walls in the ER. When I asked one of the doctors why, she told me it was part of their price for removing the hooks from various parts of fishermen's anatomy.

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Most states allow the bump after a lightly mashing down of the barb.

The only State I've fished that required barb-less was California. (Not saying other States don't require it, I've just never fish in those areas)

In California, I was told (by another fly angler) the game wardens carry cotton swabs. To check for barb-less condition, they slide the swab around the inside of the bend until it slips of the hook point. If it leaves cotton anywhere on the hook, it's considered a barbed hook.

 

 

Living on the Oregon, California, Nevada border, I fish the North Eastern California waters often. In that area, the only places that require no barbs are the catch and release only streams of the eastern streams of Goose Valley and Hat Creek which has a huge minimum length requirement of 18 inches. There are plenty other areas that also require barbless I imagine, but these are the only places that I fish. I know what you are thinking... But the only reason I fish the catch and release only places is because the streams are so wild, it is often a thrill that I cannot avoid and those streams are so close to home and children friendly that I have to toss in a fly while I'm in the area. I never heard of the cotton swab test, but the southern end of the state might perhaps be more stringent on the rules. But then again, besides Hat Creek, those wild streams are so far into the wilderness, that I've never in eight or ten years, seen another fisherman in those streams.

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Just a few of the many pliers out there, some are designed to debarb a hook, and some work better at debarbing a hook.

 

 

My choice are the old green grip needle nose. Nothing has come close to dethroning them.

 

Like scissors, bobbins, whip finishers, bodkins, head cement, and vises... they are all a personal choice.

 

DSC_1619.jpg

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