red hooks

[bassman1976]

does red hooks make a difference i took a class and the instructor said he outfished his partner 3 to1 cause he used red hooks so i wanted to throw this out there

[georgiabassfisherman]

thats really hard to say some people have different opinions when i first got some i thought they did but now i dont really think that they do and i am kinda upset that they had them on my favorite KVD spinnerbait.

GBF

[Long Mike]

I'll tell you what I was told about six months ago when I posted the same question.  The color of the hook does not seem to make any real difference.  However, if it gives you more confidence when you use them, then by all means use them.

[Cigarlover 1]

Personally I don't think it makes any difference what color the hook is. From my experience it's more about the color of the actually bait and presentation. In my opinion this is one of those things that unless fish talk we'll never know the answer to.  

[NBR]

My fishing buddy uses red hooks and I don't but I out fish him at least 3 to 1. If they give you confidence use them if not don't.

[Fish Man]

i believe they do as said by longmike anything thst gives you confidence works an techniqually they should in water less than 12 feet where red is filtered out,,,,however i fell that 3-1 is outragiousi believe they play a moderate part in strikes but not anything near that much

[frogtog]

Red hooks are like everything else, they have their place and time. 8-)

[HUNTER19]

I've heard that red hook simulate some kind of blood thing ive used them and have never noticed a difference!!!  

[Signguy]

Hey Guys I don't believe in red hooks or bleeding bait, As far as I can see is it;s another

attempt to sell the fisherman something. I have seen on back to back pages in a fishing

mag where you need to buy rapala bleeding baits and on the back side of the page where you need to buy red fire line because it becomes invisible to the fish. So if the fish can't see the red fireline how can they see the red hooks to believe that the lure is hurt. Maybe they can't see the hooks so that in return triggers a hit.  Keep on buying what ever you feel convident in becuse

the buying of fishing tackle is an addiction.

Hello My name is Murray and I have a problem.

[HUNTER19]

Hey Guys I don't believe in red hooks or bleeding bait, As far as I can see is it;s another

attempt to sell the fisherman something. I have seen on back to back pages in a fishing

mag where you need to buy rapala bleeding baits and on the back side of the page where you need to buy red fire line because it becomes invisible to the fish. So if the fish can't see the red fireline how can they see the red hooks to believe that the lure is hurt. Maybe they can't see the hooks so that in return triggers a hit. Keep on buying what ever you feel convident in becuse

the buying of fishing tackle is an addiction.

Hello My name is Murray and I have a problem.

i could be wron but i think the red  line is a type of flourocarbon. I do think they can see red. but like i said i could be wrong

[Fish Man]

Hey Guys I don't believe in red hooks or bleeding bait, As far as I can see is it;s another

attempt to sell the fisherman something. I have seen on back to back pages in a fishing

mag where you need to buy rapala bleeding baits and on the back side of the page where you need to buy red fire line because it becomes invisible to the fish. So if the fish can't see the red fireline how can they see the red hooks to believe that the lure is hurt. Maybe they can't see the hooks so that in return triggers a hit. Keep on buying what ever you feel convident in becuse

the buying of fishing tackle is an addiction.

Hello My name is Murray and I have a problem.

the reason for this is because the red line is supposed to be fished at depths below 12 feet....all colors are eventually filtered out at certian depths under water.for red this depth is 12-15 feet depending on water clarity...the red hooks arent targeted for baits that run deep an if you fish deep you wont have success due to this resion because it isnt visible anymore

[extreme1018]

i use red hooks all the time and i always have had success with them. it is a very rare occasion that i get skunked on the water. as you can see by my record below i have done pretty well with these red hooks.......there isnt very much water more than 15 ft near me

[Bass_junky]

If my memory serves me correctly (most of the time is doesn't) when these hooks first came out they replicated "gill flash".  To me this means if you are fishing imitation, bait fish, lures and are looking for a reactionary bite, i believe they hold value.  i have yet to find a red hook though that does not flake off.  I use red copper? line, you can find it in the fly fishing section.  I tie this at the base of my hooks but do not put any on the tail end hook.  As mentioned we will never know unless the bass develop vocal cords, but it sure doesn't hurt to try it, under the right conditions.

[Maxximus Redneckus]

Its  a gimmick if u ask me But if u feel confident using do so i say its a gimmick cause the same gama red hooks are about 40 cents more then the reg hooks . I use them also but havent seen any more or less using um!!

[Catt]

It maybe a gimmick I don't know but I do know the color red has an effect on fish.

Black Neon (red flake)

Watermelon Neon (red flake)

Any red Rat-L-Trap

Spinner Baits with red heads

Fire & Ice

Red Bug

Black with a Fire Tail

These are just a few colors that unmistakably work, so is it a gimmick?

Who knows and farther more who cares?

If it catches fish throw it!  

[islandbass]

Despite my initial observations with red hooks after some of my exeperiments last season, the red hooks appeared to make a difference in hook ups on my crankbaits and topwater (treble based lures). However, I am not yet convinced because I think I need more trials.

What I did was I placed on my treble lures a red treble for the belly and a silver or black treble in the rear. For my topwater catches, the bass nailed the lower belly treble which was red, every time except once. For my cranks, the results were similar.

This still doesn't mean much because I didn't get to try it switching the trebles to see if that would make a difference and even if I did at a later time, the conditions would not have been the same.

In addition, using red hooks for single hook lures (Ex: T-rigs) has resulted in fewer catches than I can catch on one hand.

I am not yet convinced since I don't have enough data, anecdotal or otherwise to draw a better conclusion. However, I buy red hooks every once in a while because I like how they look. : Talk about catching fishermen! ;D

Another thing I have observed, I think at least for gammies that colored hooks just might be ever so slightly less sharp than their non-colored dark or nickel counterparts. A buddy showed this to me with is thumb test the point (he managed to ***** himself too). The difference is very small, but noticeable even on the bare skin of a thumb.

Bottomline? If you think that they work for you, then by all means continue to use them.

-ib

[lmb7]

red hooks really don't performe better then nickel or black there all the same o me.It's all just another gimmick. As well after awile the red paint comes off.

[bassmaster8100]

I have a friend that swears by those red hooks but in my experience it hadnt made a difference

[bubbler]

they shure do.

I find that they work quite well in shallow clear water.

When used with flukes the work well and look neet to you and the fish.

[GobbleDog]

I've never used a red hook in my life...  but I fish plastic worms 95% of the time.

I remember when Takahiro Omori (whatever his name is), won the Classic a few years ago throwing a lipless crankbait with red treble hooks (in the final hours of the tourney).  But other than that, I haven't really noticed the pros using red hooks. Somehow I gotta believe Omori still would have caught those fish, even if his hooks were black. But who knows. Obviously he liked them.

I guess red hooks might help in murky water.

[Fish Man]

if im not mistaken i belive that KVD is big on using the red hooks on his spinnerbaits

[captaininsaneo]

red hooks give off more flash in shallow water, that would probably be the only appeal.  and while you may be correct about red vanishing after 12 ft, it begins to disappear long before that.  so depending on water clarity you could be using an "invisible" hook only a few feet from the surface, another advantage.

[cpvenom]

I use red hooks but I dont really know if they make much of a difference. I still buy them anyway because the red does make them easier to spot if I drop them or if they get snagged on underwater cover.

[.ghoti.]

HYPE, I've noticed no difference using red hooks. I buy red Gammy EWG's because they're usually a buck or so cheaper than the regular ones, in a 25 pack. If they cost more, I'd never buy them.

And, neither red hooks nor red line "disappear" in deep water. They just stop looking red and start looking black. A little demonstration of the power of advertising.

Cheers,

GK

[Tpayneful]

Guy Eaker gave a seminar at Bassarama in January and he talked about red hooks on crankbaits.  He put the red hook on the front of his crankbaits last year.  He believed that he hooked more fish on the front hook than the back hook because of the change.  I just changed all of the front hooks on my crankbaits to red.  By the end of the year I might have an idea of whether they work or not.