Sqaurebill Tips

[NorthFloBassin]

I'm having lots of fish come off of my Sqaurebill durning the fight. I lost probably 4 fish this morning on the Sqaurebill, one was smoking draw and then suddenly the Squarebill just floated up..... Any tips to land more fish?

[Fishes in trees]

I'm presuming the hooks are sharp?  Maybe try heavier line.  I throw square bills on 20 lb line, 17 lb minimum, that way I feel like I can be pretty aggressive controlling the fish.  Maybe your crank rod is too flexible.  I dunno, some days fish get off more than others.

[Bluebasser86]

Sharp hooks and a bent rod are the biggest keys to keeping crankbait fish hooked. It's possible something wasn't quite right with your retrieve, bait color, or the way your bait moved so they were just nipping at the bait and barely getting hooked. 

[irnwrkr]

Mustad triple grips!

[livetofish28]

try using braid so that you when you do get a bite it really sets into the fish other times they're not hooked good and they come off. it happens to all of us 

 

    tight lines 

 

      Andrew 

[BuckMaxx]

Id say your rod is too stiff amd its pulling out try a  medium. I don't set the hook just reel hard with rod tip down. I have lost more good ones on the jump them I have ever lost during the fight.

[WIGuide]

Not sure what your setup is but a few tips to prevent this would be to 1) check you hooks to make sure they're sharp. 2) Make sure you're throwing it on the right type of rod. It should be a moderate action rod even though a fast action can work. 3) check your drag. One of the biggest mistakes I see people make most often with hard baits with treble hooks is they have their drags set way too tight. Yes you want to keep them from running too much, but you don't want them to give enough resistance that it allows them to pull the hooks loose which sounds like what happened to you on your outing. 

[Fish Murderer 71]

Sounds like your getting short strikes.  If your set up is correct, hooks are sharp, reel speed 6.1-6.4:1 and its still happening- I read an article about long shank hooks can improve hook ups.  Also...  Change the front hook to a Red hook.  I'm not going to guaranty anything, just that I've found that it has worked for me. 

[Catch and Grease]

Try changing up a hook size if your crankbait seems to have hooks on the smaller side... The Bomber square A for example.

[NorthFloBassin]

Sharp hooks and a bent rod are the biggest keys to keeping crankbait fish hooked. It's possible something wasn't quite right with your retrieve, bait color, or the way your bait moved so they were just nipping at the bait and barely getting hooked.

I use a glass/composite 6'10 med hvy rod, I'm new to Sqaurebill and I'm using 16lb floro, There are VMC hooks on my Sqaurebill and I kept pressure on the bug fish that came off and he dove straight down after peeling like 10 yards of drag and then just popped off. I'm thinking I didn't have him hooked good or something. What do you think? How do you get the hooks in them good?

[Catch and Grease]

set the hook on anything that makes the crank stop vibrating, the hook set should be a sweeping motion to the right or left, Just pull the rod parallel to the ground tighenting up and hooking the fish. It shouldnt be really hard using sharp treble hooks just tightening up with a sweeping motion will be good enough. After hooking into the fish maintain pressure the entire fight or the fish can easily throw your hooks. Make sure your drag is set correctly and do not try to horse the fish in unless necessary. Remember you cant catch them all ( but you can come darn close ! ) so if one fish gets off its nothing to be down about.

Oh and BTW your using a MH rod which isn't ideal, I prefer a medium moderate rod but have had success with medium, fast action rods.

[F14A-B]

Upsize you're hooks, the old triple grips were real good but the new ones are junk.... Use owner needle points, my fave or Gammys.. You can upsize you're split rings a bit... Allows the hook to swing more.. If you do you need to tune them.. Making sure that crank doesn't hook tangle etc... Bass slash at cranks and rattle baits a lot .. You can catch them with good hooks!

[fishguy613]

mod action rod!

also with any crank instead of setting the hook, just set the pressure if that makes sense

[Scorchx1245]

Turn and sweep not crank the rod or snap it fast just a kinda slow sweep to the left or right works for me. Something flexible with a parabolic bend.

[Bluebasser86]

I use a glass/composite 6'10 med hvy rod, I'm new to Sqaurebill and I'm using 16lb floro, There are VMC hooks on my Sqaurebill and I kept pressure on the bug fish that came off and he dove straight down after peeling like 10 yards of drag and then just popped off. I'm thinking I didn't have him hooked good or something. What do you think? How do you get the hooks in them good?

VMC hooks are good but certainly not the sharpest. I would consider upgrading the hooks for one thing. Another thing like I said would be to try a little different color or retrieve. It's possible the fish were just nipping at the bait and not getting the bait very well. Another thing I always do with cranks is when a fish is trying to make a run I'll disengage the spool and use thumb pressure on the spool to control them. If you are going to use the drag make sure it isn't too tight as that can easily pull the hooks as well. 

[aavery2]

Crankbaits are one of my favorite ways to fish.  There has been some very good advice given, and all of these things will certainly increase your success.  Just remember that no matter what you do, a certain number of fish are always going to come  off while crankbait fishing.  Watch videos of KVD or any other top Pro while throwing crankbaits and they are going to lose a few.  if you feel you are losing more than your fair share, then you need to do as already mentioned, start the evaluation of your entire system from rod to bait in detail and figure out what needs to change.

 

In your case, one of the first things I would try is a little lighter  line, something closer to 12lb, it will provide for a little more stretch, and allow the bait to have a lot more action.

[Big239Fish]

Upgrade your hooks. Even with a MH rod that floro ought to be stretching enough to get you that rubber band effect that you should have with fishin cranks. Sounds to me like you may just need something that penetrates the mouth better.

[Bass_Fanatic]

I actually disagree with most people here.  I throw my squarebills on a Powell Squarebill rod which is a H/MF rod that has a ton of backbone.  To me, squarebills are meant to be thrown into the thick stuff and when one hits it I want to be in control.  Using 17-20lb floro and a H/MF rod has helped me land hundreds of fish this year on a sqaurebill.  I have used every other rod possible and this one seems to do the trick.  With that being said, you are just flat out going to loose some fish.  Thats just the way it goes.

[Catch and Grease]

Crankbaits are one of my favorite ways to fish. There has been some very good advice given, and all of these things will certainly increase your success. Just remember that no matter what you do, a certain number of fish are always going to come off while crankbait fishing. Watch videos of KVD or any other top Pro while throwing crankbaits and they are going to lose a few. if you feel you are losing more than your fair share, then you need to do as already mentioned, start the evaluation of your entire system from rod to bait in detail and figure out what needs to change.

In your case, one of the first things I would try is a little lighter line, something closer to 12lb, it will provide for a little more stretch, and allow the bait to have a lot more action.

I agree with this because he is using a stiffer rod, but with a rod with more give I'd reccomend 20lb power pro braid for square bills!