Using senkos, killing fish? And spinning setup

[MickD]

If you're not using braid, try it.  Does wonders for strike detection.  Also, I think it helps to keep just a little tension in the line.  Not enough to move it, but without slack, and with braid, anything screwing around with it will be easily felt.  Now and then move it, just to be sure.  But avoid slack.

 

I think both pinching the barbs and circle hooks are effective.  Nothing is perfect.  With circle hooks you don't want to do a traditional hook set, you just start reeling and the hook slides around the mouth and snags the corner of the mouth.  Honest.  It's hard to discipline yourself to do it, but when you get good at it, you'll gut hook fewer fish and you won't miss that many.

[Ksam1234]

8 minutes ago, MickD said:

If you're not using braid, try it.  Does wonders for strike detection.  Also, I think it helps to keep just a little tension in the line.  Not enough to move it, but without slack, and with braid, anything screwing around with it will be easily felt.  Now and then move it, just to be sure.  But avoid slack.

 

I think both pinching the barbs and circle hooks are effective.  Nothing is perfect.  With circle hooks you don't want to do a traditional hook set, you just start reeling and the hook slides around the mouth and snags the corner of the mouth.  Honest.  It's hard to discipline yourself to do it, but when you get good at it, you'll gut hook fewer fish and you won't miss that many.

I use braid , 20 pound braid power pro to be exact. And I keep it on a semi slack line as stated above.  Just little tension, I do watch the line for any movement and the rod. I never have ran my fingers across it so I'll try doing that next. And try the circle

hooks 

[bigbill]

I use a 1/8oz c rig with a 24" leader with a senko. I cast it out into a channel along side the weedline I keep the line just taunt enough to feel the slightest nibble. I am focused on the rod tip looking for that little tap, tap, tap.

[LCG]

I use 10lb yellow braid to a flouro leader and usually a 1/0 - 2/0 wacky hook or a drop shot hook size 1 - 1/0. I have fished it on a ml-f and m-xf rod and never had a problem feeling a strike or seeing the line mice from a gentle grab. 

[Further North]

I use 30 lb. lime green Suffix 832 to a 6 ft. piece of hybrid line that's tied to a 1/0 or 2/0 Gamakatsu EWG hook, that's rigged on a finesse baitcaster...and like the others, I watch the line, keep one finger under the line as it comes out of the reel and keep the slack to a minimum.

[Yudo1]

I use both braid with leaders and straight fluoro for senkos. Weightless, I prefer straight fluoro because it sinks and I feel bites better with less bow in the line. I always run the line across my finger so I feel every tick. I very rarely gut hook fish and I use senkos a lot. On the rare occasion that I do, I go through the gill with forceps, flip the hook upside down and go back through the mouth and pop it out.  I haven't killed a fish in a very long time.

[NHBull]

A common problem, especially with folks getting used to the bait.  You are going to kill some fish, but birds need to eat too.  That said, I keep a couple spinning rods with 10lb braid on the boat for this situation.

A weighted wacky rig falling like a pendulum on semi slack line will show better line and Tim movement.  Remember, swing are free and swing for the fences.  Owner wacky rig weighted hooks work great for roof of the mouth sets

[.ghoti.]

Fishing is a blood sport. You will kill a few fish. And you will get better at keeping them alive.

[3crows]

I would almost rather be dead than to deal with a spinning outfit.

 

As to killing fish, as mentioned this is a sport and it is a blood sport I suppose. Just me perhaps, but I think the sporting thing to do is to keep a damaged fish for food rather than waste it. Catch and release 100% viable fish is a goal which I doubt but a few manage to master. Or take up SCUBA and just take their pictures. 

 

Bass are delicious, I have heard.

[hawgenvy]

This is a nice little article about the effectiveness and safety (to fish) of circle hooks.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circle_hook

[Ksam1234]

10 minutes ago, hawgenvy said:

This is a nice little article about the effectiveness and safety (to fish) of circle hooks.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circle_hook

Just read that actually. 

[islandbass]

15 hours ago, Ksam1234 said:

I never thought about de barbing the hook.  You don't loose hookups or lose fish at all? Since it doesn't stick as good. 

Hook sets imho are perhaps a little easier to make if not equal IMHO. 

 

How? Sometimes I would imagine that on a weak hookset, we might not have used enough force to drive the hook passed the barb. In this case the barb was probably a hinderance!

 

You might stand a chance with that weak hookset to drive the hooker a little deeper with no barb in the way. 

 

I learned a lot from fishing barbless in my state when required.  So what I say is based on my personal experience and no one else's 

 

Hooksets just as good or maybe slightly better without the barb because the resistance from the barb is no longer in the equation. 

 

Concerned about losing a fish because the hook has no barb? There in lies your true test in the battle between you and the fish. Simply put, strive to not let the line go slack during the fight and you'll win. 

 

Also, releasing fish is far easier, especially when they have swallowed the hook. 

 

Lastly, try your best to keep a decent controlled tension on the line. Don't rely solely on the rod. If you ever hold the line in your fingers/hand with some tension, you will be amazed at how sensitive our hands are. I guarantee you our hands are more sensitive than the best loomis rod. And check out the rod tip thread. You'll learn a lot from it. 

 

 

[TOXIC]

There's sooo many different ways to rig a Senko but you said you Texas rigged them.  You can't rig a circle hook Texas style.  As a guide who has put a lot of Senkos out there for unexperienced clients, I offer you this advice.  

 

1.  Learn how to remove a deep hooked bass for the best chance of survival.  Reversing the hook via the gills is a good start.  Keeping in mind that there are some places where you hook a bass that their survival rate goes down.  The tongue being one of the worst.

2.  You didn't say what hook you were using or the size.  For a 5 inch Senko Texas rigged use a 4.0 Gamakatsu EWG hook.  The extra wide gap will show a bite much sooner as it tends to hit the mouth of the bass on the way in.  

3.  Stay alert and learn to be a line watcher.  Early bite detection is the key.

 

Don't give up on them just step up your game!!  

[Ksam1234]

4 minutes ago, TOXIC said:

There's sooo many different ways to rig a Senko but you said you Texas rigged them.  You can't rig a circle hook Texas style.  As a guide who has put a lot of Senkos out there for unexperienced clients, I offer you this advice.  

 

1.  Learn how to remove a deep hooked bass for the best chance of survival.  Reversing the hook via the gills is a good start.  Keeping in mind that there are some places where you hook a bass that their survival rate goes down.  The tongue being one of the worst.

2.  You didn't say what hook you were using or the size.  For a 5 inch Senko Texas rigged use a 4.0 Gamakatsu EWG hook.  The extra wide gap will show a bite much sooner as it tends to hit the mouth of the bass on the way in.  

3.  Stay alert and learn to be a line watcher.  Early bite detection is the key.

 

Don't give up on them just step up your game!!  

People keep saying to reverse the hook via the gills and then pop it out.  What do you mean? Can you elaborate more 

[TOXIC]

There are a few different ways to do it.  I'm sure there's a vid on this site or YouTube that can give you some visual help but the basic technique is to get your finger in through the gills and push the shaft of the hook back towards the throat thereby reversing  its position.....think of it like the line is running from the belly of the bass vs the mouth.  Then just push towards the mouth and the hook will reverse out the same way it went in.  You can cut the line to do this but it is not necessary and I have seen some grab the bend of the hook through the mouth with pliers or forceps once you reverse it and pull it out.  Once you do it a couple of times it gets easier.  

[geo g]

18 hours ago, WRB said:

And when it's windy with waves....? When the Senko is in the basses mouth set the hook!

Tom

Very simple, when windy add some weight, keep slack out of your line.  Change to another bait.

[WRB]

22 minutes ago, geo g said:

Very simple, when windy add some weight, keep slack out of your line.  Change to another bait.

You can use braid, FC, coploy or mono for a strike indicator when the water is flat by watching the V the makes where it enters the water, i.e.; watching your ine. When it's windy with waves line watching gets difficult, can't see the line entry V or the line floating on the surface becuase of added slack created by the wind.

You need to lower the rod tip to reduce line in the wind and try to keep in contact by feel with any weight being added to the sinking Senko. 

Adding bullet weight to increase sink speed changes a Senko into a fat worm the sinks, might as well use soft plastic worms that float when Texas rigging with bullet weights.

Tom

[geo g]

29 minutes ago, WRB said:

You can use braid, FC, coploy or mono for a strike indicator when the water is flat by watching the V the makes where it enters the water, i.e.; watching your ine. When it's windy with waves line watching gets difficult, can't see the line entry V or the line floating on the surface becuase of added slack created by the wind.

You need to lower the rod tip to reduce line in the wind and try to keep in contact by feel with any weight being added to the sinking Senko. 

Adding bullet weight to increase sink speed changes a Senko into a fat worm the sinks, might as well use soft plastic worms that float when Texas rigging with bullet weights.

Tom

Lol, no one ever said it would always be easy.  I often catch bass of all sizes with weighted senkos.  General rule is use the least weight necessary to get the job done.  If it gets too windy for you, look for cover, or go home!

[Steveo-1969]

5 hours ago, Ksam1234 said:

People keep saying to reverse the hook via the gills and then pop it out.  What do you mean? Can you elaborate more 

Go to the thread in the below link. About halfway down the first page there is an entry from @Glenn with pictures on how to safely remove the hook when it's swallowed.