How does a Texas rig hook a fish? (The physics behind it)

[Nepatizz]

Hello! 

 

I've always been curious about the physics/mechanics behind a hookset with a Texas rigged soft plastic on a bass. When you get a bite on a t-rig, the lure is in the mouth of the fish with the hook embedded inside the lure. When you set the hook and yank the lure, what exactly happens to force the hook out of the bait so that it can catch the lip of the bass? Is it because the bass is holding on to the lure tight so the hook detaches? 

 

I've always been curious about this and I think understanding will help my patience with hooksets. 

 

Thanks! 

[MN Fisher]

Standard rigging is just to 'skin' the point of the hook. Put it in the worm as shallow as you can manage while still keeping it covered. When you set the hook, the point pops right out of the plastic to embed in the bass' mouth.

[Heron]

Easy way to experiment with this.....

 

Hold the texas rigged plastic in your hand. 

Close your hand completely around the bait, so that nothing is exposed but the line. 

Then hand the rod to your wife. 

Tell her you blew all the savings money on fishing gear, and walk away.

Hang On tight

 

The physics, will just come to you.

 

? Tight Lines

[J Francho]

That's a good question.  I generally rig them deep in the plastic, about halfway through, unless I'm using lighter line, then it's close to the surface.  I like it deep, so I don't hang up or tear the bait in heavy cover when I whiff on the hookset.  I use a fairly hard, upward hookset.  Yesterday, all 17 bass I caught were hooked in the roof of the mouth, with the plastic bunched up in the middle of the hook.  I can't explain why it works, it just does, so I stick with it.

[Team9nine]

So when a bass inhales a Texas rig (let’s assume the entire bait for discussion sake), he closes his mouth after inhaling. The entire bait is now inside his mouth under jaw pressure. You set the hook. Ideally, the sinker is outside the basses mouth because you didn’t peg it, so the worm got sucked away from the sinker due to buoyancy/mass vs the weight of the sinker. In that case, with the basses mouth still closed, you set the hook, the line slides through/out his mouth, but jaw pressure and teeth largely keep the plastic in place. The head of the worm and body get slid down the hook, but the line and pressure ultimately end up forcing the hook point through the worm and into the basses mouth. This is more easily accomplished with the worm somewhat balled up. This is also why if your hook style isn’t matched well with the size and bulk of your worm, you may not have enough clearance around all that balled up plastic to get a clean and solid hook in the fish, hence losing the fish.

 

Not much difference if the bass got the sinker inhaled also, other than the sinker May sometimes bang and pry open the mouth of a bass slightly, creating a narrow gap that the hook could possibly slip through, again losing the fish or not hooking deep.

 

Also, large bass with lots of jaw pressure may keep the sinker totally trapped inside it’s mouth with no opening. When that happens, the hook eye bangs up against the bottom of the sinker but can’t go any further, which then also stops the forward progress of the hook, oftentimes resulting in a bad hookup.

 

Hope that makes some sense. Jigs are similar but different - lol.

[Troy85]

My question is.  When you have your weight pegged, how does the bobber stopper move 2-3' up the line when you set the hook?

[Choporoz]

3 minutes ago, Troy85 said:

My question is.  When you have your weight pegged, how does the bobber stopper move 2-3' up the line when you set the hook?

crazy physics, right??

 

Doesn't even take a hook set....why does it move up the line ever?

[Team9nine]

36 minutes ago, Troy85 said:

My question is.  When you have your weight pegged, how does the bobber stopper move 2-3' up the line when you set the hook?

Most often, I believe it’s from the rebound effect of being shot up the line by the weight underneath it from the force of the hookset. The weight moves even further on it’s own when not pegged by a stopper, but there are limits. 

[Brad Reid]

Regarding bass inhaling its target meal, then closing its mouth, I bet most of the more experienced anglers here have fought a bass over a long battle only for it to come off or jump off. So, when this happens, we cuss a little and reel in the presentation.

 

Usually several times each year after losing a fish, I have looked at my plastic only to find the hook still embedded in the plastic, skin hooked. The hook never even came out and the fish was actually pinching down on the plastic holding on with its tight lips clamped down.

 

I recall having this happen to me with a Fat Ika not long ago. It makes sense that a plastic that dense and fat gives the fish something to hold on to and play tug of war with you . . . even with no hook involved.

 

Pretty strong jaws!!!

 

Brad

[Nepatizz]

7 hours ago, Team9nine said:

So when a bass inhales a Texas rig (let’s assume the entire bait for discussion sake), he closes his mouth after inhaling. The entire bait is now inside his mouth under jaw pressure. You set the hook. Ideally, the sinker is outside the basses mouth because you didn’t peg it, so the worm got sucked away from the sinker due to buoyancy/mass vs the weight of the sinker. In that case, with the basses mouth still closed, you set the hook, the line slides through/out his mouth, but jaw pressure and teeth largely keep the plastic in place. The head of the worm and body get slid down the hook, but the line and pressure ultimately end up forcing the hook point through the worm and into the basses mouth. This is more easily accomplished with the worm somewhat balled up. This is also why if your hook style isn’t matched well with the size and bulk of your worm, you may not have enough clearance around all that balled up plastic to get a clean and solid hook in the fish, hence losing the fish.

 

Not much difference if the bass got the sinker inhaled also, other than the sinker May sometimes bang and pry open the mouth of a bass slightly, creating a narrow gap that the hook could possibly slip through, again losing the fish or not hooking deep.

 

Also, large bass with lots of jaw pressure may keep the sinker totally trapped inside it’s mouth with no opening. When that happens, the hook eye bangs up against the bottom of the sinker but can’t go any further, which then also stops the forward progress of the hook, oftentimes resulting in a bad hookup.

 

Hope that makes some sense. Jigs are similar but different - lol.

Great answer, that really helps!!! Thanks! 

[ohboyitsrobby]

This is an interesting topic. I've been throwing a Texas rig since I was 7-8 years old and never once have I thought about it.