Rigging with single hooks

[Warwick Joyce]

I hope this hasn't been asked before, but when rigging the rear hook on either a stick or a popper without using a swivel should the hook face up or down?? And are there any reasons?
I can see the benefits of using the swivel for fighting the fish once hooked, though when the fish are fussy or harder to get a bite out of, the less tackle hanging off the lure would be better??

Cheers

[Mick Cunningham]

hi warwick .

i like the single hook face up on the tail of the lure . cos some sinking stickbait go down so you not have to worry about the reef but face down i i lost once  due to the hook up on the coral reef damn it . 

if there is no swivel on the lure . well i put the swivel on the leader the better . and also  you can do a quick lure change so easy .

i bet there will br more idea,s to share from the other,s

cheer,s mick

[Warwick Joyce]

Thanks mick, yes i do use  swivel on my line in front of the lure. I was referring to the rear of the lure. Nomad sticks have the swivel attached, however other brands do not and to attach a swivel means split>swivel>split>hook.

I see your point of less likely to snag up on reef with it facing up.... quite a good point with the price of lures

Thanks

[Brandon Khoo]

Warwick, if you use a swivel, the hook will always point downwards. I don't like the swivel at the back of the Nomad/Blackjack stickbaits as I fnd that the hooks just too far back for my liking, especially if I have a Jobu on. I've tended to cut them off myself.

In terms of pointing up or down, I tend to fish them pointing upwards myself but have also fished it pointing downwards and I can't say I've noticed any difference in hookup rate

[Warwick Joyce]

Thanks Brandon,
I have the same view of how far back the hook is when using a swivel.
 my initial thoughts are to rig with the hook facing upwards so when the lure is stationary and the hook is hanging it is facing away from the body instead of towards the body..... but most poppers will sit near vertical in the water anyway?

[Travis Heaps]

I'm the same as Brandon and also cut the swivel off the back of heru/blackjack/nomad lures...but you already know that Warwick 

Brandon - you mention that you rig Jobus as singles.  Have you ever had any trouble with them?  I've attached below a pic of my first - and last - attempt at using jobus (7/0s).  I posted the comment in a trip report some time ago but never put the photo up.  First hook up one Jobu snapped.  Re-rig with one on front and one on rear and next hook up they both come back snapped off.  And it's not like I really stuck it to the fish - these hooks lasted maybe 3-5 seconds after first strike...no pressure at all. Anyone else had this experience?  How do the Owner Gorilla livebait hooks fair as singles?

[Greg Burt]

Has to be a manufactured bad batch as the breakage is in the same spot on each hook, never seen or heard of that one before .

[Brandon Khoo]

I've never seen a problem with a Jobu before. For one to snap like that, that would have to be a defect with the hook.

I haven't used a 7/0 much at all. I've generally used the 9/0.

I've used the Gorilla live baits and never had a problem with them. They do rust easily though.

[Warwick Joyce]

I have been running the owner sj-41 jig stinger hooks as they are super sharp although the local availability has gone so i have now shifted to the 9/0 and 10/0 gorilla as they look super tough however not as sharp as the sj's. You can only fit one 10/0 gorilla on a 11h splitring and getting that one on is a mission!
I guess i'll see how they go on the next trip, they will never bend its just the penetration.
Thanks for all your wisdom

[Brandon Khoo]

The Gorilla actually has the cutting point on it whereas the Sj-41 does not. The cutting points are what they have on their premium hooks like the SJ-51 and Jobus.

I don't use 11Hs on the Gorillas as they just have no moovement on them at all. I go down to a size 10 split ring for the Gorillas.

[Warwick Joyce]

I see the cutting point, Does it work how they say? The reason i was using the sj-41 was they have such a super fine sharp point.
The first hookup I had with the bakers rig using the sj-41's was solid there was no way they were coming out during the battle. Definitely staying with the singles I think

[Brandon Khoo]

I think it probably does. Owner are probably ther best producer of terminals in the world today so I would expect it should work the way it is designed. That siad, the SJ-41 is a pretty good hook without the cutting point and the Fisherman Shiden which is made by Owner for Fisherman also does not have a cutting point and is a rgeat hook. The only negative comment I would make about the Sj-41 is that we saw a number opened up at Bugatti this year. I was pretty surprised as I have never seen one open before but on that trip, there were a number.

I've used the Gorilla 11/0 for Bakers as well and they work fine.

I suppose a Baker rig is a bit more than just a single hook but any way you look at it, it is proving to be a very successful rig indeed. I still remember Tim Baker at Shoalwater asking "do you think it would be a good idea to try this - I've been thinking of it for a while and I think it might work ok"

[Travis Heaps]

Brandon - interesting note about using size 10 splits over the 11H for Gorillas - makes sense as there really is no movement.

The Sj-41s opening up...Warwicks didn't open the other day but one was slightly mis-shapen after one 25-30kg fish the other day. 

[Brandon Khoo]

I tend to use the size 10 Owner split rings for Baker rigs even with SJ 41s. The only suggestion I have is to get really good at putting them on fast. That way, the split ring doesn't open up much at all. If you're slow or you struggle to get it on, the split ring will tend to open up too much. Mind you, that happens with 11s as well.

[Warwick Joyce]

Here are a couple of pics of the way i have my lures rigged now.
I am still running with trebles on my bigger blooping poppers, Brandon do you run singles on yours?