Summertime… What it means for most of us is nice weather, going outdoors, and big fish. It’s the perfect time of year for energized tuna, the tarpon of a lifetime, or a big fat striper.
What these fish and a few others have in common is they swallow prey whole. They do not bite it like a wahoo, barracuda, or bluefish. That means the whole baitfish is getting sucked into a bucket-wide mouth. The same thing happens to the lure you’ll be using.
Most hard baits have two or three treble hooks. The problem with this setup is large fish and lengthy fights can cause those tiny hooks to open up or tear from a fish’s lip. We all know this loss hurts. The bigger the fish, the worse it hurts and the more likely it is to happen.
I came up with a solution for this scenario several years ago while targeting giant tarpon on the west coast of Africa. I adapted my hard baits to use a single large hook. It resulted in the successful landing of more big fish than with the original hardware.
Both regular J hooks and circle hooks can be used. With a J hook, there is a need to set the hook as usual. With a circle hook, the angler should just keep cranking and allow the fish’s run to set the hook. Circle hooks work well, they usually hook a fish in the jaw and they rarely pull out. The drawback is not everyone is accustomed to circle hooks, and learning the technique when a big fish bites can result in heartbreak.
To optimize this modification, I recommend lures that are sinking or fast sinking, as their balance won’t be altered too much by the removal of the treble hooks. Some floating or suspending lures also work well with this rig.
Some might think this alteration would result in missed bites… and this is true. But the fish missed are typically small ones or toothy critters like bluefish and ’cudas. In the middle of the night when I’m fishing for striped bass, it generally makes me happy to miss the chompers that peck at a lure’s tail. When the fish I’m targeting shows up, one that’s capable of swallowing the whole bait, the hook-set is typically solid, and with a much larger hook secured in the jaw. This gives the angler the ability to horse the fish, and it also makes unhooking a lot less dangerous.
Here’s how I alter to my hard baits when pursuing powerful fish:
- Pick up your favorite lure, a heavy-duty barrel swivel, a big J hook or circle hook and a bag of skirt collars.
- Remove the treble hooks and their split rings. Keep or add a nose split ring.
- Run the hook point through one eye of the swivel. There must be some wiggle room, but not too much.
- Slide a skirt collar over the barb. This will secure the lure on the hook.
- Attach the nose split ring to the swivel’s other eye.
That’s it. Now the lure is ready to hook and do battle with larger, more powerful fish.
Patrick Sebile is the owner and lure designer of Sebile Innovative Fishing (www.sebile.com).