Snelling A Circle Hook

[000's]

Ok here is the question
At the local bait shop the other day talking about circles,ONLY snell them if they are offset eyes.Strait eyes use your favorite knot.Got to thinking about,back in the mid 90's chuncking for BFT we crimped 200lb leader to the circle and it never let me down.Whats right????????????????????????

[000's]

Forgot to mention - circle hooks for sailfish and white marlin.

[Tunaman40]

I spent 1984-1990 fishing out of Green Harbor Ma. for BFT, thats all we ever used was crimps. I'll put any of my crimps against any BFT swimming .

[Big Jay]

They are correct. The way the eye is angled is done that way with the whole hook design in mind. If it's an offset eye, the hook is designed to turn differently. If you just tie directly to an offset eye the hook may not turn the way its supposed to. You'll get some hook ups but i'd venture to say that your % would be higher if you snelled to an offset eye.

You also don't see many big game circles with offset eyes for that reason. It's mostly the smaller "wire" size hooks.

My general rule of thumb:

Circle with offset eye: snell

Circle with straight eye < 100# leader: Palomar

Circle with straight eye > 100# leader: Crimp

[pitch bait]

This absolutly not true. Hooks are snelled with a straight eye and run the leader back through the eye. It is done from 50lb all the way to 400. We use this type of rig for marlin fishing. I looks really goofy but it works. I will post pictures this afternoon.

[Big Jay]

This absolutly not true. Hooks are snelled with a straight eye and run the leader back through the eye. It is done from 50lb all the way to 400. We use this type of rig for marlin fishing. I looks really goofy but it works. I will post pictures this afternoon.

We've had several failures with this method while tuna fishing. I guess for Marlin fishing it's different. We had several pulled hooks and the leader broke right at the eye.

Personal preference i suppose.

[pitch bait]

Yea I cant speak for tuna fishing. I do know it makes a difference if the rod is locked up in the holder or if you are letting them swim away before engaging the drag.

[Fish Dad]

Good discussion. I do not know the correct answer but I will say last year for sword fishing at night, I started using snelled circles (straight eye) w/ 300 lb mono. Only have one trip using this rig so don't have enough experience to say one way or the other but we hooked something big that sounded and spooled a tiagra 50 wide. Can't say what it was a big sword, big shark, or big tuna but it was hooked solid with this rig. Love to hear more from others with more experience.



Mike

[whitey]

We snell them this way for marlin and tuna fishing.

[Sweet Caroline]

Offset eye I will run the leader through the eye.

Stright eye is still snelled but the leader does not go through the eye, just run it straight up the shank past the eye. The snell will pull tight and cinch up against the eye as it normally would but you have the straight leader like with the offset eye. I will also crimp a straight eye depending on my mood.

I have been thinking of some past trips and swallowed offset circles that were crimped and wondering if the loop creates too much play causing the hook to stick in the gullet before pulling out and catching the lip like it is supposed to. I am still trying both ways to see if it matters, it may have just been the offset circle causing the problem. I was striper fishing last year and 7 of the 8 fish caught were gut hooked with crimped offset circles.