Hook set

[C.Rig21]

I have been having some trouble setting the hook on a long cast. There's an area on my home lake where the fish stack up on a rock pile. I really have to cast far to get on or past it. I have been missing hook sets when I have been bit. I'm using 6 lb mono on a med 7' 6" rod and a Diawa ss1300 reel because it's the only thing that gets me out there. Any suggestions?

[BrianMDTX]

Hook sets with what bait/hook? If it’s a crank or jerk bait with trebles, I’d think you should be fine (unless you’re  trying to set the hook with too much slack). If it’s a single hook like a TR, it may be the rod. You say it’s a medium (which is power). What’s the action? 

[Cbump]

Hook sets on long casts suck. 

[Alex from GA]

Try braid with a mono or fluoro leader.

[Steveo-1969]

Using braided line will help with hooksets on long casts. The no-stretch property of the braid gets into the power of the rod more quickly to get the hook in past the barb. Look at the diameter of the 6# mono you are using and get a braid with equivalent or smaller diameter. It will cast just as far as your 6# mono.

[Jar11591]

Braided line and an extra fast action rod will help you stick fish better. 6lb mono is pretty much a bungie cord at long distances. The slower the action of the rod, the more energy is absorbed to the rod loading up rather than the line pulling the hook. 

[A-Jay]

@C.Rig21

As mentioned here already, using a braid mainline may solve your hookset problems. 

Something in the 8-10 lb range should still offer plenty (or more) casting distance.

However the hook sets will be night & day vs and 6lb mono,

and perhaps a little more sensitivity. 

If you feel the need, matching this with an appropriate mono or FC leader is a common deal.

I also fish a 7'6" ML stick when presenting light baits some distance.

Always use light braid & leader, rarely are the hooksets the biggest problem.

https://youtu.be/KuPRtdajOLU?t=116

Good Luck

A-Jay

 

[looking45]

 Check out You Tube and learn how to reel set. That should help you solve the problem. You won’t have to worry about setting the hook on slack line. Hope this helps

[Pat Brown]

I got really into jig fishing in the fall of last year and started catching a lot of big fish but I was also missing a lot of big fish and I started to lose confidence in the technique.

 

Turns out, the hookset I learned to use up close for Texas rigs was utterly useless for fishing a jig, especially on longer casts.

 

I have started pointing the rod at the fish out and away from my body somewhat and reeling all the slack out of my line and rather than snapping quickly, I do more of a crankbait hookset.  I sweep firmly to the side and reel FAST and don't stop reeling til the fish is in the boat or on the bank or in the net.

 

I have caught many of my biggest fish doing this hookset at the very end of long casts and at this point I have more confidence fishing a jig and setting the hook like this than just about any other technique for winching big fish in on long casts.

 

Greg Hackney more or less showed me how it works on YouTube and it makes a lot more sense how he explains it.

 

Edit to add:

 

One key detail that made NO sense to me until I started doing it, was using moderate action rod rather than a stiff rod.  It helps tremendously on sweep hooksets for penetration and keeping the fish pinned.

[Team9nine]

13 minutes ago, Pat Brown said:

I got really into jig fishing in the fall of last year and started catching a lot of big fish but I was also missing a lot of big fish and I started to lose confidence in the technique.

 

Turns out, the hookset I learned to use up close for Texas rigs was utterly useless for fishing a jig, especially on longer casts.

 

I have started pointing the rod at the fish out and away from my body somewhat and reeling all the slack out of my line and rather than snapping quickly, I do more of a crankbait hookset.  I sweep firmly to the side and reel FAST and don't stop reeling til the fish is in the boat or on the bank or in the net.

 

I have caught many of my biggest fish doing this hookset at the very end of long casts and at this point I have more confidence fishing a jig and setting the hook like this than just about any other technique for winching big fish in on long casts.

 

Greg Hackney more or less showed me how it works on YouTube and it makes a lot more sense how he explains it.

 

Edit to add:

 

One key detail that made NO sense to me until I started doing it, was using moderate action rod rather than a stiff rod.  It helps tremendously on sweep hooksets for penetration and keeping the fish pinned.

This is the lost “art” of jig fishing by guys like Gary Klein and Larry Nixon 

[geo g]

I am a floro user for my plastics but use mono to hone in my concentration and hook setting.  I have to watch the line, and really take up all the slack, and then hammer the hook set with mono.  It just fine tunes the whole process.  It so much easier with floro or braid.  I can really feel the difference between the three lines.

[WRB]

Been suggesting the reel set rod sweep over 35 years and published the technique in detail in my ‘95 In-Fisherman Horizontal Jigging article.

Believe the article is somewhere on this site.

You can’t move enough line using the rod only. Point the rod tip at the lure and crank the reel fast until the rod starts to load up then sweep the firmly back while continuing to reel.

Tom

[1984isNOW]

Enough said above, don't have much to add, definitely listen to the advice already given and you'll see an improvement.

 

I've been working on a new hook set technique I saw a pro use in a tourney:

 

If I'm baitcasting I'll press the thumb bar, and spinning I'll flip the bail, then like a baseball bat I swing backwards and quickly grab the line with my hands then sprint into the water after dropping the bat/rod on home plate. I'll post a video when I get the chance.

[Crow Horse]

X2 on all the above. Make sure your hooks are sharp. New doesn't = sharp. Develop a method of sharpening your hooks to your satisfaction and it will help with hook sets.

[the reel ess]

For spinning I use 20# braid (PowerPro) and a leader if I feel it's needed. 20# has the diameter of 8# mono and all but eliminates twist. Mono can have up to 10% stretch and 6# is probably on the high side of this. So if you cast 70' and have to set the hook it can take 7' of swing to start the hook into the bass. That doesn't leave you with much force.

[WRB]

2 hours ago, the reel ess said:

For spinning I use 20# braid (PowerPro) and a leader if I feel it's needed. 20# has the diameter of 8# mono and all but eliminates twist. Mono can have up to 10% stretch and 6# is probably on the high side of this. So if you cast 70' and have to set the hook it can take 7' of swing to start the hook into the bass. That doesn't leave you with much force.

Crank the reel 3 turns fast = 6’ of line recovered then sweep the rod back firmly.

This eliminates line bow for all types of line including braid.

Tom

[MickD]

10 pound braid will make a big difference, keep the leader only 3-4 feet long.

 

A hook set worth a try would be to reel in the slack with the rod tip at about 10 o'clock until you feel the fish, drop the rod to point at the fish to get a little slack, the SNAP it back up to about 11 o'clock and reel at the same time.  

[the reel ess]

nm