Bluegill dream hook

[Baron]

An earlier post by DaveW suggested that the use of a long size 16 will be easy to remove. JerryC and the rest of you got me to try barbless hook. So there is only one wish left (besides catching buckets of panfish) and this would be a weedless hook. I dream of an 8-12Xlong hook in size 12 - 16 with the hook pointing up and hold be all the way at the back where a stinger would be but with the convenience of a straight hook.

Ideally it would have a small hook in comparison to the fly. the point would be up and at the aft end where Bluegills normally bite.
I'm thinking Clouser or deceiver style but there may be other choices. some buoyancy might help get it though the weeds.

Is there anything out there that long and frail. I don't tie.






Yet.

The hooks shown below ar not as long as some could be.

 

[sandfly]

yep

 

[JeffK]

I got some 10X streamer hooks when kids were small in sizes 12 -8 to go panfishing and get the hooks out of small sunnies' mouths. It was 30 years ago so I don't remember where I got them (I think Cabelas), but they sure worked out well for the task. I think they were labeled as cricket hooks. The "secret" lure at the time was just a few wisps of pink marabou tied as a tail and nothing else.

 

[Baron]

I was thinking something like this is sizes 12-16.

 

[JerryC]

I had to rummage through my hook storage spaces but I found a few, only one type meets, somewhat, what you are looking for.
I found a gold, straight eye hook, either a 1/0 or 2/0. It measures 4 inches long. I'm not sure I've ever tied a fly on them.

I found a down-eye streamer hook, sort of looks like the daichi 2340 picture you posted, might even be a daichi. A size 1 measures 2 1/4 inches long. I've tied woolly buggers and some pencil poppers on them. But if you hook a fish that jumps a lot, you put yourself at a disadvantage. The longer shank will give the fish more leverage in the fight..

What I think JeffK is talking about are cricket hooks. These are a light wire hook. I first discovered them fishing Reelfoot Lake for bream and crickets were the main bait. I used them to tie small pencil poppers and some woolly buggers. See picture below which is a popper tied on size 4. As far as I know the smallest size they make is size 12. I measured them.
Size 4- length 1 3/4"
Size 8- length 1 1/2"
Size 12- length 1 1/4"
You might be able to find them at Walmart or a local tackle store.

 

[Baron]

Thats real close. Though I'd use a smaller hook of the same length and start the skirt further up to hide the tiny upturned hook from the pads and weeds. These would be for fall when the water cools and the weeds are just beginning to die out. Where I fish now one could hardly work a Clouser of any design (just Mops and poppers;-). The Idea is to find a slightly positive to neutral buoyancy. The super long hooks are, as Jeff and Jerry mentioned are cricket hooks

Mustad makes them in 16.
JerryC wrote:
I had to rummage through my hook storage spaces but I found a few, only one type meets, somewhat, what you are looking for.
I found a gold, straight eye hook, either a 1/0 or 2/0. It measures 4 inches long. I'm not sure I've ever tied a fly on them.

I found a down-eye streamer hook, sort of looks like the daichi 2340 picture you posted, might even be a daichi. A size 1 measures 2 1/4 inches long. I've tied woolly buggers and some pencil poppers on them. But if you hook a fish that jumps a lot, you put yourself at a disadvantage. The longer shank will give the fish more leverage in the fight..

What I think JeffK is talking about are cricket hooks. These are a light wire hook. I first discovered them fishing Reelfoot Lake for bream and crickets were the main bait. I used them to tie small pencil poppers and some woolly buggers. See picture below which is a popper tied on size 4. As far as I know the smallest size they make is size 12. I measured them.
Size 4- length 1 3/4"
Size 8- length 1 1/2"
Size 12- length 1 1/4"
You might be able to find them at Walmart or a local tackle store.

 

[Baron]

Uh oh, is this how it starts? Is this what get one to start tying?

 

[sandfly]

12 x long #5 hook

 

[Baron]

That’s it. Except the hook should be up. Did you tie this?

 

[lestrout]

Yo Baro

decades ago when I first started fishing, I began with targeting sunnies. They were so voracious they would almost swallow the flies, and I would use a twig as a hook remover. Then I hit upon the idea of a super long shank hook to give me something to grab for the removal. I used (cheap) Aberdeen hooks, which are about 8X long. I would tie the fly just in the bottom quarter of the hook, and the sunnies didn't mind.

 

[Baron]

what did you tie on it?

 

[JerryC]

Baron wrote:
Uh oh, is this how it starts? Is this what get one to start tying?

Yep.
The popper I posted was tied not long after I started tying. I couldn't find any long fly tying hooks. A light wire fly tying hook. Most of the 4 xl or longer were streamer hooks and too heavy for a small popper. At the time, there were no soft foam popper bodies. So I improvised.
Hook-size 4 Aberdeen cricket hook
basic body- the point end of a goose quill stuffed with foam.
Outer Body- small E-Z body tubing
Colors- permanent markers
Eyes- paint
Coating- Hard as Nails

To get the hook to ride point you need to tie some weight on the top of the hook shank. Most times lead dumbbell eyes are used

lestrout has a point about tying the fly at the back end of the hook. It's a trick often used in salt water when fishing for critters like bluefish. I sometimes tie my bait fish patterns on a 4 xl hooks with the fly tied on the back third of the hook. It serves as a bite tippet instead of using wire.

 

[maxima12]

cinncinnatti bass hook?

 

[Dave_W]

Baron wrote:
Uh oh, is this how it starts? Is this what get one to start tying?

You're at risk of being ruined for life.

Take the plunge! 🙂

 

[Dave_W]

Don't overthink the hook.

Any small hook with a long shank will work for bluegills.

I like Les' suggestion of just tying the fly at the rear of the hook - a good idea. After all, the purpose of the long shank is just to give you something to get a grip on with your fingers or hemostats.

 

[Baron]

Looks like the future is bright for tying.
Jerry thanks for describing that fly.

You folks are a all artists.

I was also thinking that a long hook would serve as a bite tippet for Pickerel buy tying at the back but thought it may make it front heavy.

 

[Dave_W]

Baron wrote:

I was also thinking that a long hook would serve as a bite tippet for Pickerel buy tying at the back but thought it may make it front heavy.

A long shank will help with toothy critters and a bare section of shank works best for this effect (I have tied my bluefish flies this way with bare shank).

As for being front heavy, this is often a good thing with streamers as it gives the fly a "jiggy" effect that enhances the action when retrieved. This is largely why the Clouser Minnow is so good - it works like a jig and swims hook upward. Streamers that have the weight distributed evenly down the shank or have the weight near the rear perform differently in the water and often not well. This is why, when you start tying flies, you should try them out in a pond or even a bathtub to see how they swim, float, etc.

 

[Baron]

Winter is coming!
No more ducks in the tub. Makin room for streamers.