Hookset Philosophy 2024
Giggidy564 reply :
Hello, my fellow fisherman. I am normally pretty good with hooksets. I have gotten to the point where I think I can determine wether or not a bass has my lure by the tail or fully engulfed. I have fished with individuals who wait as long as 15 to 20 seconds to set the hook. I don't really wait that long. I usually wait until I can fill weight. It usually takes 3 or 4 seconds unless they are running with it. There is a certain amount of line tension that I feel when I know it's hookset time. I said all of that to say this, what is your hookset philosophy?
Bluebasser86 reply :
As soon as I feel them, I'm swinging. A bass can engulf a large bait in an instant. The longer you wait, the more chance they have to blow out the bait.
Giggidy564 reply :
On 10/31/2014 at 6:32 AM, Bluebasser86 said:As soon as I feel them, I'm swinging. A bass can engulf a large bait in an instant. The longer you wait, the more chance they have to blow out the bait.
I dig that bro.
Ozark_Basser reply :
About 95 percent of the time they just suck it in anyway (unless your bed fishing), so I set the hook as soon as I feel the hit. For trebles I don't set the hook near as harshly as I would for anything without treble hooks.
Catch and Grease reply :
The first tap you feel is them engulfing your bait, the second tap is them spitting it out!
QUAKEnSHAKE reply :
I fish some clear waters and have seen many times a bass take wacky 5" senko ikas nightcrawler and only have it half way or by the skirt(ika). It will grab and then run 5 -10 feet then spread mouth to engulf lure. Setting hook too soon would result in pulling lure free. So yeah with these presentations Ill wait a bit
A-Jay reply :
I try to set ASAP after detection - win some, lose some.
The reality is, often times by the time an angler "Feels" the take - the fish has already had the bait for some time.
And we won't even mention how many strikes, followed by rapid rejection, that go completely undetected.
A-Jay
Catch and Grease reply :
On 10/31/2014 at 7:41 AM, A-Jay said:And we won't even mention how many strikes, followed by rapid rejection, that go completely undetected.
A-Jay
I'd quit fishing if I knew how big that number is... Lol
Giggidy564 reply :
On 10/31/2014 at 6:32 AM, Bluebasser86 said:As soon as I feel them, I'm swinging. A bass can engulf a large bait in an instant. The longer you wait, the more chance they have to blow out the bait.
On 10/31/2014 at 7:08 AM, Auggie14 said:About 95 percent of the time they just suck it in anyway (unless your bed fishing), so I set the hook as soon as I feel the hit. For trebles I don't set the hook near as harshly as I would for anything without treble hooks.
On 10/31/2014 at 7:12 AM, Catch and Grease said:The first tap you feel is them engulfing your bait, the second tap is them spitting it out!
On 10/31/2014 at 7:20 AM, QUAKEnSHAKE said:I fish some clear waters and have seen many times a bass take wacky 5" senko ikas nightcrawler and only have it half way or by the skirt(ika). It will grab and then run 5 -10 feet then spread mouth to engulf lure. Setting hook too soon would result in pulling lure free. So yeah with these presentations Ill wait a bit
On 10/31/2014 at 7:41 AM, A-Jay said:I try to set ASAP after detection - win some, lose some.
The reality is, often times by the time an angler "Feels" the take - the fish has already had the bait for some time.
And we won't even mention how many strikes, followed by rapid rejection, that go completely undetected.
A-Jay
You guys made some great points. Can you guys give me some tips on the sideways hookset. I am 50/50 with that one.
A-Jay reply :
For me, Hook set direction, be it right side, left side, up or something in between, is usually determined by a few different factors which include but are not limited to: the type of tackle, bait/lure, the direction of the take/strike in relation to the structure and/or cover & the position of the boat. Preferring to set "into" the bass but it's often impossible to know exactly how the bite came on. But that's at least half the fun of it.
Additionally, the proper gear and sharp hooks are more of a concern for me than the direction of the rod on the hook set.
A-Jay
PanhandleFishin reply :
As soon as they take it I wait 2 or 3 secs then, I try to rip their lips off.
mjseverson24 reply :
bottom contact---> feel the hit or see the strike on the line, I drop the rod tip reel down as soon as the tip loads up i do an over the shoulder set. (some baits like football jigs and C-rigs i do a reel set)
moving baits ---> soon as I veel the strike I make a sweeping hookset rotating around my body...
Mitch
FishinDaddy reply :
On 10/31/2014 at 9:37 AM, mjseverson24 said:bottom contact---> feel the hit or see the strike on the line, I drop the rod tip reel down as soon as the tip loads up i do an over the shoulder set. (some baits like football jigs and C-rigs i do a reel set)
moving baits ---> soon as I veel the strike I make a sweeping hookset rotating around my body...
Mitch
This X 2
Alonerankin2 reply :
Good answers. Around here, ( probably other places too) the bluegill & redear love to take a bite outta 4" senkos, with that in mind, I hesitate some, or I will be jerking way more than is needed. I try to line watch as much as possible but as far as Hooksets, I swing for the fences,
Ajay & Mitch covered the particulars quite well, so I won't divulge on it anymore. Quakenshake states my preferred method on timing. It does vary some.
gardnerjigman reply :
On 10/31/2014 at 6:32 AM, Bluebasser86 said:As soon as I feel them, I'm swinging. A bass can engulf a large bait in an instant. The longer you wait, the more chance they have to blow out the bait.
This. Happens a lot that I don't feel them. See that tick in the line on the drop, reel enough slack and load up. Hook sets are free.
WRB reply :
Largemouth striking any lure engulfs it by vacuuming it into it's big mouth, they rarely bit with there lips.
Predators that bit have teeth to hold the prey, basses teeth are used to grip the prey to prevent it from escaping out of it's mouth. The bass doesn't tear it's prey, they crunch it between the back of their mouth and tongue, then swallow it whole.
How you set your hook depends on where the hook is on the lure and when you detect the strike.
Surface lures you see the strike or attempted strike depending on cover type and lure speed, bass don't always hit their target in heavy cover and may not always get the lure inside it's mouth, timing becomes important and a hesitation is often a good idea.
Underwater fast moving lures or very large lures are similar to top water strikes except we don't always detect them, timing is important, sometimes it's good to hesitate, most of the time sooner is better than later.
Underwater slow moving soft plastics and jigs, sooner is better than hesitating when we detect a strike we can't see. The exception may be with spotted bass and smallmouth bass that tend to bit crawdad claws before engulfing the crawdad, largemouth just engulf crawdads.
Small or juvenile bass may grab your underwater lure and move away with it to get away from other bass, larger adult size bass rarely do this. Don't hesitate or let a bass move off with your lure, they will spit it out if detecting line pressure.
Feel a tap and lower the rod tip you loose, the tap is usually the lure being rejected.
Set the hook if you don't feel your lure or it gets a little heavier, any unusual movement, your lure isn't alive and bass don't have hands, set the hook!
How you set the hook varies with how far away the lure is and what angle it may be, your goal is to drive the sharp hook point into the basses soft mouth tissue.
Tom
Driftb reply :
With soft plastics- I hesitate a few seconds before I set. This is a necessity. With braid and a sensitive rod, it's very easy to set too soon. I try to get my guests to set a few seconds after it, especially with tasty soft plastics. A fish will carry a soft bait off, then stop and eat it. that's the time to set. When you feel the initial tic or the pull of him swimming off is too early. set when he stops pulling. It takes some patience.
With topwater lures, wait until the lures has been pulled under. Setting on the hit will usually get you zero. With jerkbaits, set as soon as you feel the hit. The trick here is feeling a hit on a slack line, as most hits will come on a suspending jerkbait during the pause after the jerk. Sharpening your hooks helps a lot. If your hook is absolutely sticky sharp, the fish is going to have a harder time throwing it even on a slack line. When you start to pull the line tight, if you feel a hit or if it feels mushy, set hard!
About missing hits- This has a lot to do with quality of equipment and skill. I do not think that there are many hits that I do not notice. If there were, I assume I would be reeling in a fish occasionally that I didn't feel hit. Doesn't happen often. That being said, I have been fishing for more than forty five years. I am pretty familiar with my equipment, and at this point, I really only use rods and line matched to the technique that I am very confident with. I cannot tell you how many times I have a client in my boat and as I watch his line I see the hits way before the client notices them. Many times I tell them to set, and eventually they do it and as they reel in a fish, ask l me in amazement " How did you know I had a fish on?"
SirSnookalot reply :
Both the lure type and line type play a role in the hookset, but it really boils down to reaction. I'm not a hooksetter per se, I pretty much just lift my rod as soon as I feel the weight of the fish. If I'm thinking about I'm probably too late.
WIGuide reply :
On 10/31/2014 at 7:12 AM, Catch and Grease said:The first tap you feel is them engulfing your bait, the second tap is them spitting it out!
The 3rd tap is your buddy tapping you on the shoulder saying "you should have set the hook!".
geo g reply :
I fish plastics most of the time. I usually don't set right away, unless they pound the bait. Like the first poster, I usually don't set until I feel weight. I can usually tell if its a bass or just junk fish right away. I seldom miss fish if they take the plastic lure by keeping constant tension on the line right up to the hook set. We are talking about it all happening in a matter of seconds.
For years I have watched others that miss a lot of fish on the set. I have noticed right before the hook set they will drop the rod without taking up the slack line. This causes a slack in the line and no real contact with the fish. When they set the hook the fish is gone. If you drop the rod you need to take up the slack so there is constant contact with the fish. You can do this by taking up slack while you drop the rod. Then hammer the hook set. This will help prevent those misses.
Catt reply :
Go watch Glen Lau's Bigmouth Forever, then come back here & tell us how good waiting would have worked!
The Three Tap Theory as explained to me by Shaw Grigsby
The first tap the bass has inhaled your lure
The second tap the bass has expelled your lure
The third tap is me tapping you on the shoulder asking why you didn't set hook?
Drop the rod, reel the slack, & set the hook 
bigbassctchr101 reply :
They don't have hands, so they certainly aren't tossing it back and forth trying to trick ya.
I set the hook when I feel the first knock, tap, or heavy weight on the end.
I'm not 100% with that, because of tail slaps, stun strikes, and when they will only pick it up half way.
But I do not know when they do each one of them, so I find my odds much better to think that each knock, tap, run, etc... is a bite that I need to set the hook on.
If anyone has watch the documentary of Bigmouth, or spent time scuba diving under water, you can see that a bass can engulf a whole CRANKBAIT and not be hook and the fisherman will never know he got a strike. Underwater, they will also open their mouth and flare their gills and vacuum in bait from the bottom. The first thing the fish will do once this happens is push it all against the roof of their mouth...anything hard and rock like gets blowed back out. So if I am fishing most jigs...I want to set the hook before my jig head gets mistaken for a rock.
Raul reply :
On 10/31/2014 at 7:12 AM, Catch and Grease said:The first tap you feel is them engulfing your bait, the second tap is them spitting it out!
And the third tap is me tapping you on the shoulder asking why you didn´t set the hook on the first tap.
Fisher-O-men reply :
When I am dropshot fishing I set on any tap. I am more concerned about the fish swallowing the hook than spitting it. I rarely miss a dropshot bite.
gulfcaptain reply :
If it doesn't feel right, I swing. Like most say, "swings are free". Fishing and punching grass, line watching, weight of the lure, and even the occasional tap let me know. But I think 95% of the fish I caught this year fishing grass I never felt a tap just a change in weight or the line just twitched. I do love the few bites where they tried to rip the rod out of my hand as they swim off with my jig. So I may swing often, but hey odds are if it doesn't feel right then it's probably a bite.
flyfisher reply :
deecting a lot of strikes is about the process of elimination....you eliminate what the bait normally feels like, how the line is behaving etc..and subsequently set the hook.
greentrout reply :
A lot of my worm fishing is with Crème and Zoom finesse worms using 10lb test and Tru-turn hooks with weights down to 1/32 oz.. Soon as I feel
the strike, no more than 2 seconds, I set it hard and reel 'em in.
Old school basser...
frogfish195 reply :
On top i'll pause
underwater I aint waitin'
Crankbaits easy sweeping hookset
spinnerbaits, buzzbaits, soft plastic texas rig.....fairly solid hookset
frogs, flippin' Carolina rig, I do all I can to rip their lips off........drag cranked down, skull drag em to the boat
Justin Mott reply :
I'm with the rest of the crowd on this one. I want to set the hook as soon as I feel a fish. I like to think that a fish that is worth my time will fully engulf my bait.
On that same note, I am not that worried about a fish spitting out my bait. I fish a lot of swimming jigs completely out of sight. Many times, I will get bites that I don't know about for a few seconds. I know they feel me pulling back on them. But in my head, they think its a fish trying to pull away and clamp down harder. I do fish with a medium action rod to not put too much pressure and I rarely lose fish like this.
Justin Mott
*Hootie reply :
On 10/31/2014 at 7:12 AM, Catch and Grease said:The first tap you feel is them engulfing your bait, the second tap is them spitting it out!
An old 70's B.A.S.S. pro, John Powell said that.
Hootie
*Hootie reply :
On 11/1/2014 at 1:06 AM, Raul said:And the third tap is me tapping you on the shoulder asking why you didn´t set the hook on the first tap.
Again, John Powell.
Hootie
hatrix reply :
Tom made a lot of good points. Waiting on bottom baits to set is debatable. In my experience like Tom pointed big fish don't run while smaller fish do. The double tap type bite also is usually a smaller fish deal and big ones either give no tap or can be one super hard slamming hit and anything but a instant set is usually leads to air. If you fish enough moving soft baits you can kind of get a sense of if they ever fully grab it just like you can with topwater and don't set because you need them to hit again.
On a bottom bait bait I am not feelin for a bite thats painfully obvious usually and I am concerned about what I no longer or shouldn't be feeling.
The lightest bite you ever get is the biggest fish you will ever catch. That statement has a lot of merit to it but is not 100% of the time true.
Weld's Largemouth reply :
On 10/31/2014 at 8:05 AM, Giggidy564 said:You guys made some great points. Can you guys give me some tips on the sideways hookset. I am 50/50 with that one.
most of my hooksets are to the side, because im working my lures with my rod to the side
Senko lover reply :
I never allow the bite to reach the rod tip. I am always watching my line, and the second I see a twitch, or my line going out, I rare back. I always keep contact with the bait too, so I typically don't "drop and reel" or anything.
Catch 22 reply :
I used to fish crankbaits in a deep river reservoir a lot ,mostly for lmb.I held the rod low and to the side so I had an accurate view of the rod tip. Many ,many times I felt no appreciable strike but the rod tip would stop vibrating because a fish had taken in the bait and was swimming along with it.======Set the hook.. Sometime the rod would just go straight.===Set the hook.
I learned to set the hook anytime the rod changed attitude. Many bass came on board by this method.
Softbaits except for Senkos ,set the hook now.
Also I seldom ever drop the rod before a set. With braid and a mono leader I don`t need the extra uummff
C22
Giggidy564 reply :
On 11/5/2014 at 9:55 AM, Catch 22 said:I used to fish crankbaits in a deep river reservoir a lot ,mostly for lmb.I held the rod low and to the side so I had an accurate view of the rod tip. Many ,many times I felt no appreciable strike but the rod tip would stop vibrating because a fish had taken in the bait and was swimming along with it.======Set the hook.. Sometime the rod would just go straight.===Set the hook.
I learned to set the hook anytime the rod changed attitude. Many bass came on board by this method.
Softbaits except for Senkos ,set the hook now.
Also I seldom ever drop the rod before a set. With braid and a mono leader I don`t need the extra uummff
C22
That last part makes a lot of sense to me. Having the right tackle really does play a major role in hooksets. I saw Aaron Martens set the hook like he was crappie fishing when he was dropshottig for bass and he had great hook penetration due to his tackle. Thanks
Jtrout reply :
On soft plastics it's usually a few taps then I rip them lips on cranks soon as I feel a fish grab it I give it a little yank to make sure I got some hooks in.
tatertester reply :
I love to fish bass in lily pads and mixed weeds, BUT , I have a poor percentage of hooksets.....I have tried to hookset fast, waiting to the feel fish,and just can't seem to get a good feel for it...I've read many times the way to do it, and watched videos, yet, am lucky to get 50% hookups.....I have no trouble with plastics, or most other surface lures, just those floating frogs......ARRRGH.
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