Posted by Jim F from casey.fnal.gov on March 08, 2002 at 11:40:09:
In Reply to: barbless hooks and alka seltzer posted by buzz1 on March 06, 2002 at 08:41:36:
I started using barbless exclusively because of the early C&R season in Wis. I tie my own, and didn't want to fool around with worrying about which flies were barbed etc..., plus there is a general opinion that barbless hooks are better for releasing fish in good shape.
I've also talked to steelhead guides, and read about barbless hooks actually doing *more* damage. The steelhead guide I talked to said because they use larger flies, and the steelhead hit so aggresively, the hook penetrates further and can actually get lodged all the way up in the brain. The other argument I've heard for barbed hooks is that the hook can come dislodged and rehook the fish in another spot, thereby creating 2 holes where there used to be 1.
So I realize that there is not a necessarily black and white answer, but after listening to all the arguments and alot of field testing I've come to the following conlusions:
- barbless hooks in general do not do more damage than barbed hooks to the fish, and may actually be beneficial in releasing the fish. The wound to the fish is smaller, and maybe more importantly the barbless hooks at times can be removed quicker (maybe a couple of seconds some of the time, but it can't hurt).
- barbless hooks to not have a noticeable difference in landing a fish. I have not noticed any difference in the amount of fish I lose with barbless hooks, and it took me a full season to become comfortable with this. I read once, and it may be very true, that the original purpose of the barb was not to keep the fish on the hook, but to keep the BAIT on the hook. Since I don't bait fish, this isn't an issue.
- barbless hooks DEFINITELY do less damage to anglers. Fly fishermen tend to hook themselves and fishing partners more often, and a barbless hooks have a definite advantage there. Last summer my 13 year old son on his first big fly fishing trip hooked himself in the face. We were in a drift boat floating down the Madison River in Montana where winds are just a way of life, and a big gust came up right on his backcast and hit him right on the cheek. If he had a barbed fly we may have had to cut our trip short, fortunately we just all had a good laugh and he was none the worse for the wear.
Unless holding the bait is an issue, go barbless.