Understanding Fish Hook Sizes

As a fisherman you will know that your kit is full of essential items, however, you will probably agree that the humble hook is probably the top of the list of importance. There are a plethora of hook types and sizes available and to some anglers, particularly the beginner, choosing a hook from what is on offer could seem to be quite a task, however, it is not rocket science. Through this article I hope to offer you some considerations that may help you in your hook selection for any future fishing sorties.

Selecting a hook for fishing is wholly dependent on the species and size of fish that you may be targeting. Other considerations are types of bait you intend to use and fishing line employed. Selection can even come down to the location you are fishing from regarding terrain and surroundings. As a rule of thumb, the smaller your intended fish the smaller your hook needs to be after all you want to be able to hook your fish without too much trouble on the fishes part.

Amongst the types of hook available to the angler are barbed and barb-less. Use a barb-less hook when using the catch and release method of fishing, this prevents anymore damage to the fish. Also available are weed-less hooks, these are ideal when your fishing location is grassy. There are certain types of bait that require long shank hooks.

For the beginner, understanding the numbers indicating the hook sizes can be baffling. The smallest hook is indicated with a number 32 whilst number 19/0 indicates the largest. The scale runs like this, as I said 32 is the smallest, the hooks get bigger in size as the numbers get lower until number 1 is reached. From number 1 the hook sizes grow further still but are numbered 1/0 up to the largest at 19/0. It sounds complicated but it's not really. As mentioned before your choice of hook size is dependant on the size of your targeted fish, for example, should you be fishing for trout then a good hook size would be 18 - 8 or for bluegill 12 - 8.

No matter what your choice of rod and reel if you haven't chosen your hook correctly you will be wasting your and the fishes time. Make sure you have a plentiful supply of different sized hooks in your tackle-box so that you can select and change accordingly.

Once you have an understanding of the different hook styles and sizes you will have more successful fishing trips. By selecting the correct type and size in the first place can only save you time and frustration and ultimately enable you to catch more fish.