# Size matters.... right?



## Benz (Sep 25, 2010)

Fishing for steelhead is way more dynamic than I had thought. Before I really got into it, it was just something to pass time between Largemouth Bass, for me. But now I think steelhead fishing is my favorite. I didn't realize how smart and sensitive these fish really are. 

My whole day was thrown off yesterday because I had ran out of #6 hooks and was using some octopus hooks, that I use with a wacky rig for bass. I got skunked... 

Whats the smallest hooks you use for steelhead? 
Do you stick to a certain hook or mix it up? 
Does weather play a big factor in size and bait?


for me #6 was the smallest I was using, but I'm gonna swing over to al and bobs! and grab some #10 I think today, b/c it's so bright and the water is low still.. 

Headin to the Rogue if I don't get called in by 2!


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## samsteel (Oct 6, 2008)

interesting you should say that...because bass fishing is just something I do to pass the time when the steelhead/salmon are not running the rivers. smallest hooks I use are size #14, but that's pretty rare.....usually size #10 or #8 is what I will use. when it's super clear and high pressured, I will drop down to a #12 and every once a while a 14. leader line is a factor as well and yes, weather plays a factor in just about everything. Octopus hooks are a solid all around choice. Steelhead are definitely spooky fish and can be very particular, much more so than bass (in my opinion) but that's why they are so fun to chase.


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## Multispeciestamer (Jan 27, 2010)

Smart, no. Sensitive, yes.  If a steelheads going to eat your bait it makes no difference on hook size, line weight anything. But if said hook is to heavy and drags the bait down or dosnt look/smell right they wont hit it. :cwm27:


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## LuckyChucky (Mar 28, 2005)

line weight always makes a differance ,good luck hooking a steelhead wth 20lb test and a size 2 hook in a clear river,give good advice young one


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## sport72186 (Dec 20, 2007)

I started out steelhead fishing using size 8 hooks. Over the years I've moved to smaller hooks and lighter presentations. Now I feel like size 8 is huge even in stained water conditions. I use size 10 and 12 hooks now mostly and have size 14s in my pack for extremely low/clear conditions.

Size 6 hooks are way too big for steelhead IMO.

In terms of line, I use 8lb fluoro as a go-to, but when it gets very low/clear I drop down to 6 lb and sometimes 4 lb for very pressured fish in those same conditions. (It's tough to land them on 4 lb, but sometimes it can really help increase your hookups.)

I think a lot of fisherman struggle with this, but you really need to downsize your presentation when conditions are low/clear/sunny.


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## Boozer (Sep 5, 2010)

Multispeciestamer said:


> Smart, no. Sensitive, yes.  If a steelheads going to eat your bait it makes no difference on hook size, line weight anything. But if said hook is to heavy and drags the bait down or dosnt look/smell right they wont hit it. :cwm27:


This is quite possibly the most ridiculous statement I have ever seen on any of these forums, that's really bad...


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## LuckyChucky (Mar 28, 2005)

Boozer said:


> This is quite possibly the most ridiculous statement I have ever seen on any of these forums, that's really bad...


you arent familiar with our young expert's sage advice? :lol: he's a good kid, but has alot to learn


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## stjoeshore (Aug 23, 2010)

I don't know about the rivers, but when I was catching steelies off the pier at the end of August/first of September I was using size 2/0 hooks with 14lb line under a bobber and it seemed to work for me, FWIW.


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## Trout King (May 1, 2002)

> Size 6 hooks are way too big for steelhead IMO.


Really? That is all I've used this fall so far...went 4-5 in an hour yesterday with extremely low and clear water. 

I usually match my hook size to the size of my bait, so I've been using 6's since I tied a massive quantity of fairly large bags a few weeks ago and still working on using them up.


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## SteelieSpin (Jun 18, 2010)

When fishing rivers for steelhead I'm almost always using spawn sacks. I try to match the size of spawn sack to the conditions (water clarity, sun, time of year), and I base what size hook I use on the size of spawn sack I use. I'll use anywhere from size 6 to 10 hooks when fishing spawn, size 10s for 2-5 egg bags, 6s for choker bags, 8s for sizes in between.


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## LuckyChucky (Mar 28, 2005)

stjoeshore said:


> I don't know about the rivers, but when I was catching steelies off the pier at the end of August/first of September I was using size 2/0 hooks with 14lb line under a bobber and it seemed to work for me, FWIW.


the whole point is saying something ridiculous like when steelhead wanna bite it doesnt matter the tackle you use,guess I can use foot long muskie baits when they are hungry eh?.Truthfully steelhead are some of the most tackle dependant fish that swims,and you have to vary what you use for them to match conditions.you want the lightest yet strongest tackle you can get away with.I think Im gonna try tarpon tackle steelhead sometime however


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## Multispeciestamer (Jan 27, 2010)

Boozer said:


> This is quite possibly the most ridiculous statement I have ever seen on any of these forums, that's really bad...


 funny you should say this as this information was taught to me by our friend.


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## diztortion (Sep 6, 2009)

I've been using a #10 blackbird.

Like TK said, match your hook to your bait.


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## Multispeciestamer (Jan 27, 2010)

When A steelhead has its mind set its going to hit the bait, it will. Ive heard of guys hooking steelies on musky bucktails, bass spinners, just crazy stuff. I myself have hooked quite a few on walleye gear using straight braid in clear water. From big minnow plugs to odd colored walleye plastics. Charter Captains such as Knightlinger run like 20 pound mono tied straight to his plugs. You guys are giving the fish to much credit. :lol:. When Pier fishing I use 2/0 hooks for steelhead.


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## quest32a (Sep 25, 2001)

Multispeciestamer said:


> funny you should say this as this information was taught to me by our friend.


And you go reciting his words here as steelhead doctorine. Some days line size really matters, same with hook size. Other days it does not. It all depends on their mood, freshness, and water clarity. Ive caught steelhead on 15 lb test floating bags, and had to go all they way down to 4lb test. Some days it makes a difference. 

Seriously Tyler you make things sound so black and white. Fishing is a million shades of grey. Don't cite things that someone else tells you as fact, when, with regards to steelhead the only real fact is that things change every day. Some days one tactic works and the next day nothing works. 

Just as some years steelhead run when conditions are perfect and other years they show up when the river temp is 80 degrees and lower than hell for no apparrent reason.


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## Boozer (Sep 5, 2010)

Multispeciestamer said:


> When A steelhead has its mind set its going to hit the bait, it will. Ive heard of guys hooking steelies on musky bucktails, bass spinners, just crazy stuff. I myself have hooked quite a few on walleye gear using straight braid in clear water. From big minnow plugs to odd colored walleye plastics. Charter Captains such as Knightlinger run like 20 pound mono tied straight to his plugs. You guys are giving the fish to much credit. :lol:. When Pier fishing I use 2/0 hooks for steelhead.


You "or anyone" fish 12 pound mono leads under a float with a spawn bag and I will fish 8 pound fluoro lead with the same rigging otherwise, day in and day out I will hook more fish than you, period...

I don't care what anyone tells you, it can make a difference especially in a river in colder temps.

As far as Neidlinger running 20 pound on plugs, plugging is a completely different deal than drifting a spawn bag, I run 15 pound when swinging flies, but you are getting a totally different type of bite and fish. A HOT fish will make suicide runs and blast just about anything, but the not so hot fish will be much more picky. Plus you need to remember, Charter boats will never be rigged to hook the most amount of fish, EVER, they are rigged to land the majority of fish hooked with inexperienced anglers.

Like Quest said, you make things out to be too black & white and you make these blanket statements that are just completely off the wall, not to be rude, you seem like a cool kid and I would fish with you anytime, but think a little bud...


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## Still Wait'n (Nov 25, 2005)

Multispeciestamer said:


> When A steelhead has its mind set its going to hit the bait, it will. Ive heard of guys hooking steelies on musky bucktails, bass spinners, just crazy stuff. I myself have hooked quite a few on walleye gear using straight braid in clear water. From big minnow plugs to odd colored walleye plastics. Charter Captains such as Knightlinger run like 20 pound mono tied straight to his plugs. You guys are giving the fish to much credit. :lol:. When Pier fishing I use 2/0 hooks for steelhead.


And it's not Knightlinger it's Neidlinger.


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## LuckyChucky (Mar 28, 2005)

Multispeciestamer said:


> When A steelhead has its mind set its going to hit the bait, it will. Ive heard of guys hooking steelies on musky bucktails, bass spinners, just crazy stuff. I myself have hooked quite a few on walleye gear using straight braid in clear water. From big minnow plugs to odd colored walleye plastics. Charter Captains such as Knightlinger run like 20 pound mono tied straight to his plugs. You guys are giving the fish to much credit. :lol:. When Pier fishing I use 2/0 hooks for steelhead.


 ok you use your heavy tackle for steelhead and Ill use my standard and we'll see who catches more  and we arent talking about charter fishing we are talking about fall pier and river fishing,keep telling yourself that using the lightest yet strongest tackle available isnt the way to go.Id personally love to see you catch a steelhead wth rope and shark tackle,after all if they wanna bite nothing will stop them from hitting that right ?


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## steely74 (Feb 9, 2010)

Hook size and leader does matter. This fall I have fished the most pressured spots around my area. Even the coho were reluctant to bite with all the pressure and clear water. The last hen king I got I was using a size 10 hook. Today again downsizing was the key with the high sun. Water clarity, water speed, sun conditions and fishing pressure all make a difference as others said. I have used 8lb. maxima and size 4 hooks in clear water in the summer on fresh fish and knocked the crap out of them. While in mid february I would be lucky if a fish did not move out of the way of that presentation. Fresh fish often knock the crap out of anything. Fish ultra clear pressured cold water for fish that have been in for a while and seen lots of baits or have even been caught and released and its a different story. Everyone knows this...

As someone already mentioned with attractors you can get away with heavier stuff. An aggression bite is a different reaction that a feeding bite. I have seen the difference between aggression and feeding on kings and steel on pier and river. 

Catching a steelhead is not hard, consistently catching them and catching big ones is the challenge of it. Well besides landing all of them . I like to think there are smart fish and not so smart fish. On more than one occasion I have caught the same steelhead twice in a day and no they were not droppies... It once happened to me in Ohio in the middle of a half frozen river.

Just wanted to add my 2 cents...


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## Multispeciestamer (Jan 27, 2010)

Still Wait'n said:


> And it's not Knightlinger it's Neidlinger.


 My bad on that one I was getting ready to leave the house as I typed it, Knew I was close enough people would know who I was talking about.


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## Benz (Sep 25, 2010)

Thats for all of the info! and ego's lol.

I picked up some 8's and 10's but my spawn sacs are all a little big for 10's... I have some frozen un tied I might have to break into and make some smaller ones.


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## ESOX (Nov 20, 2000)

> but my spawn sacs are all a little big for 10's


Reading this thread, it looks like a lot of guys think their spawn sacks are huge..


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## Flyfisher (Oct 1, 2002)

ESOX said:


> Reading this thread, it looks like a lot of guys think their spawn sacks are huge..


Not necessarily, but float (bobber) fishermen generally use longer rods.


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## Boozer (Sep 5, 2010)

ESOX said:


> Reading this thread, it looks like a lot of guys think their spawn sacks are huge..


That post is full of negativity, you better go garden some more positive Karma to make up for it


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## diztortion (Sep 6, 2009)

ESOX said:


> Reading this thread, it looks like a lot of guys think their spawn sacks are huge..


My spawn sack is huge, buddy..


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## LuckyChucky (Mar 28, 2005)

my ego certainly isnt as big as the lures I was told would catch steelhead, when they are in kill mode .Ive often wanted to try those big novelty lures you see sometimes in bars and restaurants


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## kzoochromer (Feb 17, 2010)

LuckyChucky said:


> couldve fooled me with your idc  most of your posts are nothing more then" I know everything there is to know about fishing "quips ,and youve been called out on it by several mods and others ,It gets really old dude.I wanna believe that youre a good kid,and I know you are passionate about fishing but no one believes your silly theorys because you often contradict yourself and because better fisherman know better then to trust anything you say at face value.


We have a nickname for him down here...."kiddo" short for "you must be kid...oh, no your seriouse" :lol:


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## Scorpion-LC-18 (Jan 7, 2005)

Don't run him off, this place would be boring without him!


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## Still Wait'n (Nov 25, 2005)

Scorpion-LC-18 said:


> Don't run him off, this place would be boring without him!


A whopping 9 posts in 5 years? We definitely want to keep *you* entertained.:lol:


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## LuckyChucky (Mar 28, 2005)

Scorpion-LC-18 said:


> Don't run him off, this place would be boring without him!


Oh I'm sure he'll just go lick his wounds,watch Bill Dance for advice on steelhead fishing,and be back at it in no time :help:


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## Multispeciestamer (Jan 27, 2010)

Oh I am still here.


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## Scorpion-LC-18 (Jan 7, 2005)

Still Wait'n said:


> A whopping 9 posts in 5 years? We definitely want to keep *you* entertained.:lol:


If I would make a smart+++ comment like you every time I guess I may have more posts.


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## Still Wait'n (Nov 25, 2005)

Scorpion-LC-18 said:


> If I would make a smart+++ comment like you every time I guess I may have more posts.


Nope no smart ***** comment here every time. I just don't like leeches that lurk around with little input. No offense.:irked:


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## diztortion (Sep 6, 2009)

Still Wait'n said:


> Nope no smart ***** comment here every time. I just don't like leeches that lurk around with little input. No offense.:irked:


At least he signed up for an account. Most of the cyber scouts don't have the spawn sack to do that...


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## Still Wait'n (Nov 25, 2005)

diztortion said:


> At least he signed up for an account. Most of the cyber scouts don't have the spawn sack to do that...


That's true. And I understand that things like this happen all the time and I'm sure he's probably a nice guy. But it seems you could post something up in 5 years instead of just gather info. 

I belong to an Ohio site and fish there quite often but still post. It doesn't take too much effort.


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## RDS-1025 (Dec 1, 2008)

kzoochromer said:


> We have a nickname for him down here...."kiddo" short for "you must be kid...oh, no your seriouse" :lol:


Now that's funny! :lol: :lol: :lol:


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## Multispeciestamer (Jan 27, 2010)

RDS-1025 said:


> Now that's funny! :lol: :lol: :lol:


 I dont see whats so funny, as Ive never meet this guy or fished the Kzoo .

As a side note I would consider this thread dead.


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## Flyfisher (Oct 1, 2002)

Multispeciestamer said:


> As a side note I would consider this thread dead.


It took a serious turn for the worse in the third reply...



Multispeciestamer said:


> steelheads going to eat your bait it makes no difference on hook size, line weight anything. But if said hook is to heavy and drags the bait down or dosnt look/smell right they wont hit it. :cwm27:


And went downhill from there. Sometimes, its best just to NOT reply if you don't know what you are talking about. Do yourself a favor and read what you wrote again. It makes no sense and defending it here is pointless. The original poster mentioned the Rogue River. Have you fished the Rogue River before? Have you fished the Rogue River when it is as low and clear as it is right now? I have been fishing since before you started kindegarten, and one look at the USGS gauge tells me that the few fish that are in there will be extremely spooky and tough to hook with finesse tactics. Even the Grand River has nearly four feet of visibility right now in the area I fish. 

Unfortunately, the majority of nonsense you post on here distracts everyone else from actually answering the question of the original poster. We get it, you are enthusiastic about fishing, as most of us here are, otherwise we wouldn't be on a sportsmans website. We tolerate a little of the nonsense because we consider the source. There are many, many years of experience on here, and a lot of the time I just read and learn from the other guys on this page that have been there, done that. There is nothing wrong with admitting that you don't know something as it opens the door to learn something new. Once again, please read what you posted above, and think twice next time before hitting the "submit reply" button.


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## LuckyChucky (Mar 28, 2005)




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## Multispeciestamer (Jan 27, 2010)

Flyfisher said:


> It took a serious turn for the worse in the third reply...
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 True I have never fished the Rogue, Or claimed to have. The OP got the answer he was looking for. And I added my 2 cents as always. the end


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