I have gotten #8 & #10 circle hooks at Cabela's. We still had plenty swallowers. My wife and I have by far had the best luck using a 1/32 jig with almost none swallowing the jig. We have used larger jigs but we have way more bait stolen. That is our experience and we have been working on this for while.
That is what I use also, the 1/32 oz jig and I have found some brands have smaller circumference hooks which I like.
I'm no expert angler by any means, but I also like the way jigs present the bait. I seem to have far better luck catching BG with small hooks and small bait. At least when I am fishing with bait.
Smallest size crank bait in LMB pattern works well on BG for me too.
But I do not catch a lot of fish much over 8". So either I may need to use bigger bait/hook or maybe the bigger fish just are not there. Opinions on that?
Edit: I do catch the occasional 3# CC with those 1/32 oz jigs though.
See the picture I posted earlier today. The circle hooks can be found in size #8 at any good tackle store or ordered online. The 1/64 ounce jigs can be ordered from "Lurepartsonline.com". Search on their site for Panfish Micro Jigs. The ones I use are 1/64 oz chartreuse with #10 hook.
I have fished extensively using a variety of methods for various species for over 55 years.
I used to use the #8 circle hooks I pictured. A couple of years ago I switched to 1/64 oz #10 hook yellow jigs tipped with "gulp alive" waxies. I can catch more BG and even RES and catch them faster on the small jigs and "gulp alive" than on the small circle hooks with live bait and 1/64 oz sinker 8" above. All on 4# or 6# test monofilament line.
I used to use the #8 circle hooks I pictured. A couple of years ago I switched to 1/64 oz #10 hook yellow jigs tipped with "gulp alive" waxies. I can catch more BG and even RES and catch them faster on the small jigs and "gulp alive" than on the small circle hooks with live bait and 1/64 oz sinker 8" above. All on 4# or 6# test monofilament line.
I use a 12 or 13 foot light or ultra light action crappie pole with 4# or 6# monofilament line. I pull out an amount of line past the tip almost the length of the pole. I swing the jig out as far as I can and slowly bring it back in by sweeping the pole to the side. These jigs are too light to cast; that's why I said swing them out. I try to keep the jig just off bottom. I can feel it if it touches the bottom. The key is to tip the jig with some kind of tasty morsel. I prefer the chartreuse "Gulp Alive waxies" by Berkley.
A three pound CC puts up quite the fight on this rig. Last fall I pulled in a five pound plus CC.
I fished some late afternoon today. While feeding I noticed the fish were not coming to feed so I quit. Only a few takers for the feed. Guess the weather change and recent rain caused their behavior change. Maybe cold rain.
Did not figure I would catch much. Could not get a bite the way I usually fish for them, so went out on the dock and fished the bottom in 6-7' of water. Caught quite a few that way but mostly small ones, One 9" GSF and one nice 8" BG. I would bounce the jig off the bottom was the only way I could get them to bite. Mid water only caught one fish. Used the Gulp green waxies and pink maggots, but the Gulp worm (just a pinch) worked best this time.
I have seen really small jigs in fly shops. I think like 1/128 oz or something like that. Tiny. For sinking flys I assume.
This forage pond was supposed to have only RES and FHM, with GS later introduced.
Some how it got a few GSF so I have been getting a number of RESxGSF hybrids from it. I keep posting pictures of these hybrids for future reference helping others identify RES hybrids. Out of several hundred fish caught and trapped out of this pond I have never had anything look like a BG. So I am certain these fish are hybrids composed of GSF and RES genetics. I have no idea the gender of each parent, but from literature I read it is much more likely to be a RES male and GSF female.
There is one picture of an adult GS from this pond and one picture of a HBG from my main pond. I do not know for sure but I believe the HBG to be one of the CNBG/GSF that originated from my sediment pond (where lots of hybrids were created from a few GSF contamination) that was transferred over to my main pond as a fingerling about a year ago.
The good news is that I caught a couple of RES out of this forage pond, which is what it is supposed to be raising. Pictures are in this RESxGSF hybrid thread so will not re-post them.
Also caught a few in the previous week.
The bad news is am still catching hybrids shown in the above linked photos and the worse news is it looks like I have a bang up crop of GSF late spawn fingerlings. I have not trapped much this year and by the looks of the picture below, I need to be.
I checked the three traps three times in the time span of about an hour and the results were a total of 4 RES fingerlings and a dozen or two of GSF and perhaps some hybrids. So my little forage pond is going "green" as in GSF and I do not like it. Will trap as many as I can in the next few weeks. I had removed about a half dozen 6-7" GSF a few weeks ago by hook and line. Looks like they got their deed done before I got them out.
The RES went back in the forage pond and the GSF went "away". I'm getting some RES recruitment but the GSF are keeping the numbers way low. I should have loads of RES fingerlings instead of all these GSF fingerlings.
Snrub - you are finding out that the GSF are a highly aggressive species and in time will eventually crowd out the RES from your forage pond. I am convinced that young GSF, due to their aggressiveness and large mouth, eat a lot of fish fry.
Last edited by Bill Cody; 10/20/1709:35 AM.
aka Pond Doctor & Dr. Perca Read Pond Boss Magazine - America's Journal of Pond Management
Yes, at some point I will probably either need to nuke it and start over, or introduce some predators and end up with a tiny ordinary pond.
The one advantage that aggressiveness provides is it makes them easy to catch, both by trap and hook and line.
I can never get rid of them in that pond but sure can put a dent in their population by aggressively trapping and fishing. That will get really old some day, but at least currently it gives me a challenge.
I hope some how GSF do not get into my Pond dedicated to RES. If that pond establishes pure then raising RES in this tiny pond will be redundant and I can do something else with it. I have fished that pond three times and have caught nothing. That is actually a good sign for me (a better sign would have been to caught some RES). Had there been any level of GSF population with the small jig I was using I would have caught something.
I don't mind getting the hybrids. In fact I kind of like that. But either I am not getting the RES fingerling production or I am not getting them in traps like the GSF (which is possible).
I need to seine it but all my grandsons have grown up and moved away. No slave labor to help me and Carolynn has no intention of setting foot in a muddy slimy pond.
Been trapping fingerlings out of this pond the last couple weeks. Been getting lots and lots of GSF. Looks like maybe next year might just be the time to pump it down, seine it and start over fresh. Was hardly catching any RES in the minnow traps.
Till yesterday. GSF go into the traps for feed much, much more readily. I get the feeling the RES go in more by accident than on purpose, though I do not know that for sure.
It has gotten cold and my propensity to check the traps has lessened. In fact I removed all of them today. But when I run the traps yesterday I had not checked them for two days (usually check them multiple times each day). The standard opening traps had a number of the usual 1-1.5" GSF. But lo and behold when I checked the trap with an expanded size opening, all the GSF had likely exited once the feed was gone (the trap having been there two days since baited) but the 2-2.5" RES fingerlings pictured below were there. So I did get RES recruitment in this pond. Just hard to tell how much without seining it.
I have noticed this in the past, that when I leave the traps sit longer, I tend to get more RES in them. I find that interesting. If I am trapping to try and get the GSF out, I bait and check 15 minutes to a half hour later and do it often. The GSF are chow hounds. They go right after the feed, and if the feed is gone are pretty good at finding their way out of the trap. It seems like it takes a lot longer to get any RES fingerlings in the trap.
It is normal for GSF when uncontrolled to pretty quickly become overabundant and crowd out many other species including large invertebrates crayfish.. They are an aggressive fish with a large mouth and big appetite.
Last edited by Bill Cody; 11/01/1707:54 PM.
aka Pond Doctor & Dr. Perca Read Pond Boss Magazine - America's Journal of Pond Management
I was starting to believe I had more GSF in this tiny 1/20th acre pond than RES. I had caught a number of 6" GSF and removed them and have caught several dozen fingerling 1 1/2 inch GSF in the minnow traps. It is funny, I will catch nothing but GSF in the traps, then all of the sudden I will get mostly RES. Can't explain why that happens but the GSF seem to have a much greater propensity to go in the traps for the bait feed. I think the RES more tend to wander in accidentally.
At any rate I figured the GSF were pretty bad. So I decided to take another approach. Had forgotten about the cast net I have. Had not used it for a long time. Thought I would give it a try and lo and behold I got RES! I caught about twenty in five casts, all similar size. Pictures below.
So I think there are more RES in the pond than I imagined (or less GSF). I have just been getting the GSF because they are more aggressive to bite a hook or go into a trap for food.
I think I will start casting the net each day about five times and move all the fingerling RES I get to my main pond. Will leave the breeder size in this pond. Funny thing is, I never got a single GSF with the cast net. Either they are quick to avoid it, or I have more RES than I imagined.