Catfish Hooks

This is a little Plano box I got from wally world ... works great for keeping hooks dry and organized.

This is one of my most used hooks below ... the 1/0 baitholder... I'll switch to this hook when I get fish hitting and running a short distance then dropping the bait. Switching to this smaller hook usually stops that from happening any more.

The hook below is the smallest hook I use ... this is a 2/0 octopus hook ... I use this hook a lot when I cork fish using livingston floats made outta balsa wood and lead. They fly a mile ... I like the 6 oz floats the best.

Hook Sharpening Technique

Question, Redneck: Looks awesome Tiny, I need to come and learn how to catfish from you, LOL. I've read a lot of tips you give people and it sounds like you like to use small hooks, do they work better than big hooks when going for big cats?

Answer: yes ... in the winter it's a necessity to use smaller hooks ... I've found over the years of fishing that when using larger hooks in cold calm water the catfish are more sensitive and finicky so you have to use more finesse when fishing for them ... using a hook over 2/0 will get hits but they'll let go of the bait 8 or 9 times outta 10. This is in a high pressure area though and fishing in water that's not under as much pressure it's probably not so important but is still likely to be the case as I've had to drop down in hook size in the lake too. That'd be a good technique to think about in winter when you're getting good hits but then the line just goes slack ... switch to a smaller hook and see if that fixes it ... most of the time it does.

In spring I start moving up in the hook size to as big as 6/0 baitholders in flood water situations cause the fish are a lot more aggressive and you'll miss some fish with too small of a hook ... in normal fishing conditions on the other hand a person really doesn't need anything over a 3/0 baitholder, just depending on the size of the bait being used. I always try to use as small of a hook as I feel I can get away with too ... the hook I use most is probably an L042 in the 1/0 and 2/0 when using shad heads for bait.

when fishing for flathead it all depends on the size of the bluegill or whatever I'm using for bait and if there's current ... if there's current I'll use a 2/0 baitholder and hook the bait through the nostrils ... if there's no current I'll use about a 4/0 to 6/0 baitholder and hook it through right behind the anal fin for my free swimming rig or through the back for a float presentation.