Rockfishing - what about Owner Mosquito size 1?

Greetings Everyone,

Taking my wife and two boys out on 3/4 day on Monday. I think we'll be jigging from the bottom for rockfish. In previous trip, I see people using size 1 hooks. Would that be the right size? All we've ever caught on this type of fishing are pretty small fish - nothing that would seem to straighten an Owner Mosquito hook though I've never used that for salt water. For freshwater trout, I find that Owner Mosquito has been the best for me. Any reason I should not try to use that for rockfish in size 1?

Thanks!

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Originally Posted by Ultralight

Greetings Everyone,

Taking my wife and two boys out on 3/4 day on Monday. I think we'll be jigging from the bottom for rockfish. In previous trip, I see people using size 1 hooks. Would that be the right size? All we've ever caught on this type of fishing are pretty small fish - nothing that would seem to straighten an Owner Mosquito hook though I've never used that for salt water. For freshwater trout, I find that Owner Mosquito has been the best for me. Any reason I should not try to use that for rockfish in size 1?

Thanks!

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that hook will work for sure

but if you happen to hook into a big one

something other than "rocks"

you wouldn't want to come up with only this

Attachment 50104


or these...

Attachment 50105


i almost always gear up for the bigger end of what i could catch

not that i will, but i am always hopeful

and then if the larger/heavier stuff isn't working

and everyone is generally catching the same type and size fish

or better than me with lighter

i'll go with lighter

when it's ultimately proven

i made the wrong choice


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Originally Posted by Ultralight

Greetings Everyone,

Taking my wife and two boys out on 3/4 day on Monday. I think we'll be jigging from the bottom for rockfish. In previous trip, I see people using size 1 hooks. Would that be the right size? All we've ever caught on this type of fishing are pretty small fish - nothing that would seem to straighten an Owner Mosquito hook though I've never used that for salt water. For freshwater trout, I find that Owner Mosquito has been the best for me. Any reason I should not try to use that for rockfish in size 1?

Thanks!

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It kinda depends on where you go??? If you go to Marina Del Rey or father North it's strictly rockfish and a Shrimp/Fly ganion is the rig of choice. If you go on a San Pedro or Long Beach 3/4 boat it's going to be a combo trip of both surface and bottom fishing and your hooks should be fine.

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Originally Posted by etucker1959

It kinda depends on where you go??? If you go to Marina Del Rey or father North it's strictly rockfish and a Shrimp/Fly ganion is the rig of choice. If you go on a San Pedro or Long Beach 3/4 boat it's going to be a combo trip of both surface and bottom fishing and your hooks should be fine.

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Yes, there is a border just north of M. Del Rey... fish used to be able to cross anytime they felt like it, didnt matter if you were trophy size or just peons. Since trump took office everything changed... there is now a wall... only extremely vetted fish are allowed to pass through and he's working on kicking the trophy fish out, especially if they bend mosquito fish hooks. Of course trump hasn't gotten all the fish in their respective areas yet, there are still some that don't belong where they now live...

are you just never lucky? Never feel lucky or hopeful? Never feel like your maximized productivity level is just a cast away?

Those hooks will be fine...

Thanks everyone for replying. Helpful.

hookdfisherman, thanks for taking time to post pics. Very informative. It's a hard call - at this point, we just want to maximize the number landed and the Ownder did do better than other hooks. But you have a point in that if one were to hook up with the 'once in a twenty trip' type fish, we would be very dissapointed. Tough call. The owner did better for flylining as they are so light.

So if we were to do fly lining with anchovies - do you still use a heavy 2X or 3X hook - and if so, doesn't it just kill the anchovy faster and also make it less natural? We hooked up on a lot of calico bass while flylining with the owner.

There's also owner SSW which is supposedly the same as mosquito but slightly thicker gauge wire. Cost a lot more though.

Thanks again.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Ultralight

Thanks everyone for replying. Helpful.

hookdfisherman, thanks for taking time to post pics. Very informative. It's a hard call - at this point, we just want to maximize the number landed and the Ownder did do better than other hooks. But you have a point in that if one were to hook up with the 'once in a twenty trip' type fish, we would be very dissapointed. Tough call. The owner did better for flylining as they are so light.

So if we were to do fly lining with anchovies - do you still use a heavy 2X or 3X hook - and if so, doesn't it just kill the anchovy faster and also make it less natural? We hooked up on a lot of calico bass while flylining with the owner.

There's also owner SSW which is supposedly the same as mosquito but slightly thicker gauge wire. Cost a lot more though.

Thanks again.

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yes, no matter what, you have to match the hook to the bait, a natural swimming bait will get the hook up. if you can't even get the hook up due to an unnatural drift in the current/a un-lively or dead bait, the 1:20 possibility won't even come into play...

it's really a judgement call, but when and if i can, i try to fish for that 1:20, even the 1:10 ratio first and foremost. then i adjust...

great hooks are great, good hooks are expensive, i once caught a 400 lb fish on a cheap mustad 2/0 flylined squid.

cost about 11 cents a hook. i have never bent or broken a mustad. i do make sure they are sharp though, if they are/get dull, i change it.

i'd get the SSWs, take em, try em. if they kill all the anchovies go with your original choice.

hopefully you get sardines or even the rare squid to fish with... gl..

The Owner Gorilla Light is my favorite lately. It is thinner than most but can still handle a 30lb Yellowtail.
Good for live bait. DR

also what i would do is check the site of the boat you are taking out usually they have the best recommendations. they do the trip a lot. and i would listen to their advice over others. since they know more or less what they have been pulling up. if you pay to go on a boat there is no reason you should skimp out on the hooks for being a little more expensive then normal the good capts will put you on the bigger fish that you are renting those boats for. and the gear can vary per trip depending on depth targeted ect. you also dont want to lose the fish that will win you the pool or the big fish on the trip ect. since those can be your free trip fish.

I'm with hookdfisherman, plan on serious fish BUT as I think was also pointed out, listen to the crew on the boat. They WANT you to catch fish, you just need to have the arsenal to do it (and usually they have the gear available as well for a price). Bait is going to be a big one: Live sardines demand a different hook VS live anchovies. And as my Dad always taught me "You can catch a big fish on a small hook, but can't always get a fish to bite on a big hook" - Brewcrafter

Try Owner Flyliners, ringed ones if using live bait. Or Mustad Lazer Sharps, as strong but less expensive.