Minnow Rigging

[Laroo]

Ok all you minnow guys, what is your favorite method for rigging your minnows. Don't care if its for ice fishing or open water, cast and retrieve or under a tip-up, on a jig or let it soak. I've got my ways but I know that there are more than one way to skin a cat. Not talking live minnows or plastics.
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[LOAH]

I like minnows. Haven't used them as much in the past year or so, but I still like them.

For me, a size 16 treble hook is perfect, maybe 14.

No weight, just each barb anchored behind the lips or through the eyes, from the inside of the mouth.

It's not good for long distance casting, but it's very effective within 20-30 feet of shore.

For ice, I'll just run the hooke through both eyes of the minnow, usually with a Cut'r'bug or a tube jig.
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[oldfishfart]

Big Octopus Yamaguchi j hook half hitch on the head, knocks them dead at Strawberry. Last Friday I got a 4 and 5 pound cut throat in about 2 hours just kicking on the waves and since fishermen lie when their lips are moving, you should have seen the ones that got away. Ha Ha Ha[fishon]
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[Laroo]

Have any of you tried these?
http://www.sportsmanswarehouse.com/sport.../cat101135
I use them at times in the right circumstances and have had good luck provided I have the right minnow. When I'm just letting them soak I will thread a line through the vent and out the mouth with a treble hook over the nose. For ice fishing or under a slip float I will use a jig through the mouth, out a gill and then up through the belly and out the back. I'm gonna experiment with some other methods though. Thanks for the replies.
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[LOAH]

I've used them, but never had much luck with them. They're so heavy that they sink quickly, killing the presentation I'm looking for.

I hear they're great for trolling though.
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[TubeDude]

[#0000ff]I use 3 kinds of "minnows"...chubs, carp and baby white bass. I use mostly Eagle Claw ring eye hooks...#84 bronze or the nickle or red versions. I use mainly size 4 through about size 1 but may go larger for fishing large chubs or white bass. And I also may go to a double hook rig on larger baits.

Depending on the presentation I want to make...usually while dragging minnows behind my tube...weightless...I have several different ways of hooking the minnows. One is through the nose. Another is through the tough "collar" behind the gills. A third is through the back...especially if I am fishing it below a bobber...with a weighted "bobber head" jig. (see pic) If the minnows are soft or the fish are ripping the bait off a collar-hooked minnow, I will hook it toward the tail...sometimes with the hook wrapped around the spine for added strength.

The way I fish (dragging from a tube) I find that large hooks get snagged more often and do not result in any higher percentage of hookups. And I never use trebles.

In the final analysis, you are trying to achieve a balance between "natural" presentation, hooking ability and snag resistance. I always leave the hooks exposed on my hooks to help get a better hookset. And I try to rig the minnow so that it does not ball up and cover the hook point when the fish takes it.

By using the hooks I do and the method of setting the hooks I use I hook most minnow munchers in the corner of the mouth...even without a circle hook.
[/#0000ff]
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[Kent]

[quote Laroo]

Have any of you tried these?
[url "http://www.sportsmanswarehouse.com/sportsmans/Mustad-Minnow-Hook/productDetail/Hooks/prod9999007167/cat101135"]http://www.sportsmanswarehouse.com/...9999007167/cat101135[/url]

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I used them many years ago. They are definitely not made for catch and release fishing. I also had several fish hit the minnow hard from behind and in the process remove the hook from the snap and in the process lose the fish with the hook in the fish's month.
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[Wells]

I have always wanted to get into minnow fishing but don't know where to get them. Any suggestions?
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[Laroo]

I trap my own, but you can buy them frozen at Sportsmans and a number of other places.
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[Kent]

I trap my own, but as mentioned, they are available for purchase and unless fished whole, less expensive than night crawlers to use as bait.
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[WaveWolf]

[#502800]Yes, they work well for Striped Bass on Powell, but then again, I think a bare hook that smells of Anchovie would catch a Striper.[/#502800]
[#502800]The little keeper is ideal for hooking up to crankbaits.[/#502800]
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[SkunkedAgain]

I do the same as TD with either a collar hook or through the back with the hook exiting the back at about the back of the dorsal fin. I trail it on a slow troll and the cats love it. I use carp or fathead minnows and have only had one time when the cats didn't take the whole minnow so a gill plate hook didn't work. It cut the minnow in half right behind the hook. I use size 1 or larger octopus or circle hooks or I had a 2/0 bait hook that also worked well until it broke in half. I have yet to hook other than lip or hook ups so it works pretty well for catch and release. But that is probably because I'm trolling and I feel a hit before it can swallow the minnow. Fun stuff, I need to try them on trout sometime. Later J
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