BY MIKE STEVENS
WON Staff Writer
POINT LOMA — While conducting official Western Outdoor News business in San Diego, WON Sales Rep and Charter Coordinator, Landon Thomas, stopped by the tackle shop at H&M Landing to talk hooks, specifically, Gamakatsu saltwater hooks with the H&M’s Tackle Manager, Nate Patolai.
“One thing we are liking the most about the Gamakatsus is the size,” said Patolai. “Gamakatsu’s tend to run small, and the #2 and #4 are hooks we’ve been using the last few seasons consistently for fly-line tuna fishing, fly-line yellowtail in the help and that kind of thing. It’s your go-to hook, especially when bait is small or the bite is tough and you have to step down in size. That can make a big difference.”
Patolai went on to tell WON despite the small size, an angler can pull as hard as they went on 30, 40 and even 50-pound line. When it comes to offshore fishing, he recommends reaching for 3/0 and 4/0 Gamakatsu hooks to cover most bases out there. When it comes to some of the specific, he thinks it comes down to angler preference at that point.
“I like the ringed ones,” said Patolai. “Some guys are ring guys, some guys are non-ring guys, I don’t think it really matters at the end of the day. We’ve also been big fans of J hooks and circle hooks over the last few years, and they work really well.”
Obviously, this is just touching on the thought process that goes into selecting hooks for West Coast fishing, be it inshore or offshore. A quick trip to Gamakatsu.com will turn up 24 different saltwater hooks, and that’s not counting leadheads, assist hooks, pre-rigged stuff and so on. Some of the more popular Gamakatsu hooks for West Coast fishing (along with standard live bait hooks) include the Nautilus Circle Hooks (standard and light, with and without rings), light wire live bait and heavy duty live bait hooks before getting into more specialized stuff like the Kraken Outbarb Circle hooks and much more.
Personally, I like the sharp hook/light wire combo when it comes to fishing smaller anchovies because that surgical point and thin-gauge wire (and to some degree, the slick finish) does minimal damage to the baitfish while performing flawlessly on hooksets and maintaining strength when it’s time to pull.
For more info on all Gamakatsu’s hooks and other products, visit Gamakastu.com and see how “Gama” can handle all your specific hook needs.
