[TheAngler]

I have been trying the Owner's Mosquito Hooks for the past couple of weeks on a flat wing pattern (3-4 inches, similar to http://www.washingtonflyfishing.com/forum/threads/flatwing-herring.129502/) with a stinger hook (size 1). I wanted to give the hooks a try because I am trying to lighten up the fly to give a more sporadic motion during retrieve and transfer more of the depth control to the line.

My hookup rate has been about the same but I am losing at least 80% of the fish in the past couple of weeks. Note this is after I have had them pinned for a least 20 - 30 seconds. The hook is a bit thinner and the eye bend is slightly straighter, but I don't believe it matters. Of the fish I have landed, the majority have been on the outside of the mouth, so it could be going after the head. Has anybody had experience with this hook? I am trying to figure out if its the hook, random chance, or me.

Any comments/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Benjamin

 

[Graham McFadyen Hill]

I tried the Owner Mosquito hooks several years ago...went back to barbless Mustads. I fish for river-run salmon here on Vancouver Island, and the fish can go into the middle thirties...the Mosquitos do not have the wire strength to handle these fish. My opinion.

 

[Stonefish]

Never tried them but have head good things about them.
Sounds like you may be missing some head shots and connecting with the stinger.

I assume you are cutting the front hook off.
Have you tried fishing just a standard flatwing with just a front hook?
It seems those types of ties are the most successful when it comes to flatwings, though I'm far from an expert on them.
Perhaps Stuart or others that fish flatwings a lot will chime in for you on this.

As far as stinger hooks, my favorite are Gamakatsu Barbless Octopus. They have a totally different shape then their standard octopus hooks, tending more towards the shape of a circle hook.

We are coming up soon when the stinger patterns will really shine. Until I start getting a bunch of plucky bites, I'll keep fish non stinger patterns.
SF

 

[tkww]

I used Owners for years, and then right after having a discussion on here about them (with another poster swearing they weren't strong enough), I managed to bend one. I went back to Gamakatsu after that. That aside, I would take stonefish's advice and try a hook up front. Hooking on the outside sounds to me like the hook is in the wrong place.

 

[Graham McFadyen Hill]

It depends on the style of Owner hook...it would take a forge and blacksmith's hammer to bend an Owner Gorilla hook. And hooking on the outside, on the fish's face...I see a lot of this from anglers fishing for salmon in dead or nearly dead water...from accidently "flossing" the fish through their open jaws.

 

[Scudley Do Right]

.

 

[nailbender]

I personly don't care for them, but my kid likes them . I think they are plenty strong enough for puget sound salmon. I just think they hang funny becsuse the eye isn't turned up enough. Gami , mustad, and owner make fine wire hooks in regular octopus style I would take any one of those over the mosquito.



Pretty sure SF nailed the problem, Are salmon certainly haven't been thick enough that flossing should be a concern at all on open beaches, if ever.

 

[nailbender]

I use mosquito and Mustad 92604's for mooching. I have had some of the Mustads start to open up but never lost a fish because of it. My dad didn't like the mosquito because the point is more curved and the eye is not as straight. The barbless Gami and mosquito are more curved as Stonefish described. If you feel like that cost you fish try the light wire Gami octopus or 92604.
Gami light wire 1, Gami barbless 1/0, 92604 2/0, mosquito 2/0 View attachment 149024

HaHa, what he said.

 

[kamishak steve]

I love the mosquito hooks. I like the thinner wire, I get better penetration with them, and less damage to the fish. I don't typically use them for fishing as trailers for streamers, typically I use them when bead fishing (it happens). I have yet to find a better trailer hook for streamers than the Gamakatsue drop shot worm hook, or the classic octopus.

 

[tackleman]

Just a comment.
I don't think a barbless 'kirbed' hook is a good idea. Leverage on the hook point will open a larger entry wound making it easier for the hook to come out.

 

[SeattleFarq]

I love the mosquito hooks. I like the thinner wire, I get better penetration with them, and less damage to the fish.

I use the mosquitoes for trailing hooks for the same reason. I used to be skeptical of thin hooks (like the Gamakatsu SC15) because I didn't think they'd be strong enough. I've found that whatever you might lose in strength is made up for in increased strike-to-hookup ratio, which I attribute to the thin wire. I landed a 30-ish inch bull trout on a #6 SC15. The hook straightened just a tad, but not enough to lose the fish. If it can handle that, it will handle 99% of the fish you'd encounter on an average day on the Sound.

My guess is that your hookup problems arent related to the hook. Coincidentally, I was out with two other forum members on Sunday and we all had issues getting fish to hand. Between the three of us, we hooked into at least a dozen fish and only landed two.

 

[mbowers]

The eye is not right for a stinger hook. You need the 45 degree up eye of an octopus hook to get the hook point lined up properly on a loop. Maybe 30 degree is enough but it needs to be significantly up eye.

Secondly the kirb / offset makes the hook quick to grab the nearest piece of skin but often not much skin so it easily rips out if hook is outside the mouth. Billfish tournaments wouldn't ban offset hooks if they didn't do more damage to fish.

An offset hook is already bent and will open up with less force than a straight hook. Interestingly the Mosquito Light which is even lighter wire goes to a straight point.. Hmm wonder why they did that?

So for all those reasons IMHO you need a straight point, up eye hook for a stinger. Either take pliers to what you have or find another hook that's closer to those criteria and use pliers on it if necessary.



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