Paying Attention To details.

Hey guys…I was just looking to get some insight from the bass “pros” on here…I know that the guys on ESPN are always stressing the fact that you have to retie your line ALL THE TIME…I was just curious how often you guys retie and when you feel you need to…I am looking to start getting into a habit of doing this MORE often because i do believe that it is a necessity. It just gets really annoying on the water when you are catching fish. I suppose when its a lucky craft and a tournament finish on the line, its more of an issue.
Thanks,
Cade

Oh and another one…How about sharpening hooks/changing them when on the water? this one i find just a bit rediculous almost. If i can prick my finger with a hook after a few fish and still get blood, Im not going to sharpen them In fact, i have never sharpened a hook before

I don’t retie very often because I use spider wire and power pro lines. They don’t seem to break even when they get frizzy. But I sharpen my hooks regularly during the day. My hook hone is attached to my seat within easy reach. If you don’t sharpen your hooks so they stick in your finger nail without much pressure, they are not sharp enough and you will miss and probably have missed strikes that you should have caught.

When fishing Walleye or Bass on plastics the first few inches of line gets roughed up pretty quick. I use 6 or 8# test mono for both purposes and trim/retie a lot.

If you cant touch your finger to your jig box and come out with a bunch of them stuck to your finger…they ain’t sharp! I have a small diamond hook hone hanging from my bibs and use it constantly too.

I think a lot of guys fish bass with heavy Superbraid lines and (of course) you wouldn’t neccesarily need to retie.

During a tournament i will retie every couple fish if its a good fish then i will retie after i swing it in the boat– loosing a fish cause i did not retie would be heart breaking especially with money on the line.

I would say inspecting it would be the big thing! there is no reason to retie unless the line is all frayed out or beat up! if the line looks alright then forget it and make another cast!

What’s the best hook sharpener on the market and where can it be found?

Thanks

i might pick up a rapala clipper combo. for like 8.00 that comes with a jig eye buster, line pick, Line clipper, and a hook sharpener. Anyone have that? and what do you think of it?

I retie but after i see an abrasion on my line or just a couple of times in a full days fishing, i keep an open eye for that. The rule for me to check for the hooks sharpness is if i can run the point over my fingernail and it digs in a little then its sharp enough, if not it time to hone it with a fine grit stone that you can get at most tackle shops. A few pushes in the v of the stone and its sharp again and it only takes about 30 seconds and that makes easy and quick hookups.

I try to retie every fish when using mono, fluro or copolymer, I have broke off too many fish to risk it. If you are fishing around rocks or stumps that might fray the line every 30 min or so. It only takes 10-15 seconds to retie a palomar knot so it is worth it. I will admit when fun or prefishing I rarely do it, but im amazed at the diffence in broken knots and line strength on fish (and snags) when you retie. I retie braid less often, but still do it, ive seen 20-50 lb powerpro break on minimal pressure after wear and tear especially on rocks.

I would retie after EVERY northern you catch.

Last year in Wabasha I caught a Northern in the side of the mouth….I thought b/c he didn’t inhale the jig that the line was still good. I looked it over and it “seemed” ok I thought. Next hookset and was a snap of the line. Could’ve been another Northern, but had I retied to begin with, my % would have been higher that I could’ve landed what could’ve been a keeper bass.

Of course if your really committed (or maybe should be commited..like me)…. You could practice tying knots in front of your fan in the off season.

Cade
I run my fingers down the line. It usually depends on the area i’m fishing. I have a smallie spot that i have to retie about every fish,then other area’s i can go all day.
I dont sharpen hooks at all. They usually bend or open up alittle and i chunk em. Hooks are cheap and if they need to be sharpened before you use them they wont be found in my boat.I use a thin wire hook that penetrates easy but like i said they usually open up alittle and once they do that they open on every fish. So i just cut the line.

Don’t qualify in the “pro” part of your request but just fish a lot. Like was just mentioned lightly running my finger down the line usually tells me a lot. Also the minute you see kink twisting it is time to re line not retie. Also I might be wrong but when superline frays its time for me to retie… get a musky or trophy northern with a leader and the line above the leader frays a little.. 60lb breaks like 10. I have to agree though in smaller fish and in fun fishing a frayed line seems to keep catching. I rarely if ever now use superline except for tieing crawler harnesses, and as a leader on leadcore. Crawler harness is tied to mono so I have the give I need. Ofcourse the age of the line is important too.

Two sneaky wear problems that I really watch myself is the slip sinker where,( I use 6lb test for most worms), the top or mouth of the bullet rests. Everyone watches the knot end but when I stopped watching the other end I had razor sharp break offs. Looking closely at the sinker doesn’t show roughness or sharpness inside .. so it must just be rubbing wear. The worst part is it doesn’t show roughness when you run your finger on the line. You can see it though if you hold it in the sun. The second is with powder coated and also teflon coated hooks.. I’ve tried many different brands and all seem to cause serious line wear and line breakage,(again I use 6# mono a lot). The powder coat seems to be abrasive and the teflon seems to let the line slip too easily and the constant friction breaks line on the middle of the knot loop on 3# and bigger fish. I fish whenever I can with hooks that don’t have either coating ..but when I have no choice I watch it very closely.

So anything looks or feels different retie.

Regarding hook sharpening… I guess I have maybe sharpend 5 in 35 years. Usually lose them or bend then before I have to worry about the point. If a crankbait treble or single garbs rocks or snags so that now it is damaged or dull .. I just put it in the splash well,and about 4 times a year I go through and toss the ones that are bad or change the trebles if they need it. I really don’t have a hook or crankbait very long .. I lose a ton .

When I’m out for fun and not guiding or tournament fishing I do get laid back about everything above.. but I still watch .. because if you don’t some day when it matters you will get out of the habit and forget to check.

with braids, i only retie once or twice a day, maybe when it starts fraying a little bittle. Mono’s, flouro’s and copolymer’s are another story. if there is one bit of abrasion in the first 5 or 6 feet, it gets taken out and retied. if i dont have abrasion, i retie anyway every 45 minutes or so to make sure the knot is fresh. When i do retie, i strip out 6 feet of line, because that’s the part of the line thats taking the biggest pounding making it the weakest. just making sure i have fresh line close to my knot. that’s a habit i picked up right away in my angling adventures, maybe when i was 6 or 7 fishing muskies. my dad always stressed stripping out that 5 or 6 feet before retying. i havent lost a fish due to break off in a tournament situation yet.

Wow, no wonder the line companies make a lot of money. I frequently check my mono lines and usually end up retying every 45 minutes to an hour when the line that bumps into cover doesn’t look new. Braid…only when it starts fraying or looks bad.

Retying is very important with the mono. I rarely break a line, but those fishing with me think I’m nuts retying the little I do until their line breaks a few times. 15 seconds is all it takes.