help please i am confused?? hooklengths?

[Ally1984]

Hi reading a fishing magazine it states for example my line on my rod should be able to take about double it's breaking strain,but hooklengths (to nylon) will take around there stated bs. So what hooklength breaking strain should i use below my main line bs or can i go above?.

[mrwell]

Hi Ally,well hook lengths are there for one reason really and that is for fish safety.
Hook lengths will break at a lower breaking strain than your mainline so that if you get snagged up the fish can break away from your line and only have a small amount of hook length in it where as if you had the same or higher BS than your main line then the fish would carry a lot of line around with it and it would almost certainly die as a result because it would become tangled up or tethered in the line.
In a nutshell Ally you should always use lower breaking strain line for hook lengths than your main line for the reasons stated,lets say 6lb main to 4lb hook length that kind of thing but i would never go above the main line BS for hook lengths,it would be to dangerous for the fish and there welfare comes first,use around 2lb less on the hook lengths than your main line i would say but remember not ALL main lines are what they state some DO break under the stated strength,don't double the strength of your main line go with what is stated on the pack of line if it says 6lb then that is it even though it should hold much more than that.
Your main line is the business end of your kit your hook length is the safety end of it for the fish,there are exceptions to this rule but in the main that is how it works,hope it helps you out Ally,tight lines.

[sammy-boy]

yeah id stick to just using a lower bs hooklink for now. until you get into big carp and saftey rigs / flourocarbon / braid hooklinks ect. also incase your mainline breaks never put a line stop or shot above your weight / feeder. always use running rigs they are much safer than "tether" rigs. if your not sure what i mean i'll send u a diagram of a running rig

[madcaravanner]

Originally Posted by sammy-boy

yeah id stick to just using a lower bs hooklink for now. until you get into big carp and saftey rigs / flourocarbon / braid hooklinks ect. also incase your mainline breaks never put a line stop or shot above your weight / feeder. always use running rigs they are much safer than "tether" rigs. if your not sure what i mean i'll send u a diagram of a running rig

We already have pictures here tackle pictures by Madcaravanner - Photobucket

the first image is a running rig and the last a fixed or bolt rig

[Ally1984]

Cheers for the advice!!

[sammy-boy]

don't use a bolt rig though unless your filling to fork out for saftey clips ect and know how to set them up

[jamesmead10]

besides the safety of the fish it also ensures you don't lose your full rig should you break off on a fish or in a snag