Barbs

[duckydoty]

I have found that barbed hooks really let you know your alive when you sink them deep in your skin. They are good for getting rid of head aches too. Every time I've had a head ache and got a barbed hook stuck deep in a body part, I have found the head ache instantly goes away. Those wriggling tendons and pieces of flesh left on the barb after removal from hands always has been a good fish attractant too.

[Greasy B]

I'm not afraid of barbless hooks, but all my flies have barbs. I prefer smaller barbs like TMC's have vs. the outrageous ones on most Mustad fly hooks..... but Mustads are a bargain, so I deal with it and haven't suffered noticeably.

Yea I do the same. I do have a big issue with the barbless enough inforcement on white river after a friend received a very expensive ticket when his fly did not pass the cotton cloth test at rim shoals. After this experience he has never been back to Arkansas and Rim Shoals Resort lost a bunch of good customers.

[Flysmallie]

Almost hate to burn bread on myself by saying this but; I'm pretty good (or lucky) about keeping hooks out of my own body.

You wants me to come stand next to you with my 8wt soon???

[Jason R.]

I always pinch barbs- its just easier. I actually stuck one in my finger this very afternoon- luckily the barb was pinched and it slid right back out the way it went in. I have done the whole push the hook through and cut it off thing- not fun- it was my dropper on a hopper dropper rig and I was floating through a really good run so I nipped it off (and left it in my leg) and proceeded to land a good brown with the hopper on the Gunnison- good times. The next boat that came through got to see me whining like a girl while I messed with that stupid hook and my buddy laughing at me like it was the funniest thing he ever saw... that was a good brown though.

[eric1978]

You wants me to come stand next to you with my 8wt soon???

I forfeit the front seat next time so you can show the Philanderer what it's like.

And I use barbs. Cuz I'm a honey badger.

[Feathers and Fins]

Trout and Tarpon Barbless , I found a good hook set and tension lands them... Bonefish, Permit, and Carp I kept the barbed hooks as they tend to try and rub in sand or rocks to dislodge it. Stripers and Snook always a barb dang things know how to extract a barbless hook. So i guess my answer is: it depends more on species and conditions.

I should note for flyfishing for human i preffer barbless

[fishinwrench]

I ain't scared of that 8wt. and your B10S's, bring it on, Slugger!

[esox niger]

I've heard the argument that barbed hooks do less damage because they are more likely to stay in place, vs slip around and cut the fish up. Personaly, I can't fish barbed because of bad experiences tearing fishes faces apart ....barbless never loses fish for me, I can barely remember the last time i lost a fish mid fight. its so darn nice to just slip that hook out and releases!!! particularly when the fish is 3 ft long and threatening to break my rod while landing im in my yak. Or a wild trout, or a bluegill....I smash barbs in my vise...old thompson..usually just enough of a bump left to hold pretty well anyway.

[Addicted to Creeks]

i smash em down before i tie or before they go into my box, when i fish anything with a treble hook like a crankbait or such i always smash down because i HATE taking trebles out, i cant seem to do it without sticking one of the other hooks in another part of the or my hand, i may have started fly fishing because of my irrational hatred of treble hooks now that i think about it

[Justin Spencer]

Most of my ties are on big hooks that usually don't come barbless, or are real expensive if they do. Normally I am too lazy to pinch the barbs because I lose tons of flies I am in a hurry to get it back in the water. Eggs I will often pinch if the fish are biting like crazy and I have one that reminds me how hard it can be to unhook, otherwise I use hemos and while it is no doubt easier to get out barbless, most of the time barbs don't cause me (or the fish) too much problem. I lose plenty of fish barbless or not!