banjoman Posted September 29, 2004 Report Share Posted September 29, 2004 Hi I was trying to find some saltwater eagle claw 570s or 575s and discovered another nickel plated hook that is apparently OK for saltwater. I'm just checking to see if I have this right: Tinned seaguard, nickel and stainless steel are OK for saltwater. Bronze is NOT OK for saltwater. I'm wondering if I can use a casting jig with a bronze hook for 1-3 weeks of saltwater fishing (rinsing it every day with fresh water) and then write it off? That way, if a fish gets hooked and breaks away, the hook will quickly rust out of it and I won't have to worry about finding saltwater hooks for my jig mold. Thanks for your consideration. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LedHed Posted September 29, 2004 Report Share Posted September 29, 2004 Have you looked into the Mustad BLNs, gamkatsu 604s, and Owner saltwater. Also VMC has PS (perma steel). The bronze does rust and quick... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
banjoman Posted September 30, 2004 Author Report Share Posted September 30, 2004 Thanks LedHed. My problem with most of the saltwater hooks is that they are too large. Last year, after surf fishing in Mexico for a few days and catching nothing, I went to 3 local fish markets to see what the gillnetters were bringing in...all small (12-14") fish of about 8 species. My hooks were all too big. I'm going to try making some banana jigs with my Lil Mac molds (hooks 1/0,2/0,3/0). I can get tinned seaguard hooks for these but I will have to add extra weight for casting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LedHed Posted September 30, 2004 Report Share Posted September 30, 2004 banjoman Where at in Mexico you fishing? I fish up and down Baja ? will be at Mag Bay for a week in November. Don't like mainland too much. Lot of guys out here use bronze live bait hooks for the reason you previously mentioned. I think for the money you can't go wrong with the Mustad 32746 or the 32786 BLN jig hook. A smaller gap hook would be the VMC (another great hook) in the O'Shaughnessy style. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JIGMAKER Posted September 30, 2004 Report Share Posted September 30, 2004 banjoman, If you were thinking about extra weight for casting, we use inline sinkers. Then you can use the small jigs and put how ever much weight you like for casting and current conditions. My $0.02 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
banjoman Posted September 30, 2004 Author Report Share Posted September 30, 2004 I'll be on Banderas Bay (by Puerto Vallarta), Punta de Mita and up the coast to Rincon de Guayabitos in February. I'm already practising casts with my surf rod in Winnipeg but I get a lot of very peculiar looks from the passers-by. I fished 17 out of 21 days there last year. I caught some small sierra, a flounder, puffers and a needlefish of all things! I fished at night a few times. At least I know how to get to the good spots this year. I use the highway bus for all my daily fishing excursions down there. Too bad we couldn't get together - I'm sure I would learn a lot about surf fishing from you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
banjoman Posted September 30, 2004 Author Report Share Posted September 30, 2004 Thanks Jigmaker. Is the following O.K.? I slide an egg sinker on the shock leader, then tie on a swivel, then a 18-24" leader and then attach the banana jig. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JIGMAKER Posted September 30, 2004 Report Share Posted September 30, 2004 That would work fine. Here is a picture of the inline sinkers that I use. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
banjoman Posted September 30, 2004 Author Report Share Posted September 30, 2004 Many thanks Jigmaker. I'll get a bunch of those this fall and try them out in Feb. Looks like they would work better (and easier) than egg sinkers. I really appreciate the good help I get on this board. Thanks to everyone! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
