Why are shrimp flies for rock cod like they are?

y'all missing out on garlic scented powerbait

y'all missing out on garlic scented powerbait

What ever happens to the good old days? Drop a stick of dynamite and net your catch! 

I stopped using shrimp flies for the most part. Squid on a bare hook is just as productive.

Yep, agree!

Lol- well thank you all for interesting and informative information... pretty much none of which answered the question I meant to ask.  I appreciate all the advice on how to catch fish (I didn't ask that), and how to drink (always helpful), and what things cost... What I didn't make clear was that i wanted to know why the straight-long shank seems to be a West Coast thing.. and the short shank, circle or octobpus hook is an east coast thing.  I was thinking the shorter shank hooks would pick up more "smalls" maybe, or attract different species.. but I didn't learn that..... but thanks for all the randomw informaiton!

Lol- well thank you all for interesting and informative information... pretty much none of which answered the question I meant to ask.  I appreciate all the advice on how to catch fish (I didn't ask that), and how to drink (always helpful), and what things cost... What I didn't make clear was that i wanted to know why the straight-long shank seems to be a West Coast thing.. and the short shank, circle or octobpus hook is an east coast thing.  I was thinking the shorter shank hooks would pick up more "smalls" maybe, or attract different species.. but I didn't learn that..... but thanks for all the randomw informaiton!

After this statement I had to google it . I did not find much .

It seems and I may have read what I found wrong , but it seems it had or has to do with conservation ,species and fish size, feeding bites versus reaction bites ,i.e. territorial .

Here`s what I learned  a while back ..circle hooks are designed so you do not have to "set" the hook ,letting the fish set it for you and less gut hooking and easier release . But you knew/know that. 

Its one of the reasons some commercial boats switched to circles .  The straight shank strictly old school jigging  hook. More gut hook ups, tougher release of non desirable species .

As to the East-West coast thing maybe they`re more conservation minded .

Hope this wasn`t too much more  superfluous hyperbole .

Side note ; I use circle hooks when I tie my own rigs but will use straight J hooks too. I try and use anything just laying around. I have some rigs with both.

Thanks Spiffy- I haven't gut hooked a rockfish or ling yet... so still not clear on differences in actual catch...Clearly more experiemntation is needed...

Lol- well thank you all for interesting and informative information... pretty much none of which answered the question I meant to ask.  I appreciate all the advice on how to catch fish (I didn't ask that), and how to drink (always helpful), and what things cost... What I didn't make clear was that i wanted to know why the straight-long shank seems to be a West Coast thing.. and the short shank, circle or octobpus hook is an east coast thing.  I was thinking the shorter shank hooks would pick up more "smalls" maybe, or attract different species.. but I didn't learn that..... but thanks for all the randomw informaiton!

Circle hook will work just fine, IMO

Thanks Spiffy- I haven't gut hooked a rockfish or ling yet... so still not clear on differences in actual catch...Clearly more experiemntation is needed...

kinda tough to gut hook a rockfish when your hook is moving up and down with the swell. I think they're the way they are because they're cheaply made in some factory in china (or hayward) and they work just fine so no one ever bothered to change them. 

I use white/blue shimpfly rigs store-bought with the bigger, west-coast hooks and so does my fishing buddy.  He and I both catch 'em anywhere from 4 inches long to over a foot long blacks, so the hook size doesn't seem to weed out the smalls.  I also never have to try to set a hook on 'em either; just send it down to the bottom, crank 3 cranks, wait, 3 cranks, wait, repeat until it comes to the surface.  Somewhere in between I get one or two on.  If I can feel it's small, I'll send it back down for hopefully a large ling. 
Keep in mind, the rigs come with 3 hooks.  I take the bottom one off and attach a weight as more than 2 hooks is not legal.