Sabiki Hook Size ?

Fish Tomales a few times every summer , usually with frozen anchovies with good success . I've tried sabikis for live bait with little success , thinking the hooks are too small - size 12 I think . What size might work better without being too big ? And better to fish with a bit of bait or plain ?

Thanks , Dan

I use Sabiki size 10 and don't tip the hooks but tipping the hooks with baits won't hurt    Try mooching (move rod up & down) instead of trolling when you see bait fish on the FF.  Bait fish between 6 - 10 inches work best but caught fish with 12" Smelt before (I believe in Big Bait = Big Fish  ).

Get the biggest ones you can find! size 6?

i use mostly size 12 and size 14 because i feel its easier to get the smaller smelt that way.  you could go all the way up to size 8 on bigger sardines.  i dont think it is necessarily the size of your sabiki that is preventing hits, maybe its the type of sabiki?

i usually tip with a bit of squid/shrimp/pileworm for smelt, but its not necessary. sardines and chovies will hit it plain no problem.  you want to be jigging it so it flashes and sometimes it will snag them too.  they get too close out of curiosity and bam - sticky sharp hooks will nail em in their gills, sides, wherever.

i always use the smallest rig, smelt have a fairly small mouth. Even with the small rig they seem to always have the hook just in the front of the lip. I have outfished people who were using larger rigs standing next to me, while i'm hauling them in.

#10or12.

# 12 without the "tail tuft" (fish skin w/o tails) so the smelties can get their mouths over the hook.............

Thanks for the replies , guess the size does not matter that much . The ones I'm using have a plastic wing that I will pull off and just fish the body / gold hook and see if there are any improvements in hook-ups . I usually jig them , never really thought about trolling the sabiki while on the drift , I'll give that a try !

The few times I've done this I've used a medium bass rod and 1-2oz weight. Cast, wait a few secs, and "jig"/reel back -- unless they happen to be right under you <g>. I did this just outside the mouth of the SC harbor and loaded up on bait fast, but didn't see anything happening on the PBs that were jigging not far from me.

fwiw,

Ben

I agree 10 or 12. Smaller is better. Unless you ONLY want larger baits. But these sizes seem to catch small and large.

Smallest you can get, or second smallest.  I don't think you can go too small.  I prefer the fishskins with the glow bead.



When you all are talking sizes, are you talking Japanese hook size or American hook size.

Japasese #4 is US #12
Japanese #6 is US #10

These are the sizes I use.

-Allen