king rig opinions

[cobiacatcher82]

hey everyone... over the years when ive been setting up my king rigs ive seen about 10 different combinations for setting up the hooks on the end some like only trebs maybe 2 trebs and a 6/0 or two 2/0 and a treb you get the point but i was just wondering whats everyone opinion and why becuase i keep changing my mind about what i want to use this summer...any advice would help thanks

[Catfish713]

I like a J hook up by the head of the bait and a trebel by the tail that way if a king nails it from the front or the sides that trebel will act as a stinger hook and snag that king also if the kings are pulling their favorite trick and bighting the bait in half from the tail then that trebel is there to catch em.

[screamendrag]

I always see the rigs with the one or two j hooks infront of the stinger treble, but i dont see the point. If your gunna have a stinger treble on the end to snag them if they do cut the bait in half why not have those two extra points on each hook to even further ur chances of getting a solid hookup?

dunno i see the argument about maybe a king seeing the hook on the bait i guess, but if he can get past the big trolly rig hangin over his head i dont think a treble will bother him. So i like to have my main leader attached to one treble, then another leader from that treable to another, and i simply thread another one inbetween those two.




A rig thats really up in the air for me is a ribbon fish rig. Ive seen guys use 5 treble rigs, but i feel like u inhibit its swimming. I usually just use my regular pinfish rig, and i attach an extended stinger off the end. U guys got any suggestions??


i need to get out on a pier bad, might be in myrtle beach for memorial day so hopefully i can hang a kinger:D :fishing:

[Drumdum]

Many are going to disagree,that's cool cause it's jmo... Caught many a king with just two single j hooks,both 4/0 mustad livebait hooks as well as 3/0 eagleclaw cadium coated livebait hooks.. Both styles rusted quick,really that was what we wanted in clear water when kings were spooky.. Seemed to get more strikes than with a shinny hook over the fish.. We went to one livebait hook and a treble also.. Got plenty of hookups with these setups,and many a king decked..
What I'm trying to say here is that imo,you'll get much more solid hookups with j's than you will with a treble.. Most times when the fish was hooked with a treble he was snagged,and we were all cringing when the fish would come to gaff or net,afraid the hook was going to pop out,and it did many times.. With the j's,the hook was generally in the roof of his mouth,and you could lead him right to the gaff... Yeah,we got a few slashed baits that came back empty,but so did the ones with the multi trebles. We sure saw plenty of snagged kings come off at the last minute due to a treble popping out too...
Guess kingin off the planks has changed a bit since the mid 70's and early 80's,but we sure caught kings,without many misses... If there were still enough kings to warrent fishing the planks for them again,I'd be using a single and a treble,but that's just me...:)

[sinker man]

To tell you the truth I have seen them caught on such a variety Of different leaders I don't think you should worry about it too much. Personally I use mostly 2 4x #4 trebles and 40lb wire. I don't use J hooks and heavy wire unless I'm after sharks also. When the water from offshore blows in crystal clear I get out the bronze livebait hooks and #3 wire. A very light mist of Flat lt green paint applied a few days in advance will help camo the wire. If a king looks at that rig hard he will still spook on occasion. late summer '80 I was fishing the 1st position NE of the North corner of Va beach pier on Sat & Sun. I had kings going all around my baits including over them to get to this guy in the corner's Half dead baits. He was using a huge j hook and a 2/0 treble and #120 steelon wire. He got 12 runs that weekend and finally landed 2 36lb kings. Most of the time he was off down the pier bottom fishing and I would watch a king go right by my lively pogie and crawl all over his half dead half in the water baits. I was using 4x #4 777s eagle claws on 40 lb wire and they were ignoring my stuff. Don't get me wrong I try to make mine less visible every time. It just doesn't always work like it should though. You'll get shots on just about anything.

[chris storrs]

4'-5' or so of 80 lb mono albrighted to 1 ft of 61 lb wire..to a 2/0 livebait hook(owner gorilla)..ill use a bigger hook, a 5/0 owner aki if i see or belive theres tarpon/cobes around....another piece of wire(this time 80 lb so it doesnt flex as easily) goes thru the hook eye and the wire loop to the j hook...this gets twisted to a treble, #4 or sometimes #6...big baits get 2 trebles, all twisted to eachother with wire, no sliding hooks...spacing depends on bait size

works for me

been thinking about running 2 js this yr...maybe i will...would end my treble troubles..

also, JMO, but things to avoid:
-3 way rigs with hooks on separate droppers..kill baits quick, seem to hinder swimming ability
-thick wire
-short leaders, especially when windy
-weak release clips
-gami 4x trebles

[Hurricane44]

The way my father taught me was to use 2 #4 4X treble hooks on the 45# wire leader. Usually about 4 feet of wire leader, then tied directly to mono, either 40# test on a penn 4/0 or 30# on a penn 3/0. The way I use the 2 treble hook rig differs depending on the size of the bait. If the bait is small then I'll only use one hook above the midsection and if its a big blue etc. then I'll hook it in the top of the back in two places.

Pretty basic setup, caught kings, spanish, and tarpon off Barnacle Bills in Topsail NC back in the early 90s. I've been trying for kings off Folly Beach, SC, but its too d@mn muddy there and too shallow. I'm heading to NC the next time I go king fishing!

Cane44