Barbless for Steelhead?

[Sylvaneous]

I've taken up the Euro thing over the past few years. I have a heavier steelhead Euro set-up , but I've never used barbless Euro hooks with tungsten beads for steelhead. Does anyone have any experiece with barbless Euro hooks for steelhead? Essentially, how do they hold?
Syl

 

[tomgamber]

I know people who use barbless for everything. They belive the hooks penetrate deeper, faster with no protrusion to slow it or stop it. It's become simple muscle memory to crush barbs when I tie cuz I've lived on places where it was illegal to even carry them on some rivers. Foul hooked steelhead is fairly common. Another reason to use them.

 

[CRB]

I've used pinched own barbed flies on the Tribs because of the large number of foul hooked fish. I've been impaled due to these, and they can be are very difficult to remove due to the barb. Debarbing make it easier to remove on the fish and sometimes in Me.

 

[teedee]

I’ve used barbless for everything for years including steelhead. Can’t say that I’ve lost much fish because of it. Started after a trip to emergency room to have a hook taken out of my back.

 

[Ewanflyfish]

I started using barbless for all my fishing a couple years ago. Can’t say i’ve noticed any more fish lost because of it. Went up to Erie this fall and only used barbless. Worked just as good as a barbed hook. Definitely agree with everyone else that’s saying foul hooked steelhead is common. Barbless makes getting the hook out of their sides much easier.

 

[JeffK]

This fall I went heavy Euro nymphing at the Salmon R with no added weight on the line. Went with 3 inch pink chenille worms with one or two 4.6 mm beadheads, depending on conditions. Used size 10 competition heavy jig hooks and didn't loose a fish. On last day tried egg patterns under a traditional float rig. The egg flies were on barbed Gamakatsu hooks, which are sharp. Went 0-3 so said screw it and hooked and landed one last fish Euronymphing. Buddies were fishing regular nymph rigs and beads under floats and weren't landing many of the fish they hooked. I am really sold on competition hooks with the long points. But need to get good ones. I have never had near the success rate with any other flies. Wasn't ticking bottom so fish were coming up for the flies and had no foul hooks, and maybe that helped with good hooksets as well. (I talked to Josh Miller at the Fly Tying Show and he attributed the success of the US junior team to fishing lighter and not dragging the bottom, so that encouraged me) Not sure if pinching barbs on a regular hook is the same. BTW, all my trout flies are barbless but most are pinched down barbed hooks. Don't see much difference for trout.