minnow rigging

[rgranger]

I have trouble keeping minnows on the hook on big casts. I've tried hooking them just about every way, but nothing seems to work 100% of the time. Consider this--putting a swivel though the upper jaw and out the nostril, then claming it down, and tieing the swivel to the end of the line. I'm not sure how I will hook it. I may connect a hook to the swivel and have it follow the same path through the minnow. I may tie a short extention line just above the swivel and place the hook on the end of that. Do you guys thing this will work?
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[theangler]

Hello Ranger,
Welcome to BFT! It sounds like a good idea but a couple things come to mind. Assuming you are fishing live minnows? You would probably want to go pretty light on the terminal tackle to aviod sacrificing the "action of the minnow".

What I like to do when fishing live minnows and need to get a cast way out is:

Use an egg sliding sinker with a swivel and leader. It allows you to go way heavier on the sinker and still not provide tension on the line when the fish is playing with the minnow. The line will move through the sinker instead of having tension on the line.

Hope that helps but I assumed you are fishing live minnows close to the bottom so it may not be the answer you are looking for if circumstances are different.
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[Belasko]

For Dead minnow fishing I've never lost a minnow yet and frequently can fish the same one for several casts. I've taken a coat hanger and hammered one end down so it's a little flat then filed a notch in that end. The other end I just made a circle on the end to push against. Take a treble hook and tie on about a 1 foot leader with a loop knot at the end. You can put the loop in the notch and then run it up through the anal hole and out through the mouth of the minnow so that the treble sits tight against the body. Just clip into a swivel. If you're using live minnows you'll need a different technique though .
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[fsh4fun05]

Not bad! I Just learned a new rig, thanks.
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[jonrhett]

Your best bet at throwing a minnow long distance is to invest in something fake. My only other suggestion would be find a treble hook of desired size, and try to hook at least two of the three hooks in its mouth as if it just swallowed it.
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