Oh, man, I haven't snelled a hook in probably 20 years. The only reason I know of to tie one that way is to make the bait less likely to spin. I used to tie them that way when we would fish ballyhoo at the POC jetties. (Thus the screen name.) I felt like the ballyhoo ran more smooth and straight in current.

I don't think you'll have any hook-up problems using those hooks with a "regular" knot. If you're fishing something live, there should be no problem at all. If you're pulling a dead bait, you might cause it to twist. But once a fish hits, I think it should set just the same.

 

I deal with a lot of hooks .. trust me.. are you talking about a J-hook with one having a straight eye and the other having a bent up Eye (like a live bait hook?). There are several Variations of Circle hooks but those are not what i would consider "j-hooks" and everyone seems to have a different design for a Circle hook

in the world of jig hooks there is a 90 degree bend in the hook but that is so the lead wont slide down the hook shaft.. not for any hook up reasons...

When i fish oregon i Tie a Egg Loop on the hook shank but i don't notice any difference in hook up rates on a straight eye jig hook vs a eye up style bait hook.

It would seem if you were going to tie up a hook with snell then i can see a eye up being better since the line can be straight thru the eye instead of taking a 90degree bend

 

I deal with a lot of hooks .. trust me.. are you talking about a J-hook with one having a straight eye and the other having a bent up Eye (like a live bait hook?). There are several Variations of Circle hooks but those are not what i would consider "j-hooks" and everyone seems to have a different design for a Circle hook

in the world of jig hooks there is a 90 degree bend in the hook but that is so the lead wont slide down the hook shaft.. not for any hook up reasons...

When i fish oregon i Tie a Egg Loop on the hook shank but i don't notice any difference in hook up rates on a straight eye jig hook vs a eye up style bait hook.

It would seem if you were going to tie up a hook with snell then i can see a eye up being better since the line can be straight thru the eye instead of taking a 90degree bend

What mainly I am referring to are circle hooks such as the Gamakatsu series 2084 Octopus offset with the upturned eye, and similar hooks by other manufacturers. This Octopus hook shape is exactly what I want in a hook for large cut baits when surf fishing like mullet or whiting heads.

As is known, when a fish inhales the bait on a circle hook, tension on the line of course pulls it back toward the jaw, where the hook point catches the corner of the mouth. My concern with the upturned eye using a regular fishing knot is this: It would seem to me that the tension on the line would actually tend to pull the hook point a bit away due to the upturned bend in the eye. I hope I am making sense.

I have noted that when hooks with either eye styles are dangled without tension, there is not much difference in how they appear. I am just wondering if there is any scientific evidence to back this up, or fisherman's experience noting a difference in hookup percentage.

 

The 2084 does not have a up turned eye, it has a down turned eye. I have been using the 2084 from size 5/0 through 8/0 almost exclusively for several years. The down turn eye, offset, thin wire, and sharp point give me a unbelievable hook-up ratio compared to other circle hooks on the market.

 

sharkchum, I was hoping you would jump in on this one. That hook is exactly the shape that should be best for cut bait imo as opposed to the hook shape of the Owner Mutu for example. If you have had excellent hookup success with it, that is good enough for me. Thanks.

 

Snelling larger lines makes a difference on the tension point of the line next to the metal shank of hook.
We all know the weakest point of a line is the knot as the line is bent reducing the amount of tension the line will hold.
Snelling makes the line wrap tightly against the hook shank preventing a more pronounced "bend" when there is a heavy fish on the end.
The bend is the weakest link and if you continually break off there you should look at snelling or different hooks.
I use and snell all my circle hooks like the Gamakatsu above.

 

Well, I wrote an email to Gamakatsu USA to see what answer they would give, and here is the response from there rep Jeff Roberts for those that might be interested:

"There is very little difference in hook up ratio between a straight eye hook and a turned eye hook. The turned eye which you are using is more conducive to snelling, however there is no disadvantage tying any number of knots to the Octopus hook."

So there we have it.