3 Simple Ways To Bridle Rig Your Live Bait To Catch More Fish
- By: Joseph Simonds
- on
- Found In: Fishing Tips, Live Bait Fishing Tips, Offshore Fishing
This might sound controversial to this live bait post below, but here at Salt Strong we prefer artificial lures over live bait in most (but certainly not all) fishing scenarios.
But it’s not because we think that live bait doesn’t work by any stretch of the imagination…
In fact, we publically admit that given the choice, a fish will usually choose live bait over an artificial lure/bait in almost all cases.
So why do we like artificial bait fishing so much?
Here are a few reasons:
- We can cover so much more ground (aka water) compared to live bait fishing
- We can usually get at least 10x the opportunities (aka we get out bait in front of more fish) compared to fishing with live bait
- We get to our favorite fishing holes faster as we don’t have to stop to throw the cast net, look for bait, etc
However, we do highly recommend live bait fishing for certain situations… like going offshore, trying to catch record size fish, trolling, or kite fishing would be just a few examples of when we would prefer live bait over artificial.
CLICK HERE to watch the video on the perfect way to Rig a Pinfish for Snook, Redfish, and Tarpon.
You will also get to see Luke hook and land a nice snook on his very first cast after hooking the pinfish!
Watch it here now.
So in this article, we wanted to show you three of the best ways to bridle rig live bait for certain scenarios. And if you aren’t familiar with bridling live bait, bridling is an easy alternative to directly putting the hook through the back, tail, or nose of the bait fish. This keeps the hook slightly elevated above the live bait.
Why would it matter to have the circle hook slightly elevated above the live bait?
- Because by creating a small gap between the live bait and the hook, it allows for the entire circle hook to remain exposed for a very clean, unobstructed hook-set (helping you catch more fish).
- It is also very important to have a fully exposed hook because so many missed opportunities happen when the hook turns back into the bait (causing it to never set in the fish’s mouth)
Note: This same bridle rig can be used effectively on dead bait as well.
Materials Needed for Bridling Live Bait
- Open-eye live bait rigging needle (aka “Bridling Hook” that you can get at most tackle shops)
- Rubber bands (you can buy these at Walgreens, or just borrow your teenager’s rubber bands from their braces)
- Circle Hook
- Live bait (or dead bait)
- Monofilament or fluorocarbon leader
1. Rigging a Bridled Bait For Kite Fishing
Big thanks to Peter Miller of Peter Miller Fishing for this fishing tip that he uses to catch sailfish while kite fishing.
2. How to Rig a Bridled Bait (Front of Bait)
A big thanks to the guys at RiverToReef fishing in Australia for this bridling tutorial they use for all sorts of fishing.
3. Bridling A Live Bait “Goggle Eye” (Back of Bait)
Big thanks to Judah Clark for this unique circle hook bridling method for “Google Eyes” that has the hook resting a little bit higher up the live bait’s back.
Conclusion
As you can see in the three videos above, all of the hook bridling techniques are similar, yet they all serve a slightly different purpose in terms of how the live bait naturally swims.
Play around with each one and see which bridle setup works best for your fishing needs.
And don’t forget that with smaller live bait, many times you won’t need any bridled hook setup at all.
Fish On!
P.S. – Did we miss anything, or where there any questions that you still need answered in regards to bridling your live bait? Let us know in the comments.
P.P.S. – If you think your angler friends would like this post, please Tag them or Share it with them. You Rock!
CLICK HERE to watch the video on the perfect way to Rig a Pinfish for Snook, Redfish, and Tarpon.
You will also get to see Luke hook and land a nice snook on his very first cast after hooking the pinfish!
Watch it here now.
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With this method
Can i use it as acasting from the beach
And if it is ok .. can i use it with sinker or not ???
Thanks
what is the advantage of birdle line method than puting hook behind the dorsofin oh the fish?
thanks
The advantage of using a bridle rig for live bait is that it increases the hook set ratio because it keeps the hook elevated above the bait making it less likely to turn back into the baitfish’s body instead of the target fish’s mouth.
And when rigging a live bait by passing the hook through its body, the hook point is much closer to the bait making it more likely to dig into the bait when setting the hook on your target species.
thanks very much
can i use these method with any live bait ?
You probably could do it, but it’s not very common. Most do it this method since it’s so much easier and quicker: http://v2.saltstrong.com/articles/how-to-rig-a-live-pinfish.
thanks . i will try it soon
another question plz
which better i use this method in the nostrils ,behind the dorsofin or the gogleeye ?
Another awesome article Joe!!! Never bridled bait myself, should the hook point be facing the baits tail generally? I assume you get less debris that way?
Great article man!
Thanks for the comment Ben! As you will notice in the 3 videos, some of the anglers have the hook facing the tail, and some have the hook facing the live bait’s head. My take is that if you hit a big enough weed line or debris, it will probably get caught on the bait fish or line regardless of the hook’s direction. But I will refer to the pros on this one. Fish on brother!