Hook Extractor

[Mo Redd]

I wonder if anyone has a favorite tool for getting hooks out, especially circles. Cabelas makes one that claims to twist the hook out when you squeeze it. I probably will be using it for redfish, bluefish, the usual inshore fish, plus sharks.
The other day I had a 7/0 circle on a wire leader with cut mullet and hooked into a big bull shark. Not much fight in him, maybe because of the colder water temps, but to keep away from his mouth and yet get a good hold on the hook in the corner of the mouth requires something pretty handy. Longnose pliars with a stay-open spring might be a good bet, but I'm open to ideas from someone with experience. We ended up cutting the wire, but now I'll have to rewire the terminal rig I had. Hook removal would have been better.

[Harmsway]

Yeah, Mo Redd, I've got one of those rotate-the-hook-out extractors. Mine is the 9". I guess the 15" model is better for 7/0 hooks. I never got it to rotate out any hooks, but it is one hell of a hook grabber. I wish the gap was a little wider; kinda hard to grab the hook on a flopper. Maybe the 15" would be better. I've had it for years and it hasn't rusted at all.

[DEMON]

For bigger fish (sharks) I use the ARC Dehooker (16"). For everything else I use the small dehooker (any brand will do).

http://dehooker4arc.com/store/product.c ... -size-fish

[Harmsway]

Update . . . Kevin's in Tallahassee has the rotate-out hook extractors by Angler Tech. The look like they would work. Stainless Steel. 9" FHE-1 is $22. 15" FHE-2 is $30 (one left).

[Mo Redd]

Thanks, guys. I got the ACR, the long one. Kind of expensive for what it is, but I can appreciate the distance when working around a shark's mouth!