give your tips on catching gar here....

[Polypterus]

Ropes suck for anything but Longnosed..

A small flat fish with very sharp small trebles will work better for Florida like the ones you are trying to catch. There is a trick to hooking them but it is not easily explained. You can figure it out quick once you get them biting your lure...It is all in how you present and retrieve the lure.

 

[midnight]

I know its hard not to set the hook!

My reaction is so strong that one time when I was trying to get my ATF on frozen shrimp and used fishing line to make it move like live, when he hit I damn near jerked him out of the tank!

Ropes suck for anything but Longnosed..

glad i found out/tried it before buying gar lures.lol

There is a trick to hooking them but it is not easily explained. You can figure it out quick once you get them biting your lure...It is all in how you present and retrieve the lure.

not easily explained

not even going to try?

 

[CHOMPERS]

...to make the gar keep chomping.

he said...chomping

 

[JuanTamad]

Went fishing for Gars with this rig.....caught numerous needlefish and ballyhoo with this rig when I use to go saltwater fishing. Also caught tons of groupers, snappers, pinfish, and grunts with it.

I thought it might work for Gars. It's a #4 Eagle Claw with a long Shank baited with a slice of squid. I think it should, if the turtles will leave them alone.

Also got a Gar to strike a Rap Shad lure. Thought I had it, when the Gar released it and almost hit me in the face with it, when it snapped back.

Also got numerous strikes on Live Worms. Tried different ways of timing and twitching the rod with no luck. These buggers are hard to hook.

 

[CHOMPERS]

Hmmm...maybe use the turtle as bait, it is already hooked

 

[rob0521]

I use a saltwater steel leader on the end of my line with a circle hook on the end. I usually catch about 2/3s of the floridas I get hits from using this method. Here is a pic of one of them but I have caught bigger.

 

[midnight]

i got it
use fathead minnows with small hooks "not sure on size"
reel it past them,let them take it for a bit,then yank to set.

caught about 3,only got one pic,others didnt help.lol
there was about 30 there.looked like they were breeding.
i let alot fight there way off cus they were small.
also caught a sunfishy.

if i dont get rained out,im going back tomorrow.
im going to bring a walk board for a bridge to cross the ditch.
"ditches filled up,wasnt like that before"
will get lots of pics.

 

[JD7.62]

It looks like you are using a stainless hook. For the fish's sake use those ultra thin/cheap panfish hooks from wal-mart. That way if it does get caught in the fish's throat it has a better chance of surviving.

I am jelous that you have so much time to go fishing! Im going to try and get out there soon and show you pics of some real gar! hehe

 

[WRS24]

i caught my first gar last week on vacation i used shad as a bait let it sink to the bottom and left my pole there i came back 30 minutes later and had this gar

 

[midnight]

jd,i dug out a bunch of bronze hooks,
put one on,and its was that one.realised it in my pics,was getting dark.
i plan on using the bronze cus they rust faster.
luckily i didnt lose that hook so the fishys are ok

and cool deal WRS24