How To Choose a Fishing Split Ring
You need a way to stop fish from swimming away with your hook. A strong split ring gives you a secure way to attach your hook to your fishing lure or your lure to your line. While some lures come with split rings, installing one with a known strength can help to ensure that you land your fish.
Which Size Split Ring Do I Need?
- Split rings are sized by number. For standard numbered sizes, a higher number means thicker wire and a wider ring.
- Bigger split rings are usually stronger split rings, but this isnt always true. Strong materials or thicker wire can give a smaller ring a lot of extra strength. Make sure to check the load rating for your split ring.
- Check the size of both the fishing hook and the lure that you want to use. A small lure might not be compatible with an extra-large split ring.
How Strong Should My Split Ring Be?
- As well as size, split rings are rated by their load capacity. The higher the load capacity, the more abuse it can take without opening up and letting the fish take the lure.
- The strength of split ring that you need depends on the type of fishing you want to do. If you are fishing in streams for small fish, you dont need a very strong split ring. If you are fishing for large saltwater game fish like tuna, you might need a heavy duty split ring rated for 200 pounds or more.
- Strength and size arent necessarily the same thing, although bigger split rings tend to be stronger. You can find stainless steel split rings rated at almost any weight in a lot of different sizes.
Which Types of Split Ring Can I Choose From?
- Materials matter. Stainless steel is a very popular option for split rings because it is strong and rust-resistant, although sometimes they are made from alternatives like magnesium alloy. Many manufacturers also used coated or plated stainless steel for greater strength and corrosion-proofing, often using finishes like black nickel.
- Most split rings are round, partly because its easy to make round rings from a long coil of stainless steel wire. Some companies also make split rings in other shapes such as ovals.
How Should I Change Split Rings?
- The easiest way to switch hooks or rings is to open up the split ring with a pair of fishing pliers. You can then detach it from the spinner or lure. This weakens the ring over time, which is why it is so important to carry replacements in your tackle bag.
- If you prefer not to use split ring pliers, you can tie your terminal tackle together with knots instead. A strong knot like the uni knot will hold under enough load for most types of fishing. However, switching out a split ring allows quicker hook changes than having to untie a knot, especially with wet hands.