By Staff
waterhead.com
October 5, 2011

Fishing Tackle refers to any equipment or gear a fisherman uses when fishing. This term is mostly used to refer to fishing as a recreational activity. Recreational activity here involves angling and or sporting. However, the term fishing gear is used when referring to fishing for commercial purposes or for subsistence. There are over ten categories of Fishing Tackle today. Some of these are;  lines, sinkers, floats, rods, reels, baits, lures, spears, nets, gaffs, traps, waders tackle boxes and hooks.  

Floats are also known as bobbers. The unique thing about floats is that they are brightly colored and so you cannot miss them for anything. Fishing using these kinds of Fishing Tackle is given the name Float fishing. You cannot use a float without a sinker. These two must work together. The only thing you need to do when using a float is suspend bait to a certain depth and then wait for the ‘culprit’. 

Directional floats allow one to steer right or left downstream, especially when the water flow is not too fast. This makes it possible to reach lengths that one would not have reached otherwise. 

Rods are Fishing Tackle that are also referred to as fishing poles. As we said earlier, rods as a type of Fishing Tackle are used for fishing as a pastime. A fishing line, usually a stick, is put together with a flexible rod, which has a hook on one end. The hook with bait is then suspended into the water. Carbon-fiber rods are made from fiber; that is how they get their name. They vary in length with the longest being 18.5 feet and the shortest 3 feet. This type of rod allows the bait to be placed precisely enhancing catching of more fish. Fly rods the other type of rod is thin and flexible. It is usually accompanied by feathers, fur, foam and other light material. 

Lures, like the name suggest are Fishing Tackle that are created to lure fish. The trick here is that the fish is made to ‘believe’ that the lure is its prey. The hunter then becomes the hunted when it bites the hook. The lures apply vibrations to catch the attention of the fish.

The known types of lures include A jig which is covered with a prey, either natural or artificial. The rod is moved to make the jig move. Deep water jigs are a bit different because they are heavier. They can be used to fish in waters that are to 300 meters in depth. Surface lures could either be natural or artificial baits. They float on the water and could make a pop sound attracting fish. The other types of lures are plugs, swim bait and spinner bait. 

If you want to catch a large fish, then some of the fish supplies mentioned above  might be of very little help; gaffs are the best suited for this. They are poles that end with a very sharp hook. These are supposed to be placed under the backbone of the fish. Fish caught using gaffs seldom live unless one is a very skillful angler. You are advised not to use gaffs if you intended to keep the fish alive after fishing. A flying gaff is especially deigned to secure large fish. The head of the gaff detaches at the weight of the fish. 

You may have thought that spears could only be used for larger animals. Fish can also be caught using spears. Spear fishing is done using elastic powered spear guns and slings, or compressed gas pneumatic powered spear guns. Usually, no bait is used. This type of fishing equipment has been outlawed in many countries. 

Nets are the most commonly used Fishing Tackle; they are usually used for commercial purposes because their aim is to catch a large amount of fish at once. Fish nets are mesh-like and are made by knotting threads together. The threads are made of nylon today, but wool and silk were used in the recent past. The other types of fish nets include cast nets, coracle nets, dragnets, Chinese nets, the drift net, the  drive in net, fyke nets, gill nets and the hand net to list but a few. 

Reels are another type of Fishing Tackle; they are used together with a fishing rod. They are mostly used for the recreational sport known as angling. Reels include bait casting reel, fly reel operation, centerpin reel, spinning reel, under spin reel and so on. 

A fish trap is used in trapping fish. Fish traps were constructed using wood or fiber in the past, but now, this Fishing Tackle is made from thick steel, which is made into a mesh. It forms the shape of a heart. The sensitive chicken wire opening bends in to its original hollowness blocking the fish from swimming out once it swims inside of it. 

Waders are worn during angling. This footwear is waterproof and is made of PVC. They were made from vulcanized rubber in the past. The waders differ from the other waterproof boots because they reach up to the knees and some even go as high as the thigh. For this reason, they have acquired the name chest waders. Waders could have boots attached or stockings. 

Another quite interesting type of Fishing Tackle is the sinker. It is used in conjunction with a fishing lure or hook. Just as the name suggests, a sinker is used for sinking purposes. Sinkers come in all shapes and different weights depending on where they are being used. For deep sea fishing, you can be sure that they weigh several pounds. They are pyramid sinkers, which come in the shape of a pyramid, Dipseys, bullet sinkers, bank sinkers, split-shot sinkers and barrel or egg sinkers, which are bead like and ideal for rocky or debris filled waters.

Baits are used together with almost all the other Fishing Tackle like hooks and fish traps. The bait is supposed to look like the normal prey of the fish you are trying to catch. The fish is then caught unawares in an attempt to get its food. There are natural baits and artificial ones. Natural baits have proven to be better lures than their artificial counterparts, but artificial ones also have a good success rate. The artificial prey is designed to make the fish attack and the lure might or might not always look like prey. The natural bait fisher will mostly use fish prey. The most popularly used preys include; worms, leeches, minnows, frogs, salamanders, and insects. These could be dead or alive. They are more attractive to fish because they are life like. Cheese is also known to be powerful bait because of its strong smell, which fish just cannot resist.  

A fishing line is another commonly used Fishing Tackle. There are factors to be considered when choosing a fishing line over all the other Fishing Tackle. The type of material is a paramount factor to have in mind as well as the length of the stick and its weight. A thick fishing line is the most ideal because the fish can spot it easily and thus are attracted to it. As an angler, you must consider the knot strength, UV resistance, cast-ability, limpness, stretch, abrasion resistance, and visibility when deciding which fishing line to use.

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