Barbed vs Barbless Hooks? Which Way Should I Go?

Maybe someone can shed some light on this or share there experience using them . As I am getting Older, I feel this need to start using Barbless hooks. I was told the mortality rate using barbed hooks was horrible. It only takes a second using pliers to pinch the hook which could save thousands of fish.

Never heard that, I'll stick with barbed. I have caught the same LMB at my family's farm pond, we always used barbed hooks never had any issues. Sounds like some peta [censored].

When I go fishing with my 8 year old for sunfish I use the pliers to flatten the barb as it is easier to get the hook off. Since we catch so many little sunfish.

For bass i noticed the bass were swallowing the worm so went with a bigger hook and started getting more lip sets

I read that a lot fish die cause of broken jaw

Just figured if saving a couple more fish meant using barbless....Hell, it might be worth it.

If your fishing for fun (catch n release) then go barb less. You may lose 1 in 10 fish because of the bards, the rest will be caught because you set a good hook. mho

I've fished barbless hooks for trout for years and never lost a fish because of no barbs. If you keep tension on the line you'll be fine, and Lots of studies have shown that it reduces mortality rate.

Barbs kill fish now? I agree sounds like peta bs.

I mostly fish on private lakes & ponds where barbless hooks are the norm. Never had a problem except around stumps and lay downs. Once the fish gets on the stump and gets slack in the line you may loss it not always but most of the time.

Barbless all the time.

Easier to release and honestly I don't think I've ever lost a fish because of no barb.

Fishing with kids or inexperienced anglers, barbless helps reduces the chance of painful accidents! Much easier to extract a barbless hook from a finger, arm or ear!

Yes, Very easy to release. There is a reason the hook has a barb to be effective in catching. Don't think for a moment they will provide the same catch rate results. I've lost plenty of my share of fish on barbless hooks.
I've also sat next to guys before who had barbs and our group didn't. (It is the law here now on the Columbia and the tributaries) They "outfished" our group on a large scale for every hookup we had. They got their limits and left quickly. I've seen this a couple of times. We asked once "Hey, you guys using barbed hooks or something?" And the reply was "of course, we always do." Other times I've walked over and observed barbed hooks.
The reason is easier release,...not catching more fish.

Barbless hooks for catch and release. The barb left on a hook(s) does more damage when removing it. One way to prove this is get stuck deep with a barbed hook and try removing it. Then get stuck with a barbless hook of the same size and see which one causes the most damage and is more difficult to pull out. I speak from experience.

http://www.bassdozer.com/articles/manns/barb_barbless.shtml

Thanks for sharing.