The Best Hooks For Battlestar Soft Candy Perch Bait

Vincent Alexander
Aug 4
8 min read

Hey there! On my channel, I'm all about learning about surf fishing, tackling common problems, and then sharing those lessons with you so we can all catch more fish together.

In this episode of Vince Goes Fishing, we're going to dive into some alternative hook models you can use with the Battlestar Soft Candy Perch Bait, designed specifically for sandy beach surfperch fishing. We'll also cover the best way to rig it up for maximum success.

This episode is dedicated to Virg's Landing in Morro Bay, one of the biggest and best tackle shops on the Central Coast. I'm headed down there to meet the owner, Ron Casey, and learn all about the history of this awesome retail spot.

Stay tuned, we're going to have a blast setting the hook and catching tons of fish, including my personal best surf smelt!

So, the first hook we'll test is an oversized straight shank hook: the AHREX NS172 Curved GAMMARUS #2. This #2 hook has a massive 15mm gap. That's too big in my opinion. But just out of curiosity, let's experiment and see what happens when we use a hook that's a bit too tall. So, we got the hookset and landed the fish! And even this smaller-sized fish was able to inhale that big hook. But it's not a very deep hookset. I'm guessing this hook completely filled this fish's mouth before it could penetrate the lip, leading to this shallow hookset. Perhaps that's what happens, when we use a hook that is too big for surf perch fishing.

The Soft Candy Perch Bait

This is the Soft Candy Perch Bait. It's only 30mm long – that's just 1.2 inches – and it has the perfect profile of a sand crab, which, as you know, is the primary forage for all kinds of fish in the California surf.

It's small enough that even little surfperch can fully inhale this bait into their mouth, just like they would a soft-shell sand crab. However, this bait weighs 1.5 grams, making it a thick, meaty little morsel. When combined with a wide-gap hook, it's designed to fill the mouth of a surfperch, so you get a nice, secure hookset while still preventing those deep-throat hooks.

Ever since these Soft Candy Perch Baits were released in June 2025, they've been absolutely flying off the shelf! I've had to restock the fulfillment center several times in just the first couple of weeks. Tackle shops up and down the coast are placing their orders to get these in their stores, and it's actually pulling a lot of people through the door to come in and snag 'em up. People are buying 2, 4, or even 8 packs of these things at a time, and for good reason. I truly believe this is the greatest soft perch bait available for California surfperch fishing.

I'd like to dedicate this episode to Virg's Landing in Morro Bay! I recently caught up with owner-operator Ron Casey for a quick interview and tour of the shop.

Choosing the Right Hook for Soft Candy Perch Bait

The question I keep getting is: "What hook should I use with the Soft Candy Perch Bait?"

Well, like I said, the bait itself is 30mm long. I recommend a hook that's about 24mm from the eye all the way to the bend of the hook. And I definitely prefer something with a wider gap, usually a size 2 hook, depending on the specific model.

Remember, different hook brands and models are sized differently; there's no standard measurement. A Size 2 from one company might be a 1/0 from another! I also prefer a hook with a straight shank, and, after much experience, I've decided I prefer a tip that curves inward a few degrees.

The New Battlestar Short Shank Bottom-Weighted Perch Hook

So, first of all, Battlestar Tackle is developing a really special hook made specifically for this bait. It's currently being developed between four different entities: a prototyping company, a world-class hook factory, a third factory that will add a small amount of lead onto the hook, and of course, Battlestar Tackle itself as the designer and distributor. This lead will serve two purposes: to keep the bait down on the bottom, and to keep the hook tip pointed up. The lead will also act as a bait keeper, helping to keep the bait securely stuck in position on the hook.

This Battlestar Short Shank Bottom-Weighted Perch Hook will be available at all your local tackle shops along the coast – just ask for it! It's distributed through BattlestarTackle.com, but they probably won't be available until 2026. It takes time to do things the right way.

So, in the meantime, let's take a look at some alternative hook models you can use with this bait, and how you can rig it up for maximum performance.

Whichever hook you choose, we've got to keep that bait firmly attached to the hook, preventing it from getting pulled down into the bend. The way you can secure your bait to your hook is by wrapping it with a small length of thin wire. Then, apply a drop of super glue onto the wire coil as you insert the hook into the bait.

Finally, I like to put one more drop at the back of the bait where the hook exits the soft plastic. Using this method, I have caught fish after fish—sometimes a limit of perch on the same bait—and the bait was still stuck like a rock onto that hook. When I get home, I literally have to tear the bait off the hook, and it takes some force! So rest assured, if you do this right, your bait is going to stay stuck on that hook like magic, and you'll get way better hook sets and land more fish.

I encourage you to take the time to rig up just like this, and then wrap your pre-rigs around some foam, like this length of pool noodle. This way, you'll have plenty of pre-rigs ready when you get out there on the sand. If you really want to change colors, or if you need to change it for any practical reason, you're ready to go instantly. You'll save a ton of time on the beach this way.

On Day 2, I experimented with the AHREX SA280 Minnow #2. This is a silver-colored hook, and I really like its shape, especially the inward bend on the hook tip. It looks quite reminiscent of the Battlestar Short Shank Bottom-Weighted Perch Hook we're currently developing.

I have to say, of all the third-party hooks I experimented with, this is my favorite.

Again, you can get these AHREX SA280 Minnow hooks on CaSurfFishing.com. So, if you're looking for a great perch hook to pair with the Soft Candy Bait, I really like these.

Once again, I wrapped the hook with wire, tied on the leader, superglued the bait to the hook, and then added two of the 1/64oz tungsten nail weights just under the skin, on the bottom of the bait. That’s a great tip for keeping that hook tip in the upward position.

At the end of the day, I want a hook that's about 24mm or shorter. It needs to have a wide enough gap; I like it to be 12mm from hook "point" to shank. I want it to fill the fish's mouth and consistently get a deep hookset—whether it's on the bottom, top, or side. A wider gap hook is way less likely to end up down a fish's throat, and so is this wide, chunky bait, so that doesn't happen to me very often at all when using the Soft Candy Perch Bait.

You want the hook wire to be on the thin side. These aren't live bait hooks for catching White Seabass or rockfish; these are light wire hooks for surfperch fishing, which is akin to trout fishing in my opinion. The reason I like a thin wire is because I want this top half of the hook above the shank to weigh as little as possible. This way, when we counterbalance it with bottom weights, like two of those 1/64oz Tungsten nail weights, we know that the hook tip will remain in the upward position. And if it rolls around in the current, it will quickly resume its orientation with the bottom down and the hook tip up.

This is an important variable for this style of fishing, and in a minute, I'll explain why. But this hook tip up factor is often entirely overlooked. So, it's my pleasure to highlight this important lesson here on Vince Goes Fishing.

Now, I said I'd explain why I think it's important to keep the hook tip on our perch baits pointed in the upward position. One reason is simple: If you don't bottom-weight your bait, the hook tip is naturally going to swim in a downward position (Upside down!). And if your hook tip isn't bent in towards the shank a little bit, there's a real potential for it to dig down into the sand, get stuck, and drag through the sand as you retrieve.

If this happens, you'll feel a strange resistance during your retrieve, and you might even feel some weird bumps along the way. What you're feeling is the hook tip dragging through the sand, bouncing off rocks, clams, and sand crabs. You might even be snagging sand crabs left and right, but you definitely won't be catching any fish! So, to avoid that frustration, always keep that hook tip in the upward position by bottom-weighting your bait in some way.

On Day 3, I tried this third hook, it’s called the Owner SNIPER Finesse, it’s size #2 model #411OP-096, the color is Silky Grey, and it comes in a pack of 10pcs.

Now on this hook, the hook tip is off set.

I usually prefer a straight hook tip, because my thinking is that for bombing these long casts, and doing the faster retrieve through all this current, I want to make sure my bait does not spin or spiral and that involves a perfectly Symmetrical design. However, I decided go give it a try and see for myself if it makes any difference in this instance.

Check Your Rig

Always check your hook tip. If it's dull, cut it off and tie on a new one. Otherwise, you risk losing hooksets. Also, make sure your bait is still swimming with the hook tip in the upward position, and not spiraling through the water.

Top Notch Lead Heads

I'm also going to try using these "SURF HEADS" made by Top Notch Lead Heads. This is a really good quality product, made by a really cool guy—you can follow Andrew Navarro on Instagram or visit his website, TopNotchLeadHeads.com.

I’ll be casting these with an ultralight rod, reel, and light line. I won't be able to cast them as far as my preferred 1-1/4 oz egg weight, so I think I'll give this a try on a steep beach where there's a lip and perch feeding right in front of me. I won't need to cast far, and that sounds like such a fun way to catch them—fighting them in the current as the waves wash up and swash down the beach, on a light-weight rod with light line, ohhh let’s go! Stay tuned for that episode coming soon!

One thing I love about fishing in the ocean is you never know what you might see—something you've never seen before. You never know what you might catch... and today, I caught a personal best!

Thanks so much for joining me.

As always, fish safe. Fish legal, and fish hard.

Good luck. And chase your dreams.

Come ask your questions and share your fishing reports on our Facebook group California surf fishing CSF. Get a free sticker, and 10% off your entire order when you use code VINCEGOESFISHING at casurffishing.com