THE ANGLAR - KANTUKI SOI RINGED NSB 4501 HOOK PACK

The Anglar Kantuki Soi Ringed NSB 4501 Hook Pack

Kantuki (カンヌキ) is the Japanese term for the hard bony corner where a fish’s jaws hinge — the “bolt” of the mouth — and a kantuki pattern is shaped to end up there. As the fish takes the bait and turns back toward cover, the hook slides forward across the mouth and catches on that corner before the line loads. On bottom fish this matters twice over. A hook anchored in bone and gristle lets you lock up and lever a grouper or rockfish out of a hole instead of feeling the hold saw through soft tissue. And it sets at the front of the mouth rather than down the throat — what you want from a fish that inhales a bait whole in one rush, better for anything you release, and it keeps the leader clear of the gill plates.

Soi is the Japanese group name for the rockfish and grouper-type bottom dwellers of reef, rubble and wreck, and the 4501 is that pattern in a strong bait build: forged through the bend, a chemically sharpened Eagle Cutting point whose angled edges cut in rather than push through, a pronounced barb, a kirbed point and a solid ringed eye for knots, snells or a crimp. Set it against the tin-plated Kairyo Soi 4505 and two differences decide which pack you want: a discreet black nickel finish instead of a bright flashing one, and a size run starting far smaller — sixteen sizes from #6 to #26 rather than #16 to #26 — so one pattern covers light estuary work as well as heavy reef bottom fishing.

Key Features

• Kantuki geometry — works toward the hard jaw corner as a fish takes and turns
• Soi profile: strong wire and a deep bend for fish that dive back into structure
• Forged construction to resist opening under sustained load
• Eagle Cutting chemically sharpened point with a pronounced retaining barb
• Kirbed point for contact when a fish takes the bait side-on
• Solid ringed eye for heavy mono, snelled droppers and crimps
• Black nickel finish for corrosion resistance and low glare
• Sixteen sizes, #6 through #26, in fresh and salt water

How To Rig It

• Live bait tight to structure — Pin a small live baitfish through the nose or through the back behind the dorsal and drop it against reef, wreck or pilings. Set the drag firm before you drop, not after the bite.
• Give line, then lift — Let the fish move off with the bait for a beat so the hook can travel to the jaw corner, then wind down and lift into the weight. Do not strike upward on slack line.
• Two-hook dropper (apollo) rig — Snell to short droppers above the sinker for rubble edges and reef margins; short droppers keep a hooked fish off the bottom.
• Running sinker on sand and mud — Egg sinker to a swivel and a long leader for wary fish on open ground, baited with squid strip, cut fish or whole prawn.

Target Species By Region

• Southeast Asia — Grouper (kerapu), snapper (ikan merah) and golden snapper (jenahak) on nearshore reef and wreck; sweetlips (kaci) on bottom rigs; barramundi (siakap) on live bait at pilings; croaker (gelama) and catfish (duri) on estuary mud in the small sizes.
• North America — Lingcod, cabezon and Pacific rockfish; black sea bass, tautog and grouper on Atlantic and Gulf structure.
• Japan & East Asia — The original soi targets — kurosoi and other rockfish, kasago and ainame — on boat bottom rigs and breakwater ne-zakana (根魚) root fishing.
• Australia, Middle East & Europe — Snapper, coral trout and estuary cod in Australia; hamour and sheri on Gulf reef; pollack, ling and conger over European wrecks.

Specifications

Finish: black nickel. Sizes follow the Japanese gō (号) system — the number rises as the hook gets larger, the reverse of Western numbering. #6 is the smallest here, #26 the largest.

Recommended Pairing

• #6–#12: light estuary and jetty bottom rigs, 8–20 lb line, worm, prawn and strip baits
• #13–#19: all-round inshore reef sizes, 30–50 lb braid with a 40–80 lb leader
• #20–#26: live bait and whole squid for grouper and snapper, 50–80 lb braid, 80–150 lb leader
• Boat bottom or jigging-class rod with a loading tip; enough lead to hold bottom, and a wire trace only where toothy species feed