Black Bart lures rigged by the people who build them. Jack Tullius of Black Bart International walks through the hook sets behind the brand: southern tuna bend hooks with conical points, cable twisted double on the big sizes, single versus double hooks, and how the rig changes when wahoo are the target instead of marlin.
Black Bart Lures Hooks and Rigging
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RJ Boyle
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How does Black Bart rig the hook set in a marlin lure?
Black Bart lures are rigged like most serious marlin lures: one southern tuna bend hook on cable, crimped and sealed, with the point just outside the skirt. Jack Tullius of Black Bart International builds his around a needle eye and a conical point, which he says punctures like "an ice pick" where a cut point slices like "a knife."
Bart Miller once asked Jack if he tucked the hook inside the skirt so the tuna wouldn't see it. "You think the tuna knows that's a hook?" Jack's points sit outside the skirt now.
When should you double twist the cable on a marlin hook set?
Cable is the standard connection between the hook and the leader in a marlin lure, because it holds the hook in line behind the head. Black Bart rigs with 7x7 American Fishing Wire for consistency, and on 10/0 to 12/0 hooks they twist the cable double, because a single strand swims off the hook over time.
Copper crimps go on stainless cable, never aluminum, and a stainless hook goes on stainless cable so no dissimilar metal sits in saltwater. The cable test for each hook size is in the video.
Should you rig a Black Bart lure with a single hook or a double?
Most marlin lure fishermen run a single hook, and Jack runs "single hook all the way." Doubles still have a place, and the video shows how Black Bart builds one: the lead hook is open gap, because a tuna bend near the head has no room, and it is held lightly in shrink so it can break free.
Inside the video
- Hook choice from 7/0 through 12/0, and why a 9/0 is a specialty hook for whites and sails
- Cable, copper crimps, adhesive lined shrink, and red shrink to find the hook in the fish
- Wahoo rigs: open gap hooks, the hook inside the skirt, cable run out the front
- Two skirt combinations, floss whipping, and cutting a squid skirt to the lure's neck
- Leader weight, wind ons, and picking a spread for the sea
Questions About Black Bart Lure Hook Sets
What hook size do Black Bart lures take for blue marlin?
Black Bart treats the 9/0 as a specialty hook for white marlin and sailfish, the 10/0 as the hook for bigger marlin and tournament fishing, and the 11/0 and 12/0 above that. Their 10/0 had already taken three granders when we filmed. A thick hook hooks big fish and misses small ones.
Why does Black Bart use a conical point?
A conical point punctures where a cut point slices. Jack Tullius compares it to an ice pick against a knife. Black Bart pairs it with a needle eye, which smooths the transition from cable to hook, on a southern tuna bend that grabs and holds once it is in.
How do you rig a Black Bart lure for wahoo instead of marlin?
Wahoo chop the tail off a lure, so the hook goes a little inside the skirt. Black Bart uses an open gap hook a size up, 600 lb cable and clear shrink, and runs cable about a foot and a half out the front of the lure because wahoo hit beside the head and slice mono.
Why does the IGFA limit how far back the hook can sit?
Jack's explanation is simple: a hook trailing well outside the skirt would snag fish instead of hooking them on the bite, so the rule keeps the eye of the hook inside the skirt. Read the current IGFA rules for the exact wording before a tournament.
From the Hook Set to the Full Marlin Rig
Black Bart's hook sets are one way to rig a marlin lure. For how the hook set fits with leader, head shape and spread position across the whole blue marlin approach, read our blue marlin lure rigging article.
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RJ Boyle has spent decades fishing the waters off South Florida, where he took up daytime swordfishing after the Florida Keys crews proved it, spent years refining it in the strong Gulf Stream current off his home waters, and built a reputation as a heavy tackle specialist and meticulous bait and lure rigger. He grew up around the Hillsboro Inlet, worked as a full time mate for fifteen years, and now owns RJ Boyle Studio, a tackle shop and charter operation in Lighthouse Point, Florida. His courses cover daytime swordfishing, high speed wahoo trolling, blue marlin lure rigging, dredge fishing, and planer techniques, giving anglers access to a rare breadth of offshore knowledge built from thousands of hours on the water.
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