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My rigged eel mentor was one of the first to fish them on the cape, along with Al B. and others. The hook sizing was 9/0 in the head, and 8/0 in the tail for medium to large eels. 10/0 in the head and 9/0 in the tail for large eels, say 20 inches or bigger. His reasoning was that the different hook sizes caused the eel to sit head down in the water, thus allowing more water to pass over the tail section and create more action. Some guys use 2 10's or 2 9's and they work fine that way, too. The siwash hooks, like what was already mentioned, keep the eel from spinning by creating a keel. You typically fish the fished the rigged eel with heavy line, say 30 to 60 lb. test braid and a locked drag, thus the need for heavy wire on the hooks. With stout tackle, there will be little problem driving the hook home on a large fish, which is what rigged eels are intended to catch. Stout tackle would be something like a 1208 blank or comparable. Also, keep a file handy to touch up the hooks as they dull on occasion from contact with the bottom.
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