Hi George,if I answer your question it will cause a debate,lol. I will just say this,if you are pole fishing,hooklinks would generally be short,5/6in,on a stick float mine would be from 8/12in,waggler fishing is a totally different ball game,if your fishing shallow water 6/10in,3ft plus and I would use 8/18in,but unfortunately you must also have the experience to understand why and when to try these different lengths,plus different species can favour various lengths....