It is nearly impossible to use a needle for boilies this size. I would find a 0.5mm or 1.0mm drill in a hardware shop and drill them instead.

Had similar problems with finding very fine baiting needles for 6mm boilies. Best i,ve found so fare are the very small Korum Quickstop Baiting Needles but they still split the boilies unless your very careful. 2 other options i use. Either make a very small bait spike out of a small eyed hook (cut the bend off a Kamasan B911 eyed 18 or 16 hook to fit the diameter of the boilie and just push that in to the boilie). Only thing i use those hooks for, lol. Or, get a very fine boilie drill and drill the boilie very carefully then thread the hair though the boilie and add a small hair stop.

The finest one I know of is an ESP (Drennan) one, called just an extra fine needle. It has a green handle and comes in a pack with a fine bait drill, so if the needle splits it you can always try the drilling option! it’s here:
http://www.esp-carpgear.com/viewProduct.php?id=154

I do think the best course of action may be using a bait spike though.

So long as your boillies are not rock hard, the bait spike is your best option (you may find you split the odd one). For hard boillies I carry a pair of slim nosed pliers after nearly pushing one through a fingernail. You may be surprised to find they stay on even after catching several fish. I use this method in preference to any other for boillies. I too use the eyed shanks of hooks I no longer have need for, especially from old barbed ones.

use a esp small bolie drill.trust me I have the same problem for year use the small drill then the baiting needle

Greys Prodigy have designed just the tool for the job

http://coarse.greysfishing.com/en-gb/products/accessories/tools/prodigy-bait-drill-needle-combo/

Cheers

Lee

trying using a spade end hook instead of an eyed one for your pin on the hair. the spade pushes inside the boilie much easier than an eye meaning you don’t need to leave anything hanging out of the boilie

Mustad do a bait spike really fine and VERY sharp.Also you can cut then down with wire cutters and make them as small as you like…..!

Would it be possible to edge a small grove around the boilie and then use a hair rig with a lasso, similar to what you do with a pellet?

Takes some practice to use spade end hooks for hair rigging and get it right. Main reason why the knotless knot and eyed hooks are the way to go. You should be able to get a bait spike in to almost anything. If your struggling to push it in. Turn the bait spike and drill in to the boilie carefully.

Should not be much of an issue if the eye is the only part of the bait spike sticking out of the boilie. Fish dont know what the eye on a hook is. Also, not likely that the fish will see anything if your using the boilie for method feeder fishing.

I like the look of the drill and baiting needle, Lee.

i think you’ve miss understood what i ment true blue. i ment use the shank of a spade end hook as a spike/bayonet on a normally tied knotless knot hair rig. that way if you dont want the eye of the hook showing out of the top of your boilie you can push the spade inside too. perhaps your right and it doesnt make a difference but if your more confident with nothing showing then its definately going to be a better way to go

I understand what your suggesting now, Adam. Was thinking back to when i used mainly spade end hooks for hair rigging. Difficult and very fiddly to get the length of the hair just right for what i wanted. The spade end hook/bait spike goes on the line first. So, easy to use a knotless knot with an eyed hook and the spade should go in the boilie easier than an eye.

It sounds from the description that these boilles are rock hard, especially if you are struggling to
get a needle through them….. surely drilling them and using a latex band on the hair pulled into the boille would be a better option. It would also be more versatile allowing you to change over to a different bait easier , like banding a hard pellet or pulling the band into a piece of sweetcorn etc etc

The finest (maggot) needle on the Solar Tackle baiting needle kit works superbly for micro boilies. Solar also do a great metal bait spike as well which also doesn’t split micro boiles.