"Don't it always seem to go
That you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone..."
(Thank you Joni Mitchell you were so right about that.)
Well that's how I feel about hooks. It is not easy to find hooks with straight ring eyes, normal shank instead of short shank, straight shank instead of curved, strong but fine wire and with a kirbed or reversed round bend. Once upon a time there were lots of choices open to the fly fisherman for such hooks. Not anymore it seems.
A little while ago I came across some NOS (New Old Stock) hooks that, although now flecked with tiny rust spots, with a bit of firm testing (stick 'em in the vice and give them a hearty twang), they inspired enough confidence in me to invest a few pounds and I now have a thousand or so hooks that are ideal for my drake and sedge flies.
They need work though, so here's how a few moments with the debarbing pliers can transform a basically good hook into the hooker of my dreams!
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| Starting point: straight, standard length shank, round bend, ring eye |
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| Debarbed by crushing the barb down as flat as possible |
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| Reversed now instead of straight bend |
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| Finished hook ready for the fly dressing |
Now why can't the manufacturers make hooks like that? It would save a lot of messing about...
Regular Rod
POSTSCRIPT
Mark from Partridge has kindly responded, see below in the comments. The hook he mentions looks pretty good. Here it is...
Thank you Mark!George has kindly given us a link to a new website with these hooks for sale. Here's a picture of the hooks. They are short shanked so might be good for midge type flies. The curve to the shank suggests that emerger could be good on these hooks too. If they had longer shanks, say an addition equivalent to the current overall length of the eye, they might be just what is needed for the upwinged flies. Personally I'd like a reverse or offset to the bend as well.
Thank you George
I would suggest the man to ask is Mark Hamnett of Fishing Matters, the new(ish) owners of Partridge of Redditch mark@fishingmatters.biz
ReplyDeleteOkay, good idea. I'll send him a link.
DeleteRegular Rod
We launched the Classic Spider hook last autumn. It features a Captain Hamilton bend, straight eye and micro-barb so that pinching down the barb does not fracture the point. I suspect the shank might be a little shorter than ideal, but a good start none-the-less
DeleteMark
Partridge of Redditch
That's a good start Mark. As a lifelong fan of Partridge products, I will be overjoyed if you keep this up and bring out a similar design that is barbless and has a slight reverse. All the better if forged for strength as well. The straight eye is definitely the way to go. It is amazing that we still have hooks with turned up and turned down eyes...
DeleteRegular Rod
http://www.guideschoiceflyfishingtackle.co.uk/straight-eyed-dry-fly-hooks.html
ReplyDeleteHi George
DeleteThank you for the link.
I saw those on the website yesterday and thought how similar to the Ashima eyed carp hook they seemed to be (an excellent hook too). My only criticism of the hook in the pictures is that a slightly longer shank would be better for the proportions of dry flies attempting to hint at the upwinged flies.
Regular Rod
Hello George
ReplyDeleteThe Dai-Riki 310 the catch is that I use for this type of use dry flies. available in the United States at a good price. Very nice and easy in the sizes 16-20
http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=dai+riki+310&_sacat=0&_odkw=dai+riki+210&_osacat=0