Mustad Planning to Shaft Us, Replacing the Standard Hooks

[Gandolf]

Hi All,

Very bad news.

Mustad has advised the retailers that they are discontinuing their standard fly tying hooks before the end of this year such as: 9672, 9671, 94840, 3906b, etc.

This is not a rumor. I spoke with Hook and Hackle and Cabelas yesterday. Cabelas is out of many sizes of the standard Mustad hooks and advised that they will not buy any more....when they are gone they are gone. The standard Mustad hooks are not in this years Hook and Hackle catalog.

Mustad sent out a letter advising that their standard hooks were not made to consistent size change specifications (or something like that), and that hook size changes were varied from model to model.

To fix that supposed problem, Mustad has brought out a new product line of replacement models. The "signature" series, and it has the new model number combined with the old model number so that we will know what model has the same shape as the standard hooks that we have been using for years. Example: old 94840, new R50-94840.

If anyone knows how to contact Mustad please post it.

I have edited the title on this post and deleted much of it to reflect the current knowledge on this item. (1/13/09 Gandolf)

Thanks and regards,

Gandolf

[RoyC]

No big deal, I quit using Mustad years ago. Their old hooks are very inconsistent in size and this was the reason I went to other brands.

RoyC

[DShock]

Mustad E-mail: info@mustad.no (Norway)

Postal Address:
P.O.Box 41
N-2801 Gjovik
NORWAY

Doug

[Mike-Connor]

Doesn't matter. People will just buy other hooks.

TL
MC

[SKershaw]

Mustad is a sponsor here. Perhaps they have an answer that they are willing to share. I would be interested in it!

[ducksterman]

Dr. Fish....what say you??????

[Plunker]

My real job is in the Building Materials Business...the price on wire (steel) over the last 12 months has been ALL OVER THE BOARD...there have been 100% increases realized in nails. Granted nails are a little heavier gauge than a#18 dry fly hook, but they are made from steel wire regardless...and the basic issue remains in the volitility of the commodity market for steel and steel related products. Mustad can cloak it anyway they want to, but a price increase is a price increase...

Though I appreciate the sentiment behind not being shafted...we have to face the fact that we, as Americans, forged the Shaft ourselves by pricing ourselves out of the steel industry, selling our factories to offshore interests, and deciding to become a society of consumers rather than producers. Buy other hooks...sure! how long before they raise prices too?

BTW, any thoughts on how much a single, 100% American Hook (from ore to sharpening) would actually cost? and how much extra would we be willing to pay for that hook...or reel...or rod...or car...or tv...
we have no-one to blame but ourselves...heck I work for a company that manufactures a completely domestic product from ground to truck, and I'm not innocent....we use foreign energy to make it and deliver it!

Economics for the 21st Century...thik I'll go fishing, this makes my head hurt

[Mato Kuwapi]

Well it ticks ME off. I use those hooks. LOTS of them. The reason...great value and good quality and in boxes of 50 or 100. The "house brand" hooks all break either in the vice or on the water. Mustads don't. I don't like paying premium prices for hooks either. I'm only tying for me most of the time.

I just fired off an email to a buddy who uses about 30,000 of those hooks a year...and I'll see what he says.

[Mato Kuwapi]

Plunker...you posted while I was writing mine. You have some good points...and food for thought. Thanks.

[Mark Vendon]

This is Horse Apples, and is a blatent lie. The replacement hooks cost almost TWICE as much as the old one. It is really all about doubling the price of hooks to us and making twice as much per hook! They think that we will all just switch to the new hook, smile, and pay two times as much.

Hi Gandolf,

I checked Jann's Netcraft out just a few minutes ago and the new series hooks that you mentioned in 94840 are going for $2.85 per a 25 pack, or $5.70 for two packs. I have a 2007 Stoneriver Outfitters catalog that lists them at 5.75 per 50 pack in it for that same style hook back then.
On another forum this past year, the moderator posted some pic's of Mustad 94840's that he had ordered and the bends on them were more like what's on a 3399 wet hook so they must have had some type of major quality control issues that may have prompted this.
If they did in fact double the price I would have a major problem with buying any more, but it doesn't appear that way to me right now. Some changes can be for the better.

Regards,
Mark