Mustad Planning to Shaft Us, Replacing the Standard Hooks

[halomidge]

Thanks Dr. Fish.

Looking forward to trying out some of the S70's as well. Eric can post some of his excellent "old flies" on the new S70's when he gets them

[Fly Tyer]

Thanks Dr. Fish,

The truth is always best.

[BobC]

last pack of size 10 egg hooks I got from mustad. half the pack wasn't even heat treated. I could bend the hook as easy as copper wire ribbing! glad I found out at the vice before a steelhead straightened them out on the river! mustad! why!!!!!!

Really sorry to hear about your problem - so far for me no problems with any of their hooks and I think a good value for their price. I'll keep buying as long as they keep performing, and the Signature series they introduced a couple of years have been good quality for me, but you have to pay a little more.

[fishaholic69]

ya thats the only problem I ever had with them. all the other hooks I get from them work great.

[sourdough]

i was at cabelas today to but some hooks / unforunaly i found out cabelas will no longer carry mustad hooks / looks like cabelas brand and temco are going to replace the mastad line / the boys in the fly shop said mustad didnt want to distribite to them guees thats the reason

[BobC]

i was at cabelas today to but some hooks / unforunaly i found out cabelas will no longer carry mustad hooks / looks like cabelas brand and temco are going to replace the mastad line / the boys in the fly shop said mustad didnt want to distribite to them guees thats the reason

That's an interesting development. Mustad is in the fly fishing 2009 Cabela's catalog, and usually when they commit to that it is for the year. Maybe is is a local Cabela's store decision? I will be trekking up to Hamburg in a month or so, so I will be checking out their shop as I need hooks.

[Kytroutbum]

Cabelas.com has some Mustads "sold out" and unavailable to back order.

[DG]

My local (well, sorta) Sportsman's warehouse had full racks of Mustads yesterday.

[Greg F]

Okay, I usually have been using the Japanese hooks for years because they are sharper and the temper is better than Mustad classics i have tried. I have tried the Mustad Signature in the past and they are really good hooks. So, for me, this is good news that the Signature hooks will be more available and in more styles than before. When Dr Fish publishes the conversion chart hopefully we can take advantage of these premium Mustad hooks.

Greg

[Greg H]

Last spring our fly fishing club (www.winterhatches.org) received a presentation by one of the suppliers of gear for Ontario, which included an update on the Mustad hook selection. As much as anyone I was dismayed that "my" tying system was being reconfigured. No longer could I unthinkingly tie nymphs on 9671s and bead-heads on 9672s. I was glad however to hear that Mustad is the only hook manufacturer that makes its own wire and that with the new hook the wire gauge would change with each hook size. I just presumed I would have to adapt.
So I went to the Mustad website and printed off the new list of hooks and pencilled in the number of the hook that I currently use beside the new designation. As Dr. Fish suggests, this has now been done by Mustad http://www.mustad.no/catalog/products.php?id=10. (Allow me to be the first to post it.) The 94840 hook is still available on the website as a Classic hook http://www.mustad.no/catalog/products.php?id=13, although the 3906 etc. are gone. Perhaps I can continue to find them and not HAVE to move to R30s!
However, flies were not designed BECAUSE of certain hook sizes. The hook sizes matched our perceived need, so we chose them. Mayfly wings are still the same length as the body and need to be tied on hooks that are light. Nymphs come in various sizes and are better tied on heavier hooks. Such hooks can still be found in the Mustad line-up. (I am not promoting Mustad and have no interest in the co., just making a point). That point is: fly first, imitation second, materials third, hook choice (size,weight) fourth.
As a person who also instructs tying, I am actually pleased that I don?t have to explain to newbies that a 94840 is basically a light 3906 and that a 9672 is 3X long (why not call it a 9673!) but for a hook to be 4x long the number is 79580. Have you ever seen eyes glaze over?
Check our tying Symposium http://www.winterhatches.org/symposium.html.
And about the price! My first rod cost $50, as did my second. My third or fourth rod cost $100. Now most of my rods cost between $300 and $550. My first hip waders cost $55, now I wear $200 waders. The costlier products are better and also incorporate the notion of inflation. If the hooks cost more yet are better and keep up with the rise in inflation I am not going to complain.
I am fine with this Mustad change, and the more I think about it and look at the hook options they supply the finer I become.