About one in 20 hooks that I crush in my apex vice has a little burr on it. The other nineteen are ok. I try my best to have the hook exactly 90 degrees to the vice jaws but some slip and hence the burr. Is there a way to get rid of this burr successfully. So far I have been unable to correct this problem and am throwing 10% of my hooks away.
I bet the solution is easy and obvious, thats why I haven’t found it.
A hook file might debarb your smashed barb! :idea:
This probably will not help, but, I have always been told that if I intend to smash down the barbs on my hooks, to never come in from the side of the hook with the flat nose pliers to smash the barb down because it may break the hook at the barb. I was always told to come in from the hook point with the pliers and smash down the barb.
Just what I have been told.
Yup.
That’s how I do it, with needle nose pliers in line with the hook, not at a right angle. Don’t break as many hook points that way and should eliminate the burr problem. A little pinch should do it for trout hooks. A little more grunting involved for saltwater. Your hook file can touch it up if you need to.
peregrines
Hi Gnu Bee,
Get yourself a Regal vise and you’d never have a problem of crushing the barb down. I have the midge head and it crushes ANY hook barb that will fit in it’s jaws.
Regards,
Mark
Just a hint, in the Jewelry beading department of wallyworld etc. they sell small needle nose pliers that are smooth, in my experience they crimp hooks much flatter/easyer than the serated ones do.
Eric
I’m with Warren…“flat nose pliers”…smooth
I just crush them in the jaws of my Traveler. Never had a problem.
Hah! Hook file , I didn’t know there was such a thing , Got one , problem solved. Thanks all.
Quality of pliers must make a difference. I was fishing a barbless area Sunday and my pliers that I carry in my vest were not doing a very good job of crushing barb.
I got a strip of emerey cloth and super glued it to a popsicle stick , Put the hook upsidedown in the vice and file away till the barb is gone. It works better if you don’t crush the barb first. I suppose one could also use one of those emery boards that the ladies use for trimming their nails. I also got a really fine grit and glued it to a popsicle stick which sharpens the hook really well.
The reason I got so paranoid is because I ran into a CFO last fall who had a really fine piece of cloth that about 10% of my crushed barbs snagged on even though my teeshirt did not. Luckily the one he caught me using passed his uber pickey test. My buddy wasn’t so lucky. He got a 3 minute lecture before the twit let him off with a warning.
Thanks everyone for your input.
I’ve tried flattening the barb with my vise, works pretty well. But the best tool by far that I’ve found for this is a small (4") pair of duckbilled, smooth-jawed pliers. I place the hook in the pliers at about a 45 degree angle relative to the barb, and roll the hook after closing the pliers. Works amazingly well.
I place the hook in the vice and then squeeze the barb down with my hemostats from the point as previously noted. I have noticed that I would probably not pass the nylon test with the Mustad hooks , but the TMC hooks would pass it. (IMO) :!: