I am looking for a hook to tie some soft hackles on. Would like wide gap 2-3x wide, extra strong and about 1x long. Any suggestions???
Thanks
Dick xfishcop
I use Mustad 3399A & 3906, Dai Riki 070 & 075 as well as lighter wire hooks like DR 320 and Mustad 94840. Kamasan hooks - B170, B175 are popular with Davie McPhail and Hans Weilenmann; can’t go wrong with their choices.
Regards,
Scott
Thanks for the link and suggestions. I have been tying on Umpqua C300BL and TMC 2499 SP-BLB. I like the hooks but would like a little longer shank to have a little more abdomen on the fly. So far the fish grab my BHPT soft hackle. Guess I should leave well enough alone. The fish are the deciding factor.:eek:
I tie most of my soft hackles on a mustad 3906, or a 3906b. the 3906b is a 2x shank length of a 3906.
if you normally tie on a 2x shank length, lets say a size 14, you can get the same shank length and the 2x wide gap when compared to the size 14 3906b by tying on a size 12 3906.
hope that makes some sense and I didn’t screw up my shank length and hook gap comparisons
Thanks John, i’ll tie up a couple and see how they look.
I don’t have any, never tied on them, never fished them, but you might want to look into Firehole Sticks.
I like the looks of the Firehole Stick hooks and just ordered some today!
Heard good things about them
Thx for pointing me to Firehole Sticks, they do look like what I was looking for. I had never heard of them.
I really like the link. Someone has to has one that is newer though than 1997. It would be nice to have a chart that includes more hooks.
The other thing that I have been reminded of recently is that not everyone manufacturer’s size 14 is NOT equal. A size 14 is only a size 14 within that manufacturer. Many hook companies don’t even have the same standard increase in dimensions when going from one size to the next by the same manufacturer. Mustad’s Signature line was created to standardize theses proportional inconsistencies. I like the Signature line.
Check out this hook selection link by Mustad: http://mustad-fishing.com/am/product-category/hooks/fly-hooks/
Just ordered some Firehole Sticks. Check out their site, glad I did.
Take a look at Allen hooks.
Also found this link. Thanks to River Waders for this comprehensive listing.
I tie and fish a ton of soft hackles and have gone heavily to tying them on continuous curve scud hooks. I tie them well down around the bend and like the look and the success I have been having with them. It has been gradually increasing in preference for me each year but for at least the last five years or so they are the majority of the soft hackles I fish.
hap,
Do you have more LDR’s with the scud hooks? One day I have as many LDR’s as fish to hand, then other days able to land more than LDR.
Guess I shouldn’t complain as long as I get the grabs???
Maybe I’m the only one, but I will bite: what is a LDR?
LDR = “The big one that got away”—commonly known as long distance release.
I tie all my size 12 to 22 trout nymphs and soft hackles on Allen fly fishing N304 hooks. They are 2x Short 1x Strong with a nice wide gap. they have a straight eye which helps the gap even more, especially in the smaller sizes. they are strong and hook and hold fish very well
Emphatically not! I find the short shank wide gap hooks with a bit of turn-in at the point makes it much harder to LDR. Much harder.
I do not use offset hooks, mostly because I do not like the look and the tendency to twirl in an offset manner.
I used the Mustad 9170 (IIRC) for a while… I like the seriously increased weight, the short shank, and the straight eye. I have come to find the down-turned eye on scud hooks does not adversely affect hook-ups or LDR rates.
Besides, “The Tug is the Drug!”
