I often wish the hook I am using was a bit smaller or a bit larger, but not a full size different.
While in Blue Ribbon Flies, I bought some size 15 (as I recall) hooks and really liked them.
I find that the size 16 hooks are a bit too large and 18’s are a bit too small for the patterns I tie for PMD’s and BWO’s.
I just found that Bob Marriott’s (spelling?) site carries size 17 dry fly hooks. I ordered some. I think he carries them in odd sizes from 11 to 21?
Quite honestly I’d be happy with consistent sizes of hook! I’ll worry about odd sizes when all size 16s are at least similar!
You could always tie short on the larger size hook.
Cheers,
A.
I am not quite that picky about it, nor are the trout I deal with. I do have some odd sized hooks I picked up here and there, but none in the styles I normally use. Besides, my flies all look odd anyway!
I have some Tiemco hooks that are odd sizes but I bought them for tying certain patterns that call for them. I usually use vintage Mustads so most are the some size.
You could try tying all your flies on straight pins - then you don’t have to worry about shank length nor gape size …
… and it really simplifies that whole catch and release thing.
One other thing I found this summer fishing flies like this is that you get a lot more action, probably the same fishies hitting the darned thing time and time again. What fun.
John
P.S. It does make that “left thumb” thing pretty difficult. In fact, impossible. So far, anyway. Although I did have one fish that held on long enough to break off the tippet and take the fly for a swim.
I believe, though I’m not certain, that the odd-numbered dry fly hooks are, taper-wise, the same as 1x short even-numbered hooks. I generally use MFC 7004 or 7004KBL (barbless black) dry fly hooks when I want to go a little short, most often on caddis patterns.
The Tiemco 102Y comes in odd sizes. Nice hook, and I too had heard that they were more popular in Japan than the west for whatever reason. I think I started using them, because Hans Weilenmann liked them for his CDC & Elk originally. Good hook but can’t say it catches any more or less fish than the standard even numbered TMC900.
Probably not making myself clear. If you are trying to imitate an insect which is hatching and it appears to be smaller than a 16, but bigger than an 18, would you want some size 17?
If not, why are they made?
I am always looking for any advantage I can find, I guess. I know it’s not a big difference, but it might offer an advantage in some situations…
A lot of the TMC hooks came in odd sizes. When they first started doing barbless they were all odd numbers to indicate this. Those barbless hooks were different models than the barbed hooks. But then they realised that people wanted the standard hooks in a barbless version. That lead to the situation we have of some odd numbered hooks and some even but designated “BL”. Confused? Yes I am as well. Then you can add in the “SPBL” designation to the mix. I Had some size 30 hooks from TMC they had the same gap as some other size 26 TMC hooks I had, just a shorter shank. Which one was right, and can we please have a sizing system that is consistent?
It really wouldn’t be that difficult to do. Thinking about it a simple system based on the proportion of gap to shank length for “standard” shank hooks with long and short shanks being designated by the same X system as it is now. For curved hooks it isn’t much more complicated. Define shank length as the length from a point behind the eye, in a straight line below the hook shank to the point the bend intersects the line. And the Gap as the distance from this line to the nearest point on the spear.
I suspect that a lot of other hooks are really Tiemco. The number part of the name being the same for the same shape of hook. I suspect that they will make for other companies. Hence you get the TMC200R appearing as the ABC200R, or whatever letters the company wants to stick on the front.
Just like, for example, uniform power plug specifications. Most are in favor of a uniform consistent standard, as long as it happens to be their standard for the “others” to conform to…
I just pulled this book off the shelf and here is what it has to offer. The Practical Angler, W.C. Stewart. Page 48. It lists Barlett’s numbers and Addlington’s numbers. This is a 1938 reprint of 1857 first ed. The numbers for Bar. are 1 through 14 the Add numbers run 12 through 00.
Bar. large to small. Add. small to large. Some of the old books call for the odd numbered hooks, that’s why I bought them. Occasionally you will find odd number Mustads for sale. In the History of the Fish Hook by Hans Jorgen Hurum there is a chart showing the actual size of both the odd and even numbers.
