The most important piece of tackle!

[The Sweetcorn Kid]

Super.............PM Sent.

[Ron Clay]

I still have a few Allcocks Model Perfect hooks in size 12 eyed left in a packet. We all used to think these were good hooks but they are rubbish compared with the hooks of today. I have various makes of hooks in my bag and it would be difficult to state which is the best, as many of them come out of the same factory under different labels.

But anything Drennan or Kamasan is generally top class.

The angler of today under 50 years of age will not appreciate what we had to put up with in terms of hooks in the 60s and 70s. Most were absolute rubbish with spurious grades of sharpness and temper. The best, if you could get them were Partridge.

Around 1975, Dick Walker sent me a couple of hooks in a letter. They looked good and I immediately tied a couple of nymphs with them. I caught about 40 trout with hose nymphs before I eventually lost them. I wrote back to Dick telling him how good those hooks were. Dick told me that he didn't have many left and that they were most likely made ca 1899 or thereabouts.

The truth being that the Victorians had much better hooks than we had in the 50s, 60s, and 70s.

It was only when Peter Drennan started marketing chemically sharpened hooks made in Japan, all having correct temper, that we started getting good hooks again. The next best was Partridge, followed by Mustad, who at times supplied some pretty awful stuff.

[Nobby]

I'm told that Drennan owns Kamasan now, but neither's hooks are still made in Japan.

[GloucesterOldSpot]

Must admit I'm a Drennan or Kamasan user generally. I do have a few Hiltons and Owner spade ends for carp, plus modern Korda, GLT and ESP patterns, but for the majority of my fishing I use the first two. Unfortunately Drennan have recently re-vamped their range to reflect current trends in match circles, and have dropped some of the best patterns entirely; the Carbon Chub was my standard maggot hook. At least they still do the Super Specialist and Specimen eyed patterns.

The one type that's hard to track down nowadays is a good strong round bend spade end; Kamasan used to do an excellent one, and I still have a few in size 12 -18, but I've not seen them for sale for a while now. I prefer a spade end for 12s and smaller as they stay in line better than eyed hooks, as well as being neater.

[Nobby]

If it's the awfully named Kamasan Animal they are still around GOS.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/FIVE-packets- ... 0390458610


I suppose you would consider the Animal a round bend?

[GloucesterOldSpot]

They weren't packaged as such. I cannot recall the pattern number offhand, but they were in the old type Kamasan packs. These Animal hooks may be the same pattern (they look similar) re-branded for the modern macho market.

[Nobby]

Here's a better picture, if that's any help?.....


http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?um=1&hl= ... x=69&ty=74

[GloucesterOldSpot]

Thanks Nobby - no, they're not the same. Those ones have inturned points (there seems to be a fashion at the moment for hooks with in-turned points and weird bends) whereas the ones I'm talking about had true round bends and straight, though offset, points.

[BobH]

Drennan Barbel Specialist- fantastic hook.

Slighter lighter Kamisan Animal.

Bob

[Snape]

Drennan Barbel Specialist- fantastic hook.

Slighter lighter Kamisan Animal.

Bob

Agree...