Hooks for jig making

Howdy folks !

Been lurking a while and living through the tournament posts as where I am
it's 7 degrees this morning and I hate ice fishing......... I've been
making lead jigs lately and have been using mostly Gamakatsu 604 hooks.
It's a great hook but they are really expensive. Anybody have any ideas or
opinions on another hook that's cheaper but is as good quality ? Strength,
sharpness, etc.. Ive got some Mustad 32746 ultra points ordered but haven't
seen them yet......... Dave Ayers /

"David" wrote in message
5.252...
Howdy folks !

Been lurking a while and living through the tournament posts as where I am
it's 7 degrees this morning and I hate ice fishing......... I've been
making lead jigs lately and have been using mostly Gamakatsu 604 hooks.
It's a great hook but they are really expensive. Anybody have any ideas or
opinions on another hook that's cheaper but is as good quality ? Strength,
sharpness, etc.. Ive got some Mustad 32746 ultra points ordered but
haven't
seen them yet......... Dave Ayers /

Depends on the jig you are making, but TTI-Blakemore owns several hook lines
and makes lots of jig hooks. TJ in marketing there has always been good to
me so I may be a little prejudiced, but I would contact them and ask for a
sample pack of jig hooks. If you are a recognized small manufacturer he
might give you some samples for free. Even if he doesn't recognize your
company I am sure he will give you one set of sample hooks to try at a
substantial discount.

Matzuo probably has the cheapest jig hooks, but I do not like them
personally. Again it depends on what you are making. I am sure they would
be fine for crappie jigs in the small sizes, but I do not like them at all
for swim bait jigs or flipping jigs. Actually if I was going to go cheaper
I might look at Eagle Claw before Matzuo. Their hooks are definitely
stronger than Matzuo.

Owner probably makes one of the most commonly used hooks for jigs and
spinnerbaits. I have mixed reviews on Owner personally. Mostly good, and
their cutting point is every bit as good for penetration as TTI's X-Point
hooks. A couple of their designs make me go, "Hmmmmm..."

On the flip side. Gamakatsu hooks are pretty darn good as well. I do not
think that their conical point on most of their hooks is as good as the
X-Point or Cutting Point, but it is sharp, and they make a good strong body
hook also. Not sure what a 604 is, but I am sure you selected it for a
reason. Make sure anything you switch to has the same or better
characteristics as why you chose that one. Nothing as frustrating as having
500 cheap jigs hanging on the wall that you do not like to fish with.
Worse, having 500 hundred cheaper jigs on the wall that you can't sell.

Bob La Londe
www.YumaBassMan.com

"Bob La Londe" wrote in
:

"David" wrote in message
5.252...
Howdy folks !

Been lurking a while and living through the tournament posts as where
I am it's 7 degrees this morning and I hate ice fishing.........
I've been making lead jigs lately and have been using mostly
Gamakatsu 604 hooks. It's a great hook but they are really expensive.
Anybody have any ideas or opinions on another hook that's cheaper but
is as good quality ? Strength, sharpness, etc.. Ive got some Mustad
32746 ultra points ordered but haven't
seen them yet......... Dave Ayers /

Depends on the jig you are making, but TTI-Blakemore owns several hook
lines and makes lots of jig hooks. TJ in marketing there has always
been good to me so I may be a little prejudiced, but I would contact
them and ask for a sample pack of jig hooks. If you are a recognized
small manufacturer he might give you some samples for free. Even if
he doesn't recognize your company I am sure he will give you one set
of sample hooks to try at a substantial discount.

Matzuo probably has the cheapest jig hooks, but I do not like them
personally. Again it depends on what you are making. I am sure they
would be fine for crappie jigs in the small sizes, but I do not like
them at all for swim bait jigs or flipping jigs. Actually if I was
going to go cheaper I might look at Eagle Claw before Matzuo. Their
hooks are definitely stronger than Matzuo.

Owner probably makes one of the most commonly used hooks for jigs and
spinnerbaits. I have mixed reviews on Owner personally. Mostly good,
and their cutting point is every bit as good for penetration as TTI's
X-Point hooks. A couple of their designs make me go, "Hmmmmm..."

On the flip side. Gamakatsu hooks are pretty darn good as well. I do
not think that their conical point on most of their hooks is as good
as the X-Point or Cutting Point, but it is sharp, and they make a good
strong body hook also. Not sure what a 604 is, but I am sure you
selected it for a reason. Make sure anything you switch to has the
same or better characteristics as why you chose that one. Nothing as
frustrating as having 500 cheap jigs hanging on the wall that you do
not like to fish with. Worse, having 500 hundred cheaper jigs on the
wall that you can't sell.

Bob La Londe
www.YumaBassMan.com




Hi Bob,

Thanks for your input. The jigs I am making are for large / small mouth
bass. Mostly fished in shallow water to 10 -15 ft depth. I use an 1/8
ounce do-it walleye jig with a 3/0 Gamakatsu 604 aberdeen type hook but
these are 2 x strong and won't bend. Sharpness is good to excelent. Do
the point test by trying to hang a jig on your thumbnail. If it slides
off easily the hook isn't sharp enough. I paint with powder paint and
cure in the oven for super hard finish. Don't know why I bother though
as I usually loose them long before they get the chance to get beat up
;-) I then use living rubber skirts in the fine size and use 2 strips
for a nice full skirt. All hand tied with nylon upholstery thread with
uv protection and sealed with various sealents to keep them from
unraveling. Makes a nice looking jig and produces very well I might add.
We usually fish them with a 4" or 5" single tail grub topped off with
some craw spray to make them extra yummy...... Damn, making me hungry
just talking about it......... If we get into river current situations
I also have 1/4 ounce jigs with the same set up. This spring I will be
experimenting with the same set up as above but with the do-it shakey
head ball jig in 1/8 & 1/4. These molds are all set up to use a 3/0 90
degree bend hook.

At the moment I am just another hobbyist that enjoys doing this in my
non fishing months. Some of the guys in my club want to buy some of them
and they don't like my price with Gamakatsu hook. I don't see how so
many people sell these for $2.50 - $3.00 each as there is much hand work
that goes into the making of each one. I've got to come up with some
method to keep the hook eyes from getting full of paint as busting the
eyes is very time consuming and a pain in the butt....

Talk at ya later ! Thanks, David,

"David" wrote in message
5.252...
"Bob La Londe" wrote in
:

"David" wrote in message
5.252...
Howdy folks !

Been lurking a while and living through the tournament posts as where
I am it's 7 degrees this morning and I hate ice fishing.........
I've been making lead jigs lately and have been using mostly
Gamakatsu 604 hooks. It's a great hook but they are really expensive.
Anybody have any ideas or opinions on another hook that's cheaper but
is as good quality ? Strength, sharpness, etc.. Ive got some Mustad
32746 ultra points ordered but haven't
seen them yet......... Dave Ayers /

Depends on the jig you are making, but TTI-Blakemore owns several hook
lines and makes lots of jig hooks. TJ in marketing there has always
been good to me so I may be a little prejudiced, but I would contact
them and ask for a sample pack of jig hooks. If you are a recognized
small manufacturer he might give you some samples for free. Even if
he doesn't recognize your company I am sure he will give you one set
of sample hooks to try at a substantial discount.

Matzuo probably has the cheapest jig hooks, but I do not like them
personally. Again it depends on what you are making. I am sure they
would be fine for crappie jigs in the small sizes, but I do not like
them at all for swim bait jigs or flipping jigs. Actually if I was
going to go cheaper I might look at Eagle Claw before Matzuo. Their
hooks are definitely stronger than Matzuo.

Owner probably makes one of the most commonly used hooks for jigs and
spinnerbaits. I have mixed reviews on Owner personally. Mostly good,
and their cutting point is every bit as good for penetration as TTI's
X-Point hooks. A couple of their designs make me go, "Hmmmmm..."

On the flip side. Gamakatsu hooks are pretty darn good as well. I do
not think that their conical point on most of their hooks is as good
as the X-Point or Cutting Point, but it is sharp, and they make a good
strong body hook also. Not sure what a 604 is, but I am sure you
selected it for a reason. Make sure anything you switch to has the
same or better characteristics as why you chose that one. Nothing as
frustrating as having 500 cheap jigs hanging on the wall that you do
not like to fish with. Worse, having 500 hundred cheaper jigs on the
wall that you can't sell.

Bob La Londe
www.YumaBassMan.com




Hi Bob,

Thanks for your input. The jigs I am making are for large / small mouth
bass. Mostly fished in shallow water to 10 -15 ft depth. I use an 1/8
ounce do-it walleye jig with a 3/0 Gamakatsu 604 aberdeen type hook but
these are 2 x strong and won't bend. Sharpness is good to excelent. Do
the point test by trying to hang a jig on your thumbnail. If it slides
off easily the hook isn't sharp enough. I paint with powder paint and
cure in the oven for super hard finish. Don't know why I bother though
as I usually loose them long before they get the chance to get beat up
;-) I then use living rubber skirts in the fine size and use 2 strips
for a nice full skirt. All hand tied with nylon upholstery thread with
uv protection and sealed with various sealents to keep them from
unraveling. Makes a nice looking jig and produces very well I might add.
We usually fish them with a 4" or 5" single tail grub topped off with
some craw spray to make them extra yummy...... Damn, making me hungry
just talking about it......... If we get into river current situations
I also have 1/4 ounce jigs with the same set up. This spring I will be
experimenting with the same set up as above but with the do-it shakey
head ball jig in 1/8 & 1/4. These molds are all set up to use a 3/0 90
degree bend hook.

At the moment I am just another hobbyist that enjoys doing this in my
non fishing months. Some of the guys in my club want to buy some of them
and they don't like my price with Gamakatsu hook.

Then ask them if they want it with a cheap hook or if they are beating you
up for a good jig at a cheap price. If you get a business license and a
sales tax license I suspect you could buy directly from Gamakatsu as an OEM
at a better price if that is the hook you stay with (Give TJ a try at
TTI-Blakemore and tell him Bob sent you.) Of course that may also a
commitment to making a little more of a job out of it, and marketing
yourself atleast locally.

Some of the best known nationally are Bass Stalker (now owned by Uncle Josh)
and Terminator. They do not sell for two or three dollars.

I don't see how so
many people sell these for $2.50 - $3.00 each as there is much hand work
that goes into the making of each one.

The key it seems to me is the time to attach skirts and rattles if rattles
are used. Probably why so many cheap jigs use rubber bands or rubber hose.
Put the skirts inside a hard tube with a cut for the the hook to stick out.
Slide the rubber ring over the outside of the tube. Remove jig, band and
skirt all together and viola. One local jig maker I know personally uses
stainless steel tie wire for his jigs. He makes two wraps with the tie
wire, and then uses a safety wire plier tool on it, cuts off the excess and
folds the end back. He makes a pretty good jig with an Owner hook for close
to the price range you are talking about with no rattle. His rattle jigs
cost a little more. He uses the rattles that snap into the special three
hole skirt rubber rings, but instead he attaches one with the same tie wire
he uses to attach the skirts. He's pretty fast at it. Uses some of the
same methods on his spinnerbaits and buzzbaits.

Anyway, if your buddies want hand tied then charge for it. If they want
rubber band skirt prices then give them rubber band skirt jigs.

I've got to come up with some
method to keep the hook eyes from getting full of paint as busting the
eyes is very time consuming and a pain in the butt....

Do you dip or spray? If spraying its easy. Mostly you won't fill it
anyway, but you can stick the eye (depending on your design) through a piece
of paper. Or if production is a key maybe make a bunch of little clips to
clip on the eye when spraying and then take off right away when done. If
dipping you might need to use a plug in the eye, like a round tooth pick.
Most of the guys I know who dip have a rig that clips onto the hook when
they take it out so that the jig will dry head up hook down and not get a
paint sag bump on the head. I have seen this rig be as simple as a bunch of
clothes pins (The plastic spring ones work better) screwed to the side of a
board and sticking up. Any paint sag or run will just coat the first half
inch or so of the hook instead. If you do it this way then you can just
take your plug out of the eye pretty quick and move onto the next one
recycling plugs as you go.

Bob La Londe
www.YumaBassMan.com

Hi Bob,

Thanks for your input. The jigs I am making are for large / small
mouth bass. Mostly fished in shallow water to 10 -15 ft depth. I use
an 1/8 ounce do-it walleye jig with a 3/0 Gamakatsu 604 aberdeen type
hook but these are 2 x strong and won't bend. Sharpness is good to
excelent. Do the point test by trying to hang a jig on your
thumbnail. If it slides off easily the hook isn't sharp enough. I
paint with powder paint and cure in the oven for super hard finish.
Don't know why I bother though as I usually loose them long before
they get the chance to get beat up ;-) I then use living rubber
skirts in the fine size and use 2 strips for a nice full skirt. All
hand tied with nylon upholstery thread with uv protection and sealed
with various sealents to keep them from unraveling. Makes a nice
looking jig and produces very well I might add. We usually fish them
with a 4" or 5" single tail grub topped off with some craw spray to
make them extra yummy...... Damn, making me hungry just talking
about it......... If we get into river current situations I also
have 1/4 ounce jigs with the same set up. This spring I will be
experimenting with the same set up as above but with the do-it shakey
head ball jig in 1/8 & 1/4. These molds are all set up to use a 3/0
90 degree bend hook.

At the moment I am just another hobbyist that enjoys doing this in my
non fishing months. Some of the guys in my club want to buy some of
them and they don't like my price with Gamakatsu hook.

Then ask them if they want it with a cheap hook or if they are beating
you up for a good jig at a cheap price. If you get a business license
and a sales tax license I suspect you could buy directly from
Gamakatsu as an OEM at a better price if that is the hook you stay
with (Give TJ a try at TTI-Blakemore and tell him Bob sent you.) Of
course that may also a commitment to making a little more of a job out
of it, and marketing yourself atleast locally.

Some of the best known nationally are Bass Stalker (now owned by Uncle
Josh) and Terminator. They do not sell for two or three dollars.

I don't see how so
many people sell these for $2.50 - $3.00 each as there is much hand
work that goes into the making of each one.

The key it seems to me is the time to attach skirts and rattles if
rattles are used. Probably why so many cheap jigs use rubber bands or
rubber hose. Put the skirts inside a hard tube with a cut for the the
hook to stick out. Slide the rubber ring over the outside of the tube.
Remove jig, band and skirt all together and viola. One local jig
maker I know personally uses stainless steel tie wire for his jigs.
He makes two wraps with the tie wire, and then uses a safety wire
plier tool on it, cuts off the excess and folds the end back. He
makes a pretty good jig with an Owner hook for close to the price
range you are talking about with no rattle. His rattle jigs cost a
little more. He uses the rattles that snap into the special three
hole skirt rubber rings, but instead he attaches one with the same tie
wire he uses to attach the skirts. He's pretty fast at it. Uses some
of the same methods on his spinnerbaits and buzzbaits.

Anyway, if your buddies want hand tied then charge for it. If they
want rubber band skirt prices then give them rubber band skirt jigs.

I've got to come up with some
method to keep the hook eyes from getting full of paint as busting
the eyes is very time consuming and a pain in the butt....

Do you dip or spray? If spraying its easy. Mostly you won't fill it
anyway, but you can stick the eye (depending on your design) through a
piece of paper. Or if production is a key maybe make a bunch of
little clips to clip on the eye when spraying and then take off right
away when done. If dipping you might need to use a plug in the eye,
like a round tooth pick. Most of the guys I know who dip have a rig
that clips onto the hook when they take it out so that the jig will
dry head up hook down and not get a paint sag bump on the head. I
have seen this rig be as simple as a bunch of clothes pins (The
plastic spring ones work better) screwed to the side of a board and
sticking up. Any paint sag or run will just coat the first half inch
or so of the hook instead. If you do it this way then you can just
take your plug out of the eye pretty quick and move onto the next one
recycling plugs as you go.

Bob La Londe
www.YumaBassMan.com



Hi Bob,

Your toothpick idea sounded interesting so I tried it. I powder paint by
dipping a heated jig into an areated container of powdered paint then
reheating to flow out the paint over a heat gun. Then dropping the jig
into a bowl of water to harden the paint a little so they won't stick
together before curing.

Darn toothpick got painted into the hole good and solid / had a hell of
a time dislodging them and cleaning out the hole...... I went through
some of my old tool piles and found a very fine machinists tapered ream
and ended up using that instead of doing it by hand. You have to very
careful doing this or you stick youself with the spinning ream. I lost
alot of blood last night ;-)

My only concern with all this reaming process is what kind of surface is
being left on the hook eye. I guess I'll have to break out the old
stereo microscope and check to be sure there aren't any sharp edges
being left that might cut the line.

So far this is just a hobby and I don't have any intentions of doing
this on any kind of commercial scale unless the economy really goes in
the dumper and I need to suppliment my income a little. But that's
another story for another thread.

I poured and painted about 100 jigs last night and will be sitting here
watching the snow fall and tying skirts for the better part of the
afternoon and evening. Not counting snow removal of course ;-)

Looking forward to the next tournament report so I can get my head out
of the snow for a few minutes........... Take care, David

"David" wrote in message
5.252...
Hi Bob,

Thanks for your input. The jigs I am making are for large / small
mouth bass. Mostly fished in shallow water to 10 -15 ft depth. I use
an 1/8 ounce do-it walleye jig with a 3/0 Gamakatsu 604 aberdeen type
hook but these are 2 x strong and won't bend. Sharpness is good to
excelent. Do the point test by trying to hang a jig on your
thumbnail. If it slides off easily the hook isn't sharp enough. I
paint with powder paint and cure in the oven for super hard finish.
Don't know why I bother though as I usually loose them long before
they get the chance to get beat up ;-) I then use living rubber
skirts in the fine size and use 2 strips for a nice full skirt. All
hand tied with nylon upholstery thread with uv protection and sealed
with various sealents to keep them from unraveling. Makes a nice
looking jig and produces very well I might add. We usually fish them
with a 4" or 5" single tail grub topped off with some craw spray to
make them extra yummy...... Damn, making me hungry just talking
about it......... If we get into river current situations I also
have 1/4 ounce jigs with the same set up. This spring I will be
experimenting with the same set up as above but with the do-it shakey
head ball jig in 1/8 & 1/4. These molds are all set up to use a 3/0
90 degree bend hook.

At the moment I am just another hobbyist that enjoys doing this in my
non fishing months. Some of the guys in my club want to buy some of
them and they don't like my price with Gamakatsu hook.

Then ask them if they want it with a cheap hook or if they are beating
you up for a good jig at a cheap price. If you get a business license
and a sales tax license I suspect you could buy directly from
Gamakatsu as an OEM at a better price if that is the hook you stay
with (Give TJ a try at TTI-Blakemore and tell him Bob sent you.) Of
course that may also a commitment to making a little more of a job out
of it, and marketing yourself atleast locally.

Some of the best known nationally are Bass Stalker (now owned by Uncle
Josh) and Terminator. They do not sell for two or three dollars.

I don't see how so
many people sell these for $2.50 - $3.00 each as there is much hand
work that goes into the making of each one.

The key it seems to me is the time to attach skirts and rattles if
rattles are used. Probably why so many cheap jigs use rubber bands or
rubber hose. Put the skirts inside a hard tube with a cut for the the
hook to stick out. Slide the rubber ring over the outside of the tube.
Remove jig, band and skirt all together and viola. One local jig
maker I know personally uses stainless steel tie wire for his jigs.
He makes two wraps with the tie wire, and then uses a safety wire
plier tool on it, cuts off the excess and folds the end back. He
makes a pretty good jig with an Owner hook for close to the price
range you are talking about with no rattle. His rattle jigs cost a
little more. He uses the rattles that snap into the special three
hole skirt rubber rings, but instead he attaches one with the same tie
wire he uses to attach the skirts. He's pretty fast at it. Uses some
of the same methods on his spinnerbaits and buzzbaits.

Anyway, if your buddies want hand tied then charge for it. If they
want rubber band skirt prices then give them rubber band skirt jigs.

I've got to come up with some
method to keep the hook eyes from getting full of paint as busting
the eyes is very time consuming and a pain in the butt....

Do you dip or spray? If spraying its easy. Mostly you won't fill it
anyway, but you can stick the eye (depending on your design) through a
piece of paper. Or if production is a key maybe make a bunch of
little clips to clip on the eye when spraying and then take off right
away when done. If dipping you might need to use a plug in the eye,
like a round tooth pick. Most of the guys I know who dip have a rig
that clips onto the hook when they take it out so that the jig will
dry head up hook down and not get a paint sag bump on the head. I
have seen this rig be as simple as a bunch of clothes pins (The
plastic spring ones work better) screwed to the side of a board and
sticking up. Any paint sag or run will just coat the first half inch
or so of the hook instead. If you do it this way then you can just
take your plug out of the eye pretty quick and move onto the next one
recycling plugs as you go.

Bob La Londe
www.YumaBassMan.com



Hi Bob,

Your toothpick idea sounded interesting so I tried it. I powder paint by
dipping a heated jig into an areated container of powdered paint then
reheating to flow out the paint over a heat gun. Then dropping the jig
into a bowl of water to harden the paint a little so they won't stick
together before curing.

Darn toothpick got painted into the hole good and solid / had a hell of
a time dislodging them and cleaning out the hole...... I went through
some of my old tool piles and found a very fine machinists tapered ream
and ended up using that instead of doing it by hand. You have to very
careful doing this or you stick youself with the spinning ream. I lost
alot of blood last night ;-)

My only concern with all this reaming process is what kind of surface is
being left on the hook eye. I guess I'll have to break out the old
stereo microscope and check to be sure there aren't any sharp edges
being left that might cut the line.

So far this is just a hobby and I don't have any intentions of doing
this on any kind of commercial scale unless the economy really goes in
the dumper and I need to suppliment my income a little. But that's
another story for another thread.

I poured and painted about 100 jigs last night and will be sitting here
watching the snow fall and tying skirts for the better part of the
afternoon and evening. Not counting snow removal of course ;-)

Looking forward to the next tournament report so I can get my head out
of the snow for a few minutes........... Take care, David


I'ld be happy to entertain you with the wiles of my chase yesterday at the
Yuma Pro Am season opener, but alas... the only reason I didn't blank is
pure stubborness. I just kept chunking and winding until I finally boated a
keeper about 5 minutes before weigh in.

Bob La Londe
www.YumaBassMan.com