Bending Hooks

[Foo G]

Does anyone here bend hooks to obtain a certain shape?

I've had worm hooks bend and when I try to bend them back I have to really be careful not to snap it.

But, I've heard pros talk about bending and customizing hooks.

How do you do that without compromising the strength of the hook, let alone snapping it in two?

Even if you heat it before bending it, it won't be as strong as it was before, right?

Would you then need to heat-treat the entire hook?

If so won't that effect the finish?

[Ogajiga]

I've bent 10s of thousands of hooks mostly for eye fit. Some classic Mustads & Eagle Claw O'Sh were soft enuf to slightly rebend the 60* or 90* leg angles, but hard tempered hooks like Ultra Point or Gami will snap. The leg angle of some hard hooks can be altered by bending the shank close to but not at the existing leg-shank bend. Any adjustments to the curved portion of a hook between shank & point seems to weaken the strength. With the exception of slightly straightening twisted eyes my bends were inside the head and supported by the poured lead. Heat indeed affects temper, & I have never used it to facilitate bending.

[21xdc]

I have bent many owner spinnerbait hooks with about a 20* angle leg to fit in my jig molds that take 28*-30* hooks. I snapped off 1 out of 10. But I liked the hooks "That much"

[PaBasser]

I`ve bent hooks for years. I first started bending hooks because I couldn`t find any small fineese size worm hooks. So I took my little blue bender and started bending hooks the way I wanted them. I still do this even now. I might snap off a few hooks bending them, but the outcome is worth it. Also when I catch a fish on the bent hooks, I have never had any brake or snap.

PaBasser

[kelly]

A little lesson in metal. There are three steps. First you are going to soften the wire hook. Heat up some lead drop a peace of metal in it. Like a clip off a wheel weight. heat it until it is red. put the hook in the lead holding it under the lead it will float. Pull it out and let it cool slow (set it down and leave it alone). The lead acts as protection to stop the oxidizing process. If you do not see the right temperature. Find a magnet when a metal peace looses the magnetic pull its hot enough. Bend away

When you have what you want you need to temper it that is done in two steps. First heat the lead back up the the same temp. Red hot or magnetic loss. Get a bath of old oil in a old pan will work. You want your oil to be hot for a more controlled cool. 200 deg. will be close enough. Heat the hook up for a minute then drop it in the oil. If you do to many it will burn the oil so be safe. If you use water there is a chance it will cool to fast putting stress cracks in the metal making a weak hook. At this point the hook is very very brittle. Don't drop it or bent it. Next cool your lead down to about 700 deg. Most lead melts just below that. All salvaged lead will melt at a different temp. I like to stop just as a layer of crust forms on the surface. Put your hooks back in holding them under the lead. Leave them there for two or three minutes. pull them out and let them cool. Theres your custom hook.

There is a balance of being hard or flexible. Hard brakes easy and flexible bends easy. The trick is to find the balance to the metal that you are using. The most important step is the temp of the lead in the last step. Use a inferred thermometer if you need to. Most manufactures still use lead to temper there wire. I little trick you might like is to hold the hook just under the water with the point and the barb just barley out of the water. Have to use water on this step (using fire). Heat the point of the hook with a Minny torch then submerge the hook harding the tip a little more that the rest of the hook. Sharpen the tip for a truly sharp hook.

If you melt lead you should be safe enough to accomplish this. Be safe.

Kelly

Edited February 10, 2009 by kelly