Hook sharpening yes or no?

[ouchthathurt]

How many of us sharpen our hooks? I have a set of files that I use to touch up my hook points, but I don’t tend to go mad, I use a finishing/polishing file 90% of the time. I check and discard any hook that doesn’t meet my expectations and change my hooks after every fish or every (blank) session anyway, but giving the hook point a “tidy up” makes me confident. I rarely cast a rig out that I’ve not touched up the hook point first. 

Yet with modern chemically sharpened hooks, and the price paid for them, shouldn’t they be sharp enough straight from the packet? 
 

What are your thoughts?

[framey]

Depends on the type of water 

I wouldn’t be wasting my time on a runs water

[Golden Paws]

I always give my hooks a light touch with the smoothing stone and it instantly make the hook feel sharper to the touch. In the above video, Adam Penning describes sharpening as his biggest edge. He is literally removing metal to make his hook hyperdermically sharp. Hooks are made from a uniform strip of wire of a certain gauge and this determines the size number of the hook. Although you need the strength of the wire in the gape area, it's not so important in the point as this should be totally penetrated and not be affected by the fight. In the underwater films we've seen how some fish react to feeling a hook, some bolt and you get a screamer but increasingly some fish just shake their head and fling the hook out. If it has already penetrated a long way in, this makes it more difficult. A very thought provoking video.

[commonly]

Sticky sharp is how the guy in my local shop described it to me, when I asked for a demo. 

Ever since my hooks always go out sticky sharp.👍 

 It hasn't massively increased my fish on the bank, but I've got every confidence in it. I land every bite. 

[B B]

10 hours ago, framey said:

Depends on the type of water 

I wouldn’t be wasting my time on a runs water

The runs waters I fish has fish up to 50lb + and waters where the fish go to 20lb .. It takes under a minute to sharpen a hook, could make a difference between a fish of a life time and blanking 

[Golden Paws]

24 minutes ago, Big Bass said:

The runs waters I fish has fish up to 50lb +

Can you get me a ticket?!!!

[ouchthathurt]

That’s some runs water! 

[B B]

Oxlease at Linear there’s a common in there that’s around 50 .... that’s if you can find a swim 🙄

[Carpmaster]

11 hours ago, ouchthathurt said:

How many of us sharpen our hooks? I have a set of files that I use to touch up my hook points, but I don’t tend to go mad, I use a finishing/polishing file 90% of the time. I check and discard any hook that doesn’t meet my expectations and change my hooks after every fish or every (blank) session anyway, but giving the hook point a “tidy up” makes me confident. I rarely cast a rig out that I’ve not touched up the hook point first. 

Yet with modern chemically sharpened hooks, and the price paid for them, shouldn’t they be sharp enough straight from the packet? 
 

What are your thoughts?

Ouch I never used to sharpen my hooks but a friend gave me a fly vice and I took a healers file to a few and used them yesterday they were nailed up on the bend forceps to get them out they were only small carp but hard mouths really hard in fact this is how far I took mine

[Carpmaster]

1 hour ago, Golden Paws said:

I always give my hooks a light touch with the smoothing stone and it instantly make the hook feel sharper to the touch. In the above video, Adam Penning describes sharpening as his biggest edge. He is literally removing metal to make his hook hyperdermically sharp. Hooks are made from a uniform strip of wire of a certain gauge and this determines the size number of the hook. Although you need the strength of the wire in the gape area, it's not so important in the point as this should be totally penetrated and not be affected by the fight. In the underwater films we've seen how some fish react to feeling a hook, some bolt and you get a screamer but increasingly some fish just shake their head and fling the hook out. If it has already penetrated a long way in, this makes it more difficult. A very thought provoking video.

I’ve watched Adam penning hook sharpening video an what the guy says is true you do get sitters and screamers and if that hook has allready gone past the barb it’s a whole lot harder to get rid of

[Pete Springate's Guns]

Always sharpen every hook and have done for around 10 years. I’m fussy/paranoid/obsessive about it and would find it difficult to cast out an unsharpened hook. I’d be lost without my Vallorbe jewellers file!

[jh92]

What files are people using? 
 

I use Gardner muggas straight out the pack, maybe I should be sharpening them before I use them 🤷‍♂️
 

I’ve also got the Gardner hook stone to touch them up after they’ve been used 👍 to be fair I’m not that confident with sharpening and not really sure if I’m making the hook sharper or not 🤷‍♂️😂 I normally change hooks or make new rigs 👍

 

[elmoputney]

I think it depends what you are fishing over tbh, 

I've had some sharpened hooks come in burred over and rusty overnight, I find using a crayon and gently heating the hook with a lighter and melting a little coating of wax helps 

But It is quite easy to ruin a hook by sharpening it though, and I am currently leaning towards finding sharp hooks out the packet, be that hand sharpened by someone else or just naturally pretty sharp, so all they need is a touch up 👍 

 

[elmoputney]

10 minutes ago, Pete Springate's Guns said:

Always sharpen every hook and have done for around 10 years. I’m fussy/paranoid/obsessive about it and would find it difficult to cast out an unsharpened hook. I’d be lost without my Vallorbe jewellers file!

My jag file has starting wearing out now, are the vallorbe ones better ? 

 

[Pete Springate's Guns]

Just now, elmoputney said:

My jag file has starting wearing out now, are the vallorbe ones better ? 

 

Not used a JAG file. The Vallorbe pillar cut #4 is the one I’ve used. I’m on my second in 10 years so they do last-I’m looking at some cheaper alternatives of the same spec. I prefer the wider files rather than the narrower ones that JAG sell.

[ouchthathurt]

I use the files and finishing files sold by Nash, they’ve lasted a few years, I need to get a vice really, holding the hook with a pair of forceps in the bivvy is a bit fiddly! Sharpening takes practice, I ruined a few hook points before getting the hang of it. 

[yonny]

Been doing it for years. There are occasions where I'll use an unsharpened hook for specific reasons but they are few and far between.

Last couple of year I've been buying them pre-sharpened from Jason Haywood. I got so bored of doing it myself for 10 years + I decided I'd rather spend double to get them done for me by someone whose skills I trust.

[ouchthathurt]

Yonny, how does that work mate? Does he have the main patterns “pre-sharpened” which you can place an order for? Or do you specify the make and pattern etc and he source and sharpen the hooks before sending them out? He is the Jedi master of hook sharpening. 

[yonny]

Just now, ouchthathurt said:

Yonny, how does that work mate?

He stocks most brands and sharpens them to order. Alternatively you can send him yours and he'll do them for you:

https://sshooks.co.uk/hooks.html

He also does his own Ultra-Sharp brand. You can get the range from JR:

https://johnsonrosstackle.co.uk/1640-hand-sharpened-hooks

[ouchthathurt]

Very many thanks pal. 

[elmoputney]

2 hours ago, Pete Springate's Guns said:

Not used a JAG file. The Vallorbe pillar cut #4 is the one I’ve used. I’m on my second in 10 years so they do last-I’m looking at some cheaper alternatives of the same spec. I prefer the wider files rather than the narrower ones that JAG sell.

I treated myself to a Vallorbe No4 it was the nice wooden. Handle I needed that sold it, much more classy 😁

[elmoputney]

1 hour ago, yonny said:

He stocks most brands and sharpens them to order. Alternatively you can send him yours and he'll do them for you:

https://sshooks.co.uk/hooks.html

He also does his own Ultra-Sharp brand. You can get the range from JR:

https://johnsonrosstackle.co.uk/1640-hand-sharpened-hooks

Are his ultra Sharp brand chod hooks good? I did look at the jprecision ones last night aswell 

Also I read they are coated, are they coated after sharpening so they don't corrode? Coated would be an advantage as I am planning on chucking them into silt and that doesn't seem to favour sharpened hooks

[emmcee]

I used to sharpen them but I hadn't noticed that I had  any more or less fish on the bank than before. There was no difference in hook pulls, you always get one for one reason  or the other so now I just them straight out the packet. Before it was fashionable to sharpen hooks I'd use the same one/rig for a whole weekend and often had multiple catches with the same hook so who knows 

[yonny]

14 minutes ago, elmoputney said:

Are his ultra Sharp brand chod hooks good?

I've not used them mate. I get him to do my Atomic Choddas.  I do use his Ultra-Sharp Wide Gapers and Wide Grippas for zigs though and they're great.

17 minutes ago, elmoputney said:

Also I read they are coated, are they coated after sharpening so they don't corrode? Coated would be an advantage as I am planning on chucking them into silt and that doesn't seem to favour sharpened hooks

Nah, he gets them in coated and then sharpens them. Coatings such as teflon would ruin the sharpness anyway mate. It's only a few microns but that is enough to take away that needle sharp point.

If you're struggling with low pH silt corroding your hooks (a common occurrence) the best solution is to use a wax based coating. The expensive way to do this is to get Jason's anti rust compound (link below) which is absolutely brilliant. . It's only a fiver and will last you literally years so still cheap as chips tbh. The 'cheap' way to do it use a crayon. Give the hook point 3 or 4 strokes with the compound/crayon, then give it a quick lick with a lighter (DON'T hold the flame on the hook point). Hold the hook so any run-off during licking of the lighter will run away from the hook point, towards the barb.

https://www.walkersoftrowell.com/carp-specialist-fishing-tackle-equipment/specialist-sharpened-hooks/specialist-sharpened-hooks-anti-rust-sticks.html

[elmoputney]

1 hour ago, yonny said:

I've not used them mate. I get him to do my Atomic Choddas.  I do use his Ultra-Sharp Wide Gapers and Wide Grippas for zigs though and they're great.

Nah, he gets them in coated and then sharpens them. Coatings such as teflon would ruin the sharpness anyway mate. It's only a few microns but that is enough to take away that needle sharp point.

If you're struggling with low pH silt corroding your hooks (a common occurrence) the best solution is to use a wax based coating. The expensive way to do this is to get Jason's anti rust compound (link below) which is absolutely brilliant. . It's only a fiver and will last you literally years so still cheap as chips tbh. The 'cheap' way to do it use a crayon. Give the hook point 3 or 4 strokes with the compound/crayon, then give it a quick lick with a lighter (DON'T hold the flame on the hook point). Hold the hook so any run-off during licking of the lighter will run away from the hook point, towards the barb.

https://www.walkersoftrowell.com/carp-specialist-fishing-tackle-equipment/specialist-sharpened-hooks/specialist-sharpened-hooks-anti-rust-sticks.html

Nice one thanks for that, I do use a kids crayon normally, as I have quite a supply of those😂, that works pretty well tbh I do sometimes forget to put it on though that's when I've noticed the rust, I think I might wait for the chod hammers tbh, trig hammers were pretty sharp out the pack if they are for silty bottoms i might just keep those coated then I don't have to worry as long as they are sharp, 

I did have a thought about the rusting though, most hookbaits are designed to locally change pH with the flavours etc to boost attraction. Most people boost the stinky winky out of hookbaits too, do you think this might make them rust quicker as surely the acids are leaking from the hookbait and adding to the  corrosion?