Drennan carp maggot hooks

[mikench]

I like these , or did, in sizes 18 and 20 for roach fishing. I buy the red ones. They only come in sizes , 16, 18,20 and 22 so I assume are meant for silver fish! I have had a few open up at the gape when an errant carp has taken my maggot which is understandable but i had 2 open up yesterday when I caught a Chub ! In both instances I struck and had a fish on briefly only To lose it for this reason! I knew they were Chub because they were caught on the drop as they cruised around near the surface.

Has anyone else had this problem and am I expecting too much from them! I repeat that only a few have failed but it does affect your confidence in them. I only use them as hooks to nylon.

 

[flightliner]

Mike, agree, I began using them when fishing maggot but once when fishing stick float on the Trent I hit two moderately sized Bream that opened up the size eighteen hook sufficiently for the fish to not being landed.
I only ever consider using them now if the water I'm fishing is only likely to produce small fish.

 

[mikench]

What do you use now Mick ? I have some animal in sizes 18 and 20 so shall try them! I don't know of any others.

 

[flightliner]

Mike, at the moment I'm content to use the Drennan wide gapes in eighteens/twenties that do ok with either maggot or tares, but I still like the old style model perfect pattern when stick float fishing and there are lots of smaller end chub(up to a couple of lbs or slightly more) . It always seems to me that no matter how small the hook is it's purchase is never in doubt.
That said with a decant Redfin nodding like a donkey on its way upstream it's a totally differant ballgame .

 

[David Rogers 3]

I've just ordered some Kamasan B911 F1s, after losing quite a few fish on the ready-tied Drennan Silverfish Maggot hooks I've been using for a while now. The B911 F1s are described by the advertising blurb as "a fine wire version of the original classic B911.

They are an ideal hook for shy F1 carp and quality silverfish.

Tied to hi-tech, low diameter Japanese monofilament they are perfect for small expander pellets, maggots, casters and corn."

I'll post on here when I've had a chance to try them!

 

[theartist]

I've found those Drennan hooks to be quite a fine wire Mike, I'm not sure what breaking strain they are recommended for though, also found the size 18 to be on the large size.

For maggot and coupled with 3lb - 3lb 8oz hooklengths I use kamazan B510 any higher bs and they will bend but they are ideal for roach and chub fishing and have had plenty of big barbel on them too. I also prefer them to animals as they are less shiny, they do bend on the odd snag but very rarely on a fish which is ideal, being a tight git I just bend them back with the forceps and they seem to be good as new

 

[mikench]

The Drennan are 3lb bs in size 18 and the animals are 2lb 12 oz I think in the same size! It's so frustrating when you target a fish for ages, get a bite and lose it believing it to be your incompetence and then examine the hook and see how wide the gape is! It's taken me ages to get into the habit of changeing hooks regularly often after a single struggle with a large fish and I now check it on every retrieve! A hook to nylon costs about 20p so it's not the expense just the annoyance!

One continues to live and learn!

 

[theartist]

Get a hook tyer and tie your own, this gives an ifinite amount of possibilities with the hook size/make and line strength plus after years of fine tuning you could get a hook/line combo that you have absolute faith in and is taliored to your needs

The options with pre tied hooks to nylon are small in comparison

 

[mikench]

I agree Rob but I doubt I'd get on with one! I have a Maver hair rig tyer and struggle. I have a matchman which I found in a car park ! It had been run over but I thought I might be able to fix it( I too am a tight git) but to no avail. I find packet hooks so much easier and quicker. I know people spend winter evenings making hook lengths but that's not for me.

Drennen or Matchman that is the question . Whether tis nobler .............. !

 

[theartist]

I agree Rob but I doubt I'd get on with one! I have a Maver hair rig tyer and struggle. I have a matchman which I found in a car park ! It had been run over but I thought I might be able to fix it( I too am a tight git) but to no avail. I find packet hooks so much easier and quicker. I know people spend winter evenings making hook lengths but that's not for me.

Drennen or Matchman that is the question . Whether tis nobler .............. !

I prefer the drennan(the dark red one, I think someone else made it back in the day, mines about 20 years old) but my dad uses the matchman, he is as ham fisted as you get but can still tie a hook in his 80s. Once you get to grips with tying your own you wont ever go back to pre tied, it is worth the effort long term, takes me about ten to fifteen minutes to tie half a dozen and just tie them as and when rather than in bulk.

edit - For heavier line you can still use knotless knots and eyed hooks etc but for roach fishing with finer lines you can't beat tying your own

 

[mikench]

Are the blue Drennan Hook tyer and the red one the same or is the former an improvement? Can they only be used with spade end hooks? Off topic but I'm not bothered and one never knows!

 

[theartist]

Are the blue Drennan Hook tyer and the red one the same or is the former an improvement? Can they only be used with spade end hooks? Off topic but I'm not bothered and one never knows!

Just checked and my red one is the Drennan, sorry about the confusion on that one mate, the blue one looks very similar if not identical

They are designed to whip round the shank on spade ends and look identical to pre tied when done correctly not sure if you can do similar with eyed never tried that

 

[peter crabtree]

I've never had a red maggot hook straighten out on a fish. If you want a strong wire hook to lightish nylon look at Kamasan B911. They are barbed but it's easy to crush the barb with forceps....

 

[mikench]

I've had 3 of these hooks widen quite a lot after hooking a large/ tenacious fish! I landed one but lost two! I bought some kamasan b911 today as it happens.

 

[sam vimes]

If you are after a smaller barbless, spade end hook with a bit of backbone (without being too heavy), give the Guru Kaizen a go.

 

[rayner]

The F1 911s are just right for silvers, quite capable of catching small carp. 4lbish.
611s are another decent hook for silvers. Eyed hooks can also be whipped like a spade end, if the eyes big enough knotless is better.
Try to do your own hooks mike it's really simple, get a mate to show you how. trying hooks your self is the only way to go, in my opinion. I just wouldn't trust ready tied.

 

[sam vimes]

Unlike many, I have no trust issues with modern pre-tied hooklinks. However, I invariably tie my own, usually on the bank as required. I need the flexibility to decide on my own hook pattern, hook size, type/breaking strain of line, and length of hooklink.

Any type of spade end tying takes a bit of practice, whether you use a tyer or fingers. I never mastered tying by hand, and don't like the Matchman at all. Fortunately, I find the Drennan tyer gives me no trouble, at least until it gets really worn.

When my eyes, or my manual dexterity, deteriorate enough, I'll use hooks to nylon more regularly. They have their time and place. However, I can't quite fathom a regular angler, without such issues, relying on them. They can have exactly what they need rather than a vague best fit. They'll also save a few quid in the longer term.

 

[David Rogers 3]

I tried out the Kamasan B911 F1s yesterday on a club pool with a lot of small roach and perch, plus some big perch and F1s. The size 20 to 2.4lb mono coped very well with the smaller fish, but I can't say it would be suitable for F1s of any size - I had one take so vicious that it stripped line from the (centre pin) reel and snapped the hooklength before I had chance to react! Having said that, I think I prefer them (for fishing single maggot) to the Drennan Silverfish Maggot hooks I was using before.

 

[mikench]

When my eyes, or my manual dexterity, deteriorate enough

Sadly I think I have reached that stage . I might treat myself to the Drennan and try it. Tigger makes tying on a spade end hook look so easy!

 

[mikench]

I have been persuaded to buy a Drennan hook tyer so one is on order! I just need some spade end hooks in sizes 18 and 20 to begin with. If I get on with it I will get some larger! So far I have seen Guru Kaizen and Drennan super spades recommended and will try some of each! If you hear nothing from me again on this issue you can assume I've failed!hno::thumbsdown: