mustad uptide viking 79515

codcatcher3000

codcatcher3000

Well-known member
hi guys just wondering if anyone uses this hook regularly for beach fishing. i normally use kamasans and sakuma mantas and find them very sharp. i bought a packet of these mustads and read on the packet about an extra sharp tip etc. however i found them not as sticky ( not catching in my thumbnail ) when compared to my sakumas. ive not landed no fish on it either keep getting missed hook ups. just wondering what your experiences are on these particular hooks .. once again thanks in advance. more than likely i will just be going back to sakumas. unless ive just bought a dodgy batch
 
Lots of people I know use little else and catch plenty of fish on them. They definitely aren't as sharp as the Sakumas though - personally I use the Powerworms 90721NBPR which are a bit sharper than the Vikings and a very good hook for the rough with big crab baits. Can't get my favourite old Gamakatsu G-points any more but for worm baits and the like, these days I tend to favour the Kamasan Uptiders, which are very sharp, and can also be used in the rough as they bend out without snapping (unlike the Snapkumas;)).

Gary :)
 
codcatcher3000 said:
hi guys just wondering if anyone uses this hook regularly for beach fishing. i normally use kamasans and sakuma mantas and find them very sharp. i bought a packet of these mustads and read on the packet about an extra sharp tip etc. however i found them not as sticky ( not catching in my thumbnail ) when compared to my sakumas. ive not landed no fish on it either keep getting missed hook ups. just wondering what your experiences are on these particular hooks .. once again thanks in advance. more than likely i will just be going back to sakumas. unless ive just bought a dodgy batch
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always used them for winter cod and not lost as many fish as some claim to have over the years so therefore i can not fault them and i never use over a 4/0
 
Had lots of different hooks over the years and never found any difference. I've been using the Vikings for the 20+ years now as it's a great all round hook you can use anywhere beach or rock edges, the only time I use a different hook is when i'm fishing for flatties
 
Whilst I used to use Vikings for everything, these days I prefer circle hooks, yes they are a bugger to bait up, but for catch and release they can't be beaten. The smaller 2/0 are excellent when using live sand eel/launce ( landed a 18lb Turbot on one on the Channel Islands a few year back), whereas the 4/0 will cope with anything that swims.
90% of the hooked fish are hooked in either the lips or scissors.
Try em, you will be surprised, but you've got to persevere - don't strike, just wind in, also if using breakaway leads , the fish self hook.
 
Jeffrob445 said:
Whilst I used to use Vikings for everything, these days I prefer circle hooks, yes they are a bugger to bait up, but for catch and release they can't be beaten. The smaller 2/0 are excellent when using live sand eel/launce ( landed a 18lb Turbot on one on the Channel Islands a few year back), whereas the 4/0 will cope with anything that swims.
90% of the hooked fish are hooked in either the lips or scissors.
Try em, you will be surprised, but you've got to persevere - don't strike, just wind in, also if using breakaway leads , the fish self hook.
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i tried semi circles and found i was releasing most of the fish .. before i actually caught them..

missed nearly all bites but.... the odd fish i did catch was hooked in the scissors :mad:
 
codcatcher3000 said:
hi guys just wondering if anyone uses this hook regularly for beach fishing. i normally use kamasans and sakuma mantas and find them very sharp. i bought a packet of these mustads and read on the packet about an extra sharp tip etc. however i found them not as sticky ( not catching in my thumbnail ) when compared to my sakumas. ive not landed no fish on it either keep getting missed hook ups. just wondering what your experiences are on these particular hooks .. once again thanks in advance. more than likely i will just be going back to sakumas. unless ive just bought a dodgy batch
Click to expand...

once you catch a few fish on them or have a good session using them your confidence will increase dramatically.

you,ll catch more fish on a hook your confident with.
 
I use the uptide vikings in 4/0 for the rough ground. And jve tried a few others but always go back to vikings.
They bend out rather than you losing a rig and hold firm when in a fish I find.
The point does tend to curl after pulling out of a snag so a good hook sharpener is needed!
I always check and hone the point when baiting up.
 
I use the Mustad Vikings (79510 and 79515) a lot of the time but mostly the Mustad "bigeyes" (90721) as Gary has said.
Good hooks for our type of fishing, they don't snap and bend out of snags with a steady pull, they can be re-sharpened pretty well too as Roker has said. (I have found some of the more brittle higher carbon hooks don't re-sharpen that well).
If I had any criticism of them I would say that nowadays there is a trend for making the barbs smaller and personally I'd prefer it if they were a fraction bigger. If you get hung up with a good fish and want to give it some slack, (always a last resort), then a bigger barb is handy.
Just my opinion for what it's worth, some will agree some won't.

Regards Ian
 
thanks everyone the info has given me a bit more confidence. . at the moment my pulleys have the 4.0 mustad at the bottom hook with either a sakuma manta 3.0 top hook or a semi circle top hook. only time will tell . once again thanks for the info , much appreciated
 
dabcatcher said:
i tried semi circles and found i was releasing most of the fish .. before i actually caught them..

missed nearly all bites but.... the odd fish i did catch was hooked in the scissors :mad:
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Tried semi-circles and, well, threw em away! Proper circles are a different kettle of fish (pun intended).I "learned" how to use circles fishing for bass on Devon beaches and Black Bream from the boat - took a long long time to work them out. The urge to strike is very hard to overcome! Once you get over it though, similarly baiting up - you have got to be so careful not to mask the hook point. Also they seem more suited for crab/fish /squid baits than worm.
 
when using full circles . i find using a baiting tool helps. i made mine from xl paperclips . i find it most useful in the winter when whiting are feasting . ...no need to faff about with deep hooked whiting....my least favourite circle hook is the fladens , but favour tronixpro full circles
 
codcatcher3000 said:
when using full circles . i find using a baiting tool helps. i made mine from xl paperclips . i find it most useful in the winter when whiting are feasting . ...no need to faff about with deep hooked whiting....my least favourite circle hook is the fladens , but favour tronixpro full circles
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I prefer the Sakumas or, if you can find them, Owner. The latter (bought from Veals a good few years back - wish I'd bought more) are absolutely bullet proof, never blunted one even fishing rock marks for Huss.
 
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