Silver hooks, Gold Hooks or Black hooks

[lomond]

Hi All, I tied up a few flies last autumn on silver Esmond Drury trebles. I had some success with these, however not sure if I would have caught the fish anyway if I was using my usual black hook.

I have tied up a few more flies over the winter on Partridge Salar silver & gold hooks.

Would be interested to know if Forum members have any preference for hook colour and if their catches have increased(or decreased) using silver/gold hooks or does it not make any difference ??

Cheers Lomond

[storlaks]

Lomond, I personally think it's more a cosmetic thing rather than a fish attractor. Somes flies look better on gold/silver hooks than the standard black, but I don't think the salmon care.

I use salar hooks myself but that's more to do with the hook rather than the colour.

[hardygem]

personally i think the different colours are there to catch the fisherman i'm not to sure what effect they might have on the fish
it's nice to have the choice though ;D it gives us more tying options

[granters]

As a fly tyer i would have to say that certain patterns do look better on gold or silver hooks(i don't use anything but Salars). But if you look at a gold or silver hook under the water , especially coloured, there is very little difference. It's an old question this one, but personally i am just a wee bit more confident fishing witha gold or silver Salar hook. I don't know why. It's surely the pattern the fish looks at in the end, if they looked at the hooks they'd surely think "bloody hell!There's a massive hook hangin outta that shrimps arse!" ;D

[betanut]

hardygem said:

personally i think the different colours are there to catch the fisherman i'm not to sure what effect they might have on the fish
it's nice to have the choice though ;D it gives us more tying options

Yup = pretty much what I was going to say

[macd]

i like silver hooks simply because they make some patterns look pretty. but a silver stoat on a black hook offers contrast- always good medicine in a salmon fly.

[Sloggi]

I don't think they're there to catch the angler

I find both the gold and silver work really well on certain flies. On the fly-tying section there are some super looking Silver Ally's Shrimps and here the silver hool adds to the pattern. I had a lot of success with the Ness C and Flamethrower last autumn which were tied on silver and/or gold Salar hooks and looked great in the slightly darker water. I use the silver Salar almost exclusively for my sea-trout flies - mainly variations of the Teal, Blue and Silver and Medicine.

[easky]

I think its a bit of both - coloured hooks do look better imo on particular patterns and really set the fly off, hence do catch the angler.

But also they do add a bit of extra 'trigger colour', after all the silver body tinsel on a Silver Stoat for instance is one of the triggers for that pattern. By extending the silver by using a silver hook imo can only add to the attraction - or at least that is what I tell myself anyway.

Like others have said though - if coloured hooks help to make you more confident in the fly then that can only be a good thing.

One point to note - I have been using ED silver and gold hooks but have noticed that the points aren't as needle sharp as my older black ones. Has anybody else noticed this? (or maybe its just the batch of coloured hooks I got were not as well finished?).

E

[dunbar]

I don't think it matters much - I think if you were to put an undressed silver or gold hook over a taker, he would have it. The fish doesn't 'know' its a hook.

[lomond]

easky, my ED silver trebles look just as sharp or sharper than the black ones, therefore could be the batch you had.

Thanks for all the replies. I now have three times as many flies as I usually have !

[Fruin]

lomond said:

Thanks for all the replies. I now have three times as many flies as I usually have !

That'll be 30,000 flies now then

[lomond]

still 10,000 behind yourself !

[kenziemac]

Morning Chaps,
In General I agree that there is truth in all points made.
However as a semi pro fly dresser, my experiences indicate that when selling flies, the first thing you have to do is catch the fisherman first.
If I lay a few hundred assorted hooks, patterns out for viewing / sale, the last to go are, in general, always the black.
Experienced guys / girls recognise some of the hooks and they are particular about the brand first, then the colour.
Just add to the confusion, my own preference is for Ken sawada Low water doubles, they are not as flashy as some and haven't as yet let me down and do hook well.
Each to his own I suppose.

Easky, I must have tied and fished with 000's of ED trebles (less so recently) and I personally have never had to sharpen a blunt one.
Even when on a sinking line in the autumn with leaves, twigs etc. coming down, though I switch to tubes for the really deep stuff and after pinging a few rocks I check the points and re point or change the hook as necessary.
Hope this helps
Kenziemac

[easky]

kenziemac said:

Morning Chaps,
In General I agree that there is truth in all points made.
However as a semi pro fly dresser, my experiences indicate that when selling flies, the first thing you have to do is catch the fisherman first.
If I lay a few hundred assorted hooks, patterns out for viewing / sale, the last to go are, in general, always the black.
Experienced guys / girls recognise some of the hooks and they are particular about the brand first, then the colour.
Just add to the confusion, my own preference is for Ken sawada Low water doubles, they are not as flashy as some and haven't as yet let me down and do hook well.
Each to his own I suppose.

Easky, I must have tied and fished with 000's of ED trebles (less so recently) and I personally have never had to sharpen a blunt one.
Even when on a sinking line in the autumn with leaves, twigs etc. coming down, though I switch to tubes for the really deep stuff and after pinging a few rocks I check the points and re point or change the hook as necessary.
Hope this helps
Kenziemac

thanks Kenziemac, think I may have just had a poorer batch - they are not dull as such but just not as needle sharp as the older black ones I have.

E