NAFA 2005
Mustad has paid homage to an innovative young inventor of last century by naming an exciting new advance in fish hook design after him.
The name Mathias Topp might not be on the lips of every Australian angler, but few people have had as much influence on the way we fish today. Topp was a Mustad engineer of the late 19th and early 20th centuries who, among other things, invented the machinery that enabled automated production of fish hooks.
Mustad has named its latest series of hooks MT Point in recognition of Topp's contribution.
Can you imagine what fishing would be like today if hooks were still made manually in the old way? They'd probably cost more than the rod, the supply and range would be a fraction of what we now have and the quality nowhere near as consistent. All the advances in reel, rod and line technology wouldn't mean much without readily available hooks of a good standard.
So what is the Mustad MT Point? It's a new design in chemically sharpened hook points, which combines the tip sharpness of a needle point with the strength, durability and ease of resharpening of the flat-sided standard point. What's more, Mustad has managed to do all this in a single machining process, which moderates the cost compared to high-performance needle point hooks (which require a separate process to form the point).
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Kim Bain photographed Mathias Topp’s revolutionary hook making machine while on a Mustad factory tour in Norway last year. |
So the MT Point has much in common with Topp's original development - combining several manufacturing processes into one with resulting benefits in quality, consistency and cost.
Mustad has applied the MT Point to classic hooks from the Kirby, Limerick, Wide Gap and Beak hook families. Old favourites like the 8260, 92554 and 4540 1/2 are now available with the new point technology - all the great qualities of the classic styles, but much better sharpness and hooking power. Other improvements have been added, such as a black nickel finish on most patterns and a special new Nickel Blonde finish on the wide gaps. New packaging has also been introduced with the option of a special value pack.
Also, there is now an MT Point version of the 4202 Open Eye gang hook. Apart from the improved point and better hookups, the new black nickel-plated hook gives greater all-round efficiency in ganged hook fishing, with a tighter eye configuration giving better eye closures.
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The revolutionary new Mustad MT Point is now available on Kirby, Limerick, Wide Gap and Beak hook families, old favourites like the 8260, 92554 and 45401/2 and 4202 Open Eye gang hook, which has a tighter eye for better closure. |
Details of the new MT Point pattern and size range are:
l
Name |
Ref No. |
Size range |
Finish |
Wide gap |
37140BE |
7/0 to 2 |
Nickel blonde |
Kirby |
4200BLN |
7/0 to 1/0, 2, 4, 6 |
Black nickel |
Limerick |
8260BLN |
6/0 to 1/0, 1, 2, 4, 6 |
Black nickel |
Beak |
92554BLN |
8/0 to 1/0, 1, 2, 4, 6 |
Black nickel |
Kirby (extra long shank) |
4540 1/2 |
4/0 to 1/0, 1, 2, 4, 6 |
Black nickel |
Mustad's New Light Gauge Circle HookWorldwide, Mustad would have to have more circle hooks than anyone else, and it is still adding to the range as interest in the circle pattern extends to more types of fishing. The latest for Australian consumption is the Mustad Demon Light Gauge Circle (ref 39951NPBLN). The Demon Light Gauge is the most universal and user-friendly circle hook Mustad has yet produced. The wire gauge is finer than conventional circle models and the point and gap are designed to allow easier baiting up with natural baits. This addresses a problem that arose when circle hook usage extended to general bait fishing. The classic circle was fine for live baits and strip baits once you got the knack, but it really wasn't designed to take prawns, yabbies, worms and the other natural baits so widely used in the estuaries and freshwater. Right now, there is a lot of research going on in Australia into ways of reducing injury to hook-caught fish. The performance of the circle hook in reducing gut and throat hookups is one of the things they are looking closely at.
Mustad tested the Light Gauge Circle extensively in Australia before release and the results in deep hooking reduction have been positive. It was the hook of choice in the bait fishing section of the Rocky Barra Bounty, a major annual barra tournament on the Fitzroy River at Rockhampton. It is all catch-and-release, including the bait fishing section, so a 'fish friendly' hook is very important to its success. The Mustad Light Gauge circle comes in a broad size range, from 8/0 down to 6, so it's suitable for many types of fish, from snapper, mulloway and reef fish right down to bream, whiting and trout. Some have even successfully tied flies on it. It is a straight, non-offset hook (i.e. not kirbed or reversed) and has a smooth black nickel finish. It is chemically sharpened and equipped with Mustad's new Ultra Point technology. Anglers who are still hesitant about circle hooks for general bait fishing should give the Mustad Light Gauge Circle a try. It might just make the breakthrough. |
