I bought some JN budget hooks. With the size 18s, several bent in a fish and one snapped at the bend.
So I bought some Varivas 2100 standard dry fly hooks. So far, in 2 outings, 3 of them have straightened at the bend when in a fish.
I've not bent the hook by snagging it behind me.

The fish were, as far as I could tell in the 2-3lb bracket and I'm not fierce with my striking nor try to drag a fish in from the off.

Should I be getting this level of hook failure?

Bill

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"Take not out your 'ounds on a werry windy day" Surtees.

Try the Partridge SLD.

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[COLOR="Blue"]"A fish seen is a fish nearly caught"[/COLOR]

What weight rod you using?

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http://eclecticangler.blogspot.com/

Sounds like both are a soft metal wire. I don't know varivas but budget hooks are often soft and cheap. I prefer tiemco and mustad personally, but some like partridge.

Also, try to stick to a sharper bend in the hook and not a round bend. I find a round bend is more prone to bending out regardless of the metal.

Thanks
Rick

This is interesting, i have never experienced any issues with size 18 hooks bending and have used many from various manufacturers.
Diachii have proved to be good hooks for me generally, but it is the very small sizes i have had issues with.
The Orvis branded hooks which i think are supplied from Diachii will actually bend in the vice from size 24 upwards whilst tying the fly.

I had a Varaivas barbless nymph hook (size12) straightened by an over zealous trout just last week. Surprised and disappointed, but put it down to the shape of the hook (big gape) , maybe a rogue batch of hooks and the size of the fish. I thought Varivas was a quality brand but maybe I need to look elsewhere.

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All good things come by grace, grace comes by art and art does not come easy.
Norman Maclean

Drennan Super Specialist hooks will not let you down. They are dear and in piddling little quantities when you buy them but they solve that problem perfectly. I've used them on the Lathkill and Wye to catch fish in the 5lbs bracket and not a sign of them straightening.

richard

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Who resides on the right bank of the Derbyshire Wye and is lulled to sleep each night by the mutterings of a weir, dreaming that "When the rivers and their inhabitants come first, we ALL win..."

You pays your money and you takes your choice. With hooks and line I would buy the very best that you get your hands on. After all that is what connects you to the fish and you just know that when you get the fish of a lifetime on .................@$$**%. If it says budget........bin it..............birdsnest

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Fear not if I steal from your side, as of yore, from paradise streams to fish Teifi once more.
BN based in Wolverhampton

Wouldn't touch Partridge hooks, same thing was happening to me, they'd straighten out as soon as look at 'em. Try using Mustad, eyed, carp hooks.

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How poor a thing, sometimes I find,
Will captivate a greedy mind - Isaac Walton.

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*****©(

For micro flies I don't like most fly hooks. The size of the fly is really determined by the length of the hook, not the gape. As a result I use strong specimen coarse hooks in size 18 to tie flies that have a body size equivalent to a lot of size 22-24 fly hooks. As a result I have very small flies with far better hooking and a lot stronger.

You lose some buoyancy however at that size it doesn't make a huge difference and have incorporated ethafoam into the likes of my caenis initiations...will try and figure out how to post a photo.

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http://s849.photobucket.com/albums/ab57/RoryAMKennedy/Flytying/?action=view&current=P1030708.jpg