Anyone tried the Victory hooks? They look just like the Matsuo sickle hooks. I liked the Matsuos, but they were never strong enough to suit me. I wondered if the Victory hooks might be stronger.

https://barlowstackle.com/victory-11149bn-jig-hook-sizes-8-4-0/

Never tried those. I use eagleclaw lil nasty's and am extremely pleased with them. Plus they are cheaper

Did a little research on Victory hooks, they are a new company breaking into the industry.

Yes, and I always liked the shape of the Matsuo sickle hooks, but disliked the metal they were made of, hence my curiosity about these new hooks that are shaped just like the Matsuos. With no feedback on my post, I was just going to go ahead and order some to try out, but Barlows doesn't have either the size 6's or 4's in stock yet, so I guess I'll do that later.

I have spoken with them and they have told me the design has been improved and the problems of the past have been fixed. We plan on having some in the next couple of weeks.

A guy I have known for a long time now over on CDC had this to say about these hooks.

I have some samples of size 2 and 4 coming in the 90 degree hook style. I read an article on them it's a guy from Matzuo and Mustad teaming up so they're no rookies to the hook making business!.

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Got some victory hooks in today! They might just hyper dermic needle sharp! Will post link in classifieds when ready to go! I do know they had to send some back to factory because they did not meet standards so that is a good sign for quality control. Because of this inventory is a bit limited at the moment.

I bought some size 2 black nickel hooks from Barlows and gave one a real workout today (caught 26 keeper crappie on it). I am not that impressed. The shape is the same as the old Matsuo black nickel, but the point is not the straight point that the Matsuo black had, and doesn't match the images of the new black hook on either Barlows or Victory Hooks web sites either. Rather, it has the long curved point that the old Matsuo red and gold hooks had. I never liked that point. And just like the Matsuos, the hook bends much too easily to suit me, and after it first bends, just catching a small crappie will bend it again. And of course, the point isn't hardened, so if it just lightly kisses concrete or a dock piling, it folds over. If you don't mind doing a lot of re-bending and re-sharpening the point really often, it's a passable replacement for the old Matsuo hooks, but I had hoped for better.

Edit: I was mistaken about those 26 keepers. I caught them on a two jig rig, and four bit the smaller top jig, so I actually only caught 22 on the new Victory hook. Still, that's a lot of re-bending that the hook held up to. As I recall, the old Matsuo blacks would break before you re-bent them that many times. So, maybe the metal in the new ones is better. Now, if they had just put a straight point on that hook, as advertised....

The Aberdeen style has a straight point. They told me the steel was better than the old style. Thanks for the info Bud.

I like the look of those Aberdeen hooks. Like the Matsuos and the Victory hooks I've used, they are shorter, with a wider gap than what I've been using. That's perfect for plastics, which is all I use on a jig. I might be tempted to try the Aberdeens if they weren't made of the same feeble metal as the other Victory hooks.

I've decided to go a different way, and we'll see how it works. I've been using Mustad 32746 hooks. I like them, but they have their own set of problems. They have a great, really strong point, but they're actually too strong for crappie hooks. They don't want to bend enough when you hang up. Plus, they are longer and have a more narrow gap than the Matsuo hooks, which I don't like as well. So, I've decided to try bending the Mustads, to give them a wider gap and make them shorter. The photo of size 4 hooks below shows an original Mustad on the left, a Matsuo in the middle, and a Mustad that I've re-bent on the right.



As you can see, the gap width and hook length of the modified Mustad more closely matches the Matsuo. Of course, re-bending a hook will weaken it, but since the Mustad was too dang strong to begin with, I don't think that will be a problem. We'll see next fishing trip.

Well, I definitely like my re-bent Mustads better than the Matsuos or Victorys. But I can see there will be days when I'd prefer a more bendy hook, so I'm going to carry some jigs with the Victory hooks, too. Even after being re-bent, the Mustads still don't want to bend when you hang up. They are just stronger than crappie hooks ever need to be.

The thing I have learned to do is not set the hook on structure, it takes work to not dig a hook into structure for sure.....
I don't want a hook that will straighten out on structure and for sure not while fighting a fish....
Mustad make some great hooks.....IMO

But you don't need to set the hook on mossy bridge or dock pilings to get hopelessly hung up. A hook that won't bend is a jig that breaks off, even with my braid, after I've wrapped it around a wooden dowel in order to pull hard enough to break it. I've started using more bendy hooks when dock shooting, and on the upper jig of the two jig rig I fish so often at bridges.


I agree. For the price, they are hard to beat.