Whole in the Water
Well-Known Member
I like to coat my spoons in clear nail hardener polish to give them some clear coat protection against chipping and rust.
Replacing original hooks on spoons
- Thread starter Daveroo
- Start date
Aquaholic
Crew Member
I have a few chipped and banged up spoons that seem to be most effective now, rusty hook just to match the patina. I'm sure we all have some too.
I've been using the blued 3x mustad siwash hooks on ancient brass and brass/copper commercial spoons on the coast with good success. Those old heavy 7/0 and 8/0 spoons are really pretty when shiny and swimming right.
Once polished, the spoons are looking for any reason to corrode. Initially I tried them with big SS mustads and found the spoons hazy after a short period of trolling. Tried the blued hooks and found that they keep the spoons shiny in use. Not only that, after the spoons get any light tarnish or rust staining (from the hook) showing up overnight while I have the spoons sitting in a bucket or bottle of saltwater, tie them on and drag again the next morning and the rust staining and tarnish goes away...up comes a shiny spoon and a matte black hook.
The hook turns rusty as hell during winter storage, but re-polish the spoon, touch up the hook point, and all the red/orange rust on the hook goes away soon after it is trolled again...hook turns matte black. i've reused the 8/0 blued (rusty) mustads on those big old spoons, several summers in a row. The eyes don't go brittle like SS...you have to bend the eye with intent to remove them from the old brazed brass tail ring on those big spoons.
Your experience may vary. I don't get out to the coast but for one or two trips a year. I'm sure if you dragged them 12 hours a day for weeks on end you could get the hooks to rot away. Not my experience though with recreational seasonal use.
Once polished, the spoons are looking for any reason to corrode. Initially I tried them with big SS mustads and found the spoons hazy after a short period of trolling. Tried the blued hooks and found that they keep the spoons shiny in use. Not only that, after the spoons get any light tarnish or rust staining (from the hook) showing up overnight while I have the spoons sitting in a bucket or bottle of saltwater, tie them on and drag again the next morning and the rust staining and tarnish goes away...up comes a shiny spoon and a matte black hook.
The hook turns rusty as hell during winter storage, but re-polish the spoon, touch up the hook point, and all the red/orange rust on the hook goes away soon after it is trolled again...hook turns matte black. i've reused the 8/0 blued (rusty) mustads on those big old spoons, several summers in a row. The eyes don't go brittle like SS...you have to bend the eye with intent to remove them from the old brazed brass tail ring on those big spoons.
Your experience may vary. I don't get out to the coast but for one or two trips a year. I'm sure if you dragged them 12 hours a day for weeks on end you could get the hooks to rot away. Not my experience though with recreational seasonal use.
Yes, I do this, as well.
