Bring Back the Hook Keeper!

clarkman

average member
Forum Supporter
I like hook keepers. All my rods have them and I use them. I don't understand why a piece of wire and some wraps is such a big deal, to manufacturers or people that don't use them.

Then again, I don't understand why anyone would use streamers. Might as well just cast lures on a gear rod. Some people are just broken, I guess.
well, as soon as you start actually fly fishing, then you can join the conversation.... :LOL: I hear that flipping rigs fish nymphs very very well....

sincerely,
Broken



I really hope most of you are just joking around....seems a little weird timing for shack nasties...
 

Northern

Seeking SMB
Forum Supporter
I prefer having the option of using a hookkeeper, and get annoyed with my Echo and Orvis rods for not having one.
I do the reel seat wrap for long leaders/long term storage (like rigging up the night before) but very often my leader is short for subsurface stuff anyway. When walking or driving to a new spot, I find the wrapped leader running up to a guide is more likely to tangle or catch on something. Not only is there one more strand, but it's held out further from the rod then it would be tucked into a hookkeeper.

You do you with custom rods, but for production fly rods, I am baffled as to why they would omit a virtually inconspicuous, historically available feature because some percentage of buyers might not use it!

@_WW_ I'm genuinely curious about how and what part of yourself you managed to injure with a hookkeeper! :unsure:
 

Tom Butler

Grandpa, Small Stream Fanatic
Forum Supporter
How are you liking that rod?
I really like it, from shore and in the float tube. I'd have no qualms recommending it to someone. Really casts quick release indicator rigs well, which is how I usually fish with it. I use/bring a 9' rod for my sinking line fishing.
 

ABITNF

Steelhead
I can't think of the last time I used a leader shorter than ten feet in freshwater. So the idea of getting a bend in the leader an annoyance is a mystery to me. Feel free to enlighten me.

In the salt my leader runs about 5 feet off the end of a polyleader. In lakes I run 12 to 25 or more for chironomids. I stopped fishing rivers because of the snaggers in fall and I can't see myself harrassing the few remaining steelhead in winter.

I like keepers and can't see why they aren't included. If people don't want to use them, use the stripping guide instead.
 

_WW_

Geriatric Skagit Swinger
Forum Supporter
@_WW_ I'm genuinely curious about how and what part of yourself you managed to injure with a hookkeeper! :unsure:
Wet water logged hands from fishing all day. I liked to hold that rod at the end of the cork for balance and with the line coming over the top of my index finger. Hard Steelhead take pulled the rod tip into the water. With line peeling off the reel the hook keeper managed to bury itself in my water logged finger in the blink of an eye. It wasn't the first time it happened but it was the first time it drew blood. Enough already!

I hook the fly on the reel next to the reel foot. When the neoprene reel cover goes over it the hook is covered. You can also bring the leader around the the stem of the foot instead of the reel before going back up to a guide. Keeps the line next to the blank.
 

Tom Butler

Grandpa, Small Stream Fanatic
Forum Supporter
I can't think of the last time I used a leader shorter than ten feet in freshwater. So the idea of getting a bend in the leader an annoyance is a mystery to me. Feel free to enlighten me.
Fishing a type 6 in lakes. Boobie fly, not uncommon to have 18". A common leader length for me for one fly is 4-5'. I worry more about a kink in the fly line.
 

iveofione

Life of the Party
Forum Supporter
Fuji makes a flip up hook holder that attaches to any rod with an O-ring. Cabelas/Bass Pro sells them for $3.50 apiece, Amazon sells the exact same one for $8.42! Google Fuji Hook Keeper to take a look at it. This appears to be a cheap and labor free way to get that missing hook holder. Then if you loan your rod to some crank that hates hook keepers you can just take it off!

Some complained that the O-ring was either too big or too small for their particular rod! Duh. Just go to a hardware store and buy one that fits, no need to throw out the baby with the bath water.
 

wanderingrichard

Life of the Party
I can't think of the last time I used a leader shorter than ten feet in freshwater. So the idea of getting a bend in the leader an annoyance is a mystery to me. Feel free to enlighten me.

In the salt my leader runs about 5 feet off the end of a polyleader. In lakes I run 12 to 25 or more for chironomids. I stopped fishing rivers because of the snaggers in fall and I can't see myself harrassing the few remaining steelhead in winter.

I like keepers and can't see why they aren't included. If people don't want to use them, use the stripping guide instead.
I've never used a leader longer than 12 feet on a fly rod. Some of the small water I've fished, a leader the length you're talking about would put my presentation far fast the other bank. Are you doing this for highly pressured fish on wide slow flowing rivers ?
 

Evan B

Bobber Downey Jr.
Staff member
Admin
I prefer having the option of using a hookkeeper, and get annoyed with my Echo and Orvis rods for not having one.
I do the reel seat wrap for long leaders/long term storage (like rigging up the night before) but very often my leader is short for subsurface stuff anyway. When walking or driving to a new spot, I find the wrapped leader running up to a guide is more likely to tangle or catch on something. Not only is there one more strand, but it's held out further from the rod then it would be tucked into a hookkeeper.

You do you with custom rods, but for production fly rods, I am baffled as to why they would omit a virtually inconspicuous, historically available feature because some percentage of buyers might not use it!

@_WW_ I'm genuinely curious about how and what part of yourself you managed to injure with a hookkeeper! :unsure:
The number of people who are annoyed by having them is higher than those who are annoyed by their absence. Ask me how I know.
 

Matt B

RAMONES
Forum Supporter
A lot of this discussion is surprising to me. I’m a hook keeper fan.

I started a poll:
 

krusty

We're on the Road to Nowhere...
Forum Supporter
Having recently purchased an Echo rod I was mildly surprised to see no hook keeper. No big deal...I just use the reel seat. Actually works a bit better in the rod vault than the rods with hook keepers because the hooks don't get caught in the rod socks (as do those in the keepers) my wife sewed up to protect the fully strung up rods in the vault.
 

Trout Trekker

Steelhead
T.I.C. :unsure:

Could the absence of hook keepers on new production rods have less to do with customer satisfaction and more to do with saving the small amount of labor and material involved with filing down their feet, wrapping and finishing them?

Leaving them off the rod's beats giving their rod wrappers a raise. Instead, the companies just cut the time it takes to wrap and finish a rod and the rod wrappers and finishers turn in just a bit more piece work in the same amount of time it would've taken them to produce fewer rods. Naw, no capitalist would do a thing like that, right? :rolleyes:
 
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Evan B

Bobber Downey Jr.
Staff member
Admin
T.I.C. :unsure:

Could the absence of hook keepers on new production rods have less to do with customer satisfaction and more to do with saving the small amount of labor and material involved with filing down their feet, wrapping and finishing them?

:rolleyes:
No, I can promise you, it's about what people want. I know it seems weird, but especially on higher price point and saltwater rods, they are not wanted by a LOT of people.
 

Northern

Seeking SMB
Forum Supporter
Another reason for not wanting to use the guides as a HK: I use rod sleeves often to transport halved rods, and a fly up on a guide sometimes gets caught in the mesh.

Honestly, I'd prefer one like this, brought to you by the innovators at Maxcatch 😆
Screenshot_20220722-093251_Chrome.jpg
 

Stonedfish

Known Grizzler-hater of triploids, humpies & ND
Forum Supporter
I wonder, say for a larger company how much money not putting a hook keeper on would save if they produced a bunch of rods and models? You obviously have the cost of materials plus the additional labor / time involved with adding one.

I myself like them but would buy a rod without one if I liked it.
SF
 
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