The Winning Edge

Over the years, I’ve observed several common traits amongst that often-quoted one percent of elite anglers who are consistently successful and who regularly out-fish the rest of the field. One of the most crucial of those traits is an absolute insistence on using the sharpest possible hooks every time they put a bait, lure or fly in the water. That means using hooks with points so wickedly keen they instantly grab anything they touch. We call this “sticky sharp”.

Luckily, most hooks come from the factory “sticky sharp” these days, but they can easily dull through corrosion, wear-and-tear and contact with fish jaws or other hard surfaces — even bouncing around in tackle boxes.

Regularly testing and touching-up hooks is a common habit among that top one percent of anglers, but you need the right tools to do it properly. In my opinion, these three products are the best on the market. The Dr Slick Hook File is perfect for fiddley little hooks on smaller flies and lures, the Eze-Lap Diamond Hones are best suited to all hooks up to about 3/0 or 4/0 in size, while the Luhr-Jensen Original Hook File is ideal on larger, heavier-gauge hooks… Take your pick, or get all three!