Making your own weighted hooks.

[Charlie Two Tracks]

this will be long but bear with me if you want to make your own weighted hooks. You will need a Coleman stove or some type of heating element to get your lead up to melting. I have an old steel (small) skillet and I put it on to of my Turkey frying burner. I take some lead wheel weights and get them hot enough to melt. Once melted, I take a 3/0 or 4/0 or whatever hook and hold it with a pair of needle nose pliers. You want to have the hook held so that the part of the hook you will dip into the lead is clear of the pliers. Have a wet (not soaking) rag around to cool off the hook once you dip it in the lead. OK, now that the lead is melted, dip the section of the hook into the lead and remove quickly, cool off the lead and hook with the rag. You will only have a small amount of lead on the hook for the first few times, but as you dip, cool and repeat, you will start to get a good coating of lead on the hook. After a few times, it really layers on quickly. Once I have enough lead on the hook, I can take a file and file the lead to the desired shape I want. I then paint the lead and hook the color I choose and now I have a weighted hook the is completely different than a store bought one. Weight forward, rear, balanced, whatever I want to do. The hooks I use do not have the screw in front. I have to rig the bait and then tie it on. That is just my preference. I can take a craw and keep it on the bottom no matter how fast I retrieve or take a large swim bait down deep and run it fast. You can use a little lead or a lot. The main thing is that you now have something that is different than the other fishermen and I've found that different is usually better. That big old bass has never seen it before.
Caution! Lead melts at over 500 degrees and will burn deep and quick. Never :shock: let any water get into your melted lead or you will have an explosion on your hands, face, eyes......... you get the picture. I reload and cast bullets so I have worked with lead for a long time. Respect that melted lead. A face shield should be used and leather gloves. If you know a bullet caster, get some advice. If this isn't appropriate, the post can be deleted.