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Location: 31 | It all depends on how much effort you want to put into it because it's actually pretty easy to make a super snap out of the commonly found .043/360 pound test high-quality wire. I originally copied the standard Sampo snap (right), but incorporated the longer tag end so they wouldn't open on a headshot, and after 20 years… very few issues. Matter of fact; after seeing the snaps I make, AHL took it to the next level with larger size/heavier gauge wire (left). My problem now is that I have several generations of snaps in circulation, and other than them getting shiny, it's hard to tell how old, or how much use they have had. So, this winter I plan on making all new so that I can keep track of them... I'm also switching out all my swivels just to be on the safe side. I'm supremely confident that one of these properly made .043 snaps would easily outlast any leader currently being made… and although the AHLs are too bulky for me, it's a near lifetime snap.
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Location: Ontario | Looks so simple that it's almost hard to believe that it's so good
Thanks for posting picture! |
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Posts: 1126
Location: Minnesota. | Jerry Newman - 9/2/2014 6:50 PM
and although the AHLs are too bulky for me, it's a near lifetime snap.
I gotta grit my back teeth when I change baits using AHL snaps. Good stuff!!!
Besides the aformentioned twisted, melted/split ring, permanent leaders I think I'm set.
Good fishing, boys!! Important topic!!
Jeremy. |
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Posts: 994
Location: Minnesota: where it's tough to be a sportsfan! | I think it can be human nature to think the leader/snap is new, not that old. Done that myself. Every time we have guests that bring their own gear we go it before we hit the water. The Stay-Locs are great snaps, just change them out. I really like that you can change the snaps out without having to change the whole leader. This also allows fro lighter snaps to be put on if downsizing baits w/o a retie. |
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Posts: 167
Location: Tomahawk, WI | Folks, don't over-think this issue!!!! These are snaps we are talking about here. This is one of the cheapest parts of the entire musky fishing equation. The type of snap you use when fishing for muskies is irrelevant. You are talking about a part that costs pennies to produce. The simple fact is that these things are going to fail from time to time. That is a fact! There is no telling when or why it will happen.
So you lost a fish because the snap failed. Oh well. Get over it and tie on a new lure. If you spend one second thinking about why it happened you've wasted you're time. You can find a different snap company or use split rings as it was suggested but none of that is fool proof. These are Muskies we are chasing and they are mean nasty creatures that torture equipment. You are going to have equipment failures so get use to it. If you cant deal with that, go fish for bass. |
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Location: 31 | banditman - 9/3/2014 1:07 PM Folks, don't over-think this issue!!!! These are snaps we are talking about here. This is one of the cheapest parts of the entire musky fishing equation. The type of snap you use when fishing for muskies is irrelevant. You are talking about a part that costs pennies to produce. The simple fact is that these things are going to fail from time to time. That is a fact! There is no telling when or why it will happen. So you lost a fish because the snap failed. Oh well. Get over it and tie on a new lure. If you spend one second thinking about why it happened you've wasted you're time. You can find a different snap company or use split rings as it was suggested but none of that is fool proof. These are Muskies we are chasing and they are mean nasty creatures that torture equipment. You are going to have equipment failures so get use to it. If you cant deal with that, go fish for bass. “If you spend one second thinking about why it happened you've wasted you're time.”
Yikes: Maybe it’s just me, but if I have an equipment failure, I’m thinking about how I can correct it… heck, I even try to think about stuff and correct it before it happens.
Maybe I'm wasting my time… maybe not? But maybe you weren't muskie fishing before the split ring system or Stay locs were available? I say this because the reason people began using split rings, and why I began making my own snaps was because of a lack of decent options, and major issues with what many considered the best option back then, Berkley cross-lock. It was a problem for me and my friends, with many dead fish attributed to those snaps breaking.
If nobody was willing to figure out a better way back then, we would not have some of these better options now, and even though it will never be 100% foolproof… doesn't necessarily mean we should stop reaching for it either.
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Posts: 47
| banditman - 9/3/2014 1:07 PM
Folks, don't over-think this issue!!!! These are snaps we are talking about here. This is one of the cheapest parts of the entire musky fishing equation. The type of snap you use when fishing for muskies is irrelevant. You are talking about a part that costs pennies to produce. The simple fact is that these things are going to fail from time to time. That is a fact! There is no telling when or why it will happen.
So you lost a fish because the snap failed. Oh well. Get over it and tie on a new lure. If you spend one second thinking about why it happened you've wasted you're time. You can find a different snap company or use split rings as it was suggested but none of that is fool proof. These are Muskies we are chasing and they are mean nasty creatures that torture equipment. You are going to have equipment failures so get use to it. If you cant deal with that, go fish for bass.
Perhaps you don't spend weeks on a body of water where you are looking for that 'one' fish of the season. Having lost that 'one' to an avoidable mistake on my part, dampering the excitement of the 52" from the night before, was a valid enough reason to chime in here. Nobody is going suicidal over this, but talking about it and discussing ways to avoid similar issues in the future(especially trolling), is a good thing to do. In fact, I have been a fanatic over musky equipment for over 20 years, and can honestly say I learned about just how good these ahl snaps are because of this thread.
I'd offer the same suggestion to you, ie if it bothers you to read a thread regarding folks discussing avoidable equipment failures and more or less brainstorming about said topic, perhaps skip to one of the hundreds of other topics here that may interest you. |
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Posts: 2004
| I have some extra .40 wire sitting around. Is that too small to make some of those leaders? I have no idea what strength it is. |
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Posts: 20179
Location: oswego, il | I have made my own snaps, copied the staylock and used the loop to keep the snap tight as opposed to a fail safe. Need to make more.
wow, not spending any time thinking about what went wrong? I am always trying to improve no matter what aspect of my life it is. I dont fret over it, always try to improve. |
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