A fish hook remover is a useful tool for removing a hook from the mouth of a fish that has sharp teeth. For a fish that has swallowed the hook, the hook removing tool can reach where fingers cannot. And if you need to release a fish you just caught, a hook can be removed from the fish without damaging the fish's mouth from pushing fingers into it. A fish hook remover can be made at home out of a screw driver.
Items you will need
Screw driver, straight blade, 10 inches overall
Three corner metal file
Tape, rubber electrical
Vise
Select a straight blade screw driver that has a slender handle, slim shank and is 10 inches long.
Lock the handle of the screw driver in a vise with the shank vertical and the blade tip in a horizontal position.
Set the sharp edge of the file on the center point of the blade tip perpendicular to it. Begin sawing back and forth with the file cutting down into the blade. Keep filing until the point of the filed out V is 3/16 inches deep.
File the sharp tips off the inside corners of the V cut. File down the outside corners of the blade. Just file the four corners to remove the sharp points but do not round the inside and outside of the blade.
Wrap the handle with rubber electrical tape to make it slip resistant.
Warnings
- Protect your fact when removing the hook by keeping the fish down and away from your face in case the hook suddenly pops loose and bounces back out.
Tips
- To remove a hook with the tool, put the blade end into the fish's mouth and position the V over the inside bend of the hook and push straight down until it releases. A push and twist action will remove hooks that are tightly stuck in the fish's mouth.
- A slim, light-weight shank is preferable to a thick, heavy shank.
- It is not necessary to buy an expensive screw driver, a bargain bin one will work.
- Regularly treat the metal shank with oil to prevent it from rusting.
References
- "The Complete Book of Tackle Making;" C. Boyd Pfeiffer; March 1999
Tips
- To remove a hook with the tool, put the blade end into the fish's mouth and position the V over the inside bend of the hook and push straight down until it releases. A push and twist action will remove hooks that are tightly stuck in the fish's mouth.
- A slim, light-weight shank is preferable to a thick, heavy shank.
- It is not necessary to buy an expensive screw driver, a bargain bin one will work.
- Regularly treat the metal shank with oil to prevent it from rusting.
Warnings
- Protect your fact when removing the hook by keeping the fish down and away from your face in case the hook suddenly pops loose and bounces back out.
Writer Bio
Dave P. Fisher is an internationally published and award-winning Western novelist and short-story writer. His work has appeared in several anthologies and his nonfiction articles in outdoor magazines. An avid outdoorsman, Fisher has more than 40 years of experience as a hunter, trapper, fisherman, taxidermist, professional fly-tyer, horsepacker and guide.
