Reef hooks

[Dave Kay]

Piranha is great. Length is going to kind of be dependent on how far away from the reef you want to be. Personally, on a reef hook or a jon line I use a whoopie made from vectran/dyneema/etc. It's adjustable for length.

what is a woopie, vectran and dyneema, never heard of all 3?? Thanks

 

[Dave Kay]

Pretty much the standard length is 3-4' If attached to your crotch strap or somewhere low on a BCD this is generally fine. You can inflate yourself up a bit to keep off the reef/rocks

You can of course go longer but the balance here is, if your hook comes out and you're too high off the reef, then you're away like Mary Poppins. The higher you are, means the more exposed you are to the current too. So if you're just wanting to hook on and watch the fishes then 3-4' is fine.

All that said alongside my standard hook, on some dives I carry an extension which I can clip on (either to the hook or the end of the reef hook cord It adds another 8m of line (25') so I can fly well off the reef and into the blue. But I have to be damn sure my hook is well in before I deploy it

It's also a PITA to chain knot and tidy up at the end of a dive




View attachment 514225

never seen a chain knot but I love knots, Ill have to look that up. thanks!!

 

[gypsyjim]

never seen a chain knot but I love knots, Ill have to look that up. thanks!!

A very simple knot that shortens the rope and leaves no loops that can snag, but which quickly unloops itself when you need to use it..
It takes a minute or 2 to loop it, but I much prefer it on the reef hook.

 

[Ana]

I'm curious about the need of a particular length or material with reef hook. You tie the crotch strap ring?

What do you guys do with these hooks?

I just starting using one last year, because I'm getting old and my reflexes are not what they used to be. Before, I could hold the handle for the flag line, while tickling a lobster out to my hand and proceed to bag it. Now the holding of the flag becomes and issue if the lobster refuses to commit suicide at the first try. So I attach the flag handle to the hook and go about the lobstering business.

How do you use a reef hook?

 

[runsongas]

to anchor yourself onto the plateau at blue corner/peleliu

There’s No Place In The World Like It (Blue Corner Awaits)

 

[Damselfish]

The usual use is to stay in one spot in a current.

 

[gypsyjim]

I'm thinking that a reef hook is not perfect for clipping off a flag so you can poke around.
It is a very simple hook, designed to just hold you in position temporarily in a current, to free your hands, and does not clip into, or on to the substrate, just lightly hooks into a rock or dead spot.
Picture photographing pelagics in the blue from the edge of a rock edge or dead coral outcrop.
It requires either the current, or your hand to keep it in place, so hooking on and wandering off to do something might not work out.

 

[Ana]

I think I understand thank you.

 

[JohnnyC]

what is a woopie, vectran and dyneema, never heard of all 3?? Thanks

Vectran and Dyneema are types of synthetic fibers. Liquid Crystal Polymer (Vectran) and Ultra High Molecular Weight Polyethylene (Dyneema). They have very high strength-to-weight ratios, They're used from everything from parachute riser lines to hammock suspensions to mooring lines for massive ships.

Because they are hollow braid construction, you can splice them easily. A whoopie is a piece of this type of line with a fixed eye spliced into one end, and an adjustable eye spliced into the other.

 

[CWK]

I used to tie the slip knot ... but now I don’t. The bit on the right is a magnetic holder for the reef hook that can be installed on webbing.