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Midwest Hooks
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by TheFifthDay on May 6, 2009
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I ordered a Midwest hook the other day and I just recieved it today.
It came poorly packaged, the hook shape looked bad, and it was super easy to bend into the right shape. The only plus to it was it's weight. It is a light weight hook.
I only ordered it to see why everyone went with them instead of another source, and I don't see why at all.
I'm taking the Midwest hook and my snake hook to do a "test" tomorrow, and I'll let you know how it does.
I just wanted to see if anyone else here has had similar experiences, and if anyone here has had good experiences..
Jon Short
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RE: Midwest Hooks
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by ssshane on May 6, 2009
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I will wait to see you results before posting mine. I did not purchase the hook myself, my herping partner made the purchase himself. SInce he belongs to no forums whatsoever, I will post the results. What model did you purchase, and what comparisons are you trying?
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RE: Midwest Hooks
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by TheFifthDay on May 6, 2009
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I used my hook, made by myself, and a 36" Midwest standard hook.
I've already tried it out, and the Midwest hook is just flimsy feeling. It was worth the price of shipping, but not $45!
I'm not bragging, or doing this to endorse my own product, but my hook was way more sturdy then Midwest's.
I'm just seeing if anyone else has gotten poor quality stuff from Midwest... I've always heard "You get what you pay for", but this just proved that saying wrong.
Jon Short
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RE: Midwest Hooks
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by Buzztail1 on May 6, 2009
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What kind of testing are you doing?
The standard hook design is made for picking up snakes - not turning tin, etc.
That is what the field hook is designed for.
You won't win any converts by comparing apples and oranges.
The midwest hooks are generally lightweight and do exactly what they are designed to do.
I have never had one fail or break on me.
Then again, I don't try to lift fallen houses or boulders with a hook designed to lift snakes with.
I am sure that your hooks are great and that you put a lot into proper craftsmanship. I am equally sure that the next guy to reinvent the wheel will be able to make a less than favorable comparison given the time to set one up.
Please, let us know exactly what comparisons you are making.
R/
Karl
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RE: Midwest Hooks
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by Rob_Carmichael on May 6, 2009
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I agree with Karl. I have never had a single problem with any of Midwest's equipment - still the best of the best in my opinion and I couldn't function w/out their products. I've tried Jon's hook that he was nice enough to send to me to try and it's a great hook....just don't jab the competition too much, particularly one that has stood the test of time and one that is used by all of the top professionals in the business. Instead, just keep working on honing your products and listen to what professionals are looking for in a hook.
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RE: Midwest Hooks
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by pictigaster1 on May 6, 2009
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Jon midwest offers many styles of hook and thickness of shaft.Evey herper likes something a little different for there own field hook.Custom hooks made to specification of the user are a plus and could be the way to go.A guy from a different forum just made me a hook out of 3/8 stainless steel that is the best tool I have ever owned almost un breakable.Now I have to send him one of mine.His is hard to match.Offering a standard line plus a custom made to order product is good business .Most of midwest products were made by field herpers or zookeepers and elevated to the market by midwest.When you start makeing all the shows,have adds in magazines and sell 100,000 hooks a year you will know who the best is.Longevity is on midwests side for now.I hope for the best for your endever.Truely..Archie
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RE: Midwest Hooks
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by Peter on May 7, 2009
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Who the heck buys 100,000 snake hooks a year? I know that snake hunters are crawling out from every flat rock but I just can't see it.
Peter
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RE: Midwest Hooks
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by TheFifthDay on May 7, 2009
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So far the tests HAVE been just flipping tin, wood, and other small- to mid-sized objects.
I don't own any venomous snakes, so I can't rate it here. As far as using it on aggressive non-venomous I see no difference. It feels no different.
I'll get someone's opinion that can see and use my hooks at the same time as Midwest, and then see what he has to say. (I'm not denying anything that you guys are saying though!)
Thanks for the replies,
Jon Short
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RE: Midwest Hooks
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by Cro on May 7, 2009
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Jon, as others have said, there are many different hooks on the market, and different herpers like different hook lengths, different hook shapes, and different hook weights.
When you compare hooks though, it is best to compare apples to apples, and not apples to mangos.
What I mean by this, is that the Midwest Standard Hook is a cheap, light weight, aluminum cage hook. It was never meant to be used as a field hook. It is perfectly adequate for work with caged reptiles. Their advertisements even say it is slightly flexable, which is another way of saying that the shaft is not strong enough for field work. Also, the hook is designed to be light weight, thus it uses light, soft alluminum, which as you have found out, is easily bent. A more expensive option would be to use titanium, but that would add a lot to the cost. Basically, the Midwest Standard Hook is like a Ford or Dodge automobile, nothing fancy, but usable.
The hook that you sent to me is a nicely crafted hook, it is strong, and well designed. You used a 3/8 aluminum hook for it, which is inherently stronger than the hook material that Midwest uses on it's standard model. That makes your hook more suitable for both cage and field work, because it is stronger.
However, is it really fare to compare your hook to the Midwest Standard Hook ? That is kind of like comparing a 4x4 GMC pickup truck to a 2x4 Ford F150. Of course the GMC is going to be stronger, and usable in more situations.
If you want to change the contest a bit, then we should bring in Furmont Hooks, which are very difficult to purhcase, but have been around for 50 years. They were the Professional Standard for 40 years before Midwest ever was in business, and as far as I am concerned, still are. However, they have not made it well into this century, as the web site they have is almost a joke. To purchase a Furmont Hook, it is still best to call them on the phone, just like we did back in the 1970's. You can check them out at :
http://www.fieldcam.com/furmont.html
They still make "The Stump Ripper" which has no equal as a field hook. Also, the Furmont Standard Hooks are usually made of Titanium, so are quite strong. But, you also pay for that extra strong material. You will not be able to buy a Titanium Furmont Hook like you can buy a cheap $30.00 Midwest Standard Hook, as the Furmont titanium models start at $45.00. They are strong enough to give your hook a run for its money in field work.
Again, comparing that stout hook that you build, to a standard Midwest hook, is not a fair fight, or a fair comparison. You are using stouter materials to start with, so your hook has to be stronger. But, it also weighs more.
Now, if we took the hook you build, and compare it one of the Tempered Stainless Steel, Graphite Shafted Field / Cage hooks that I build, we might have a much more interesting contest, LOL.
Best Regards
John Z
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