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Mustad 1921 hook silhouette
Hook Reference › O. Mustad & Son Hooks › Mustad Hooks – 1921

O. Mustad & Son 1921

Mustad 1921

Evidence reviewed October 14, 2026. Marks: P photographically · V verified · I inferred · E estimated · S speculative What they mean

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Summary

Mustad 1921 is documented from photographs of two packaged specimens, in sizes 3 and 9. The size 9 label prints ‘Qual. 1921’ P.

The photographs are side views on a grid. Dates, point offset and scarcity are open questions.

Photographic record

8 photographs

Mustad 1921 — white cardboard box with pencil markings — size 3 — vintage Norwegian packaging
IMG-1Mustad 1921 Box Size 3 Pencil Markings Size 3 box, lid top. Pencil marks read '1921' above '#3'; the lid carries no printing.

How to identify it

The size 9 packet carries a gold-olive printed label on cream paper, edged with a border of small snowflake-like ornaments P. A key device sits at left between the words ‘Key’ and ‘Brand’. ‘O. MUSTAD’ is set large at upper right, above a line ending ‘NORWAY’.

Lines to the right of the key read ‘Qual. 1921’, ‘Hollow Point’, ‘Mustad-Limerick Ho’, ‘T. d. tapered eye Bro’ and ‘Short shank Rever’ P. The line ends are hidden at the wrap crease. The size is written by hand in purple ink after the printed ‘No.’.

The size 3 box lid shows no printing, only pencil ‘1921’ above ‘#3’ P.

Technical profile and measurements

Features of the model, as recorded
FeatureRecordedEvidence
EyeTapered Eye, Turned Down
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Turned down toward the point side of the shank; the wire is narrower and flattened at the loop P. The label reads 'T. d. tapered eye' P.

LBL-7OBS-1OBS-8
WireExtra-Heavy (2X+), Round, est. Size 3 about 0.033 in (~0.85 mm); size 9 about 0.024 in (~0.6 mm) (E)CMP-3MEA-4MEA-8CMP-3 compared with 64 catalogued hooks classified Extra-Heavy (2X+)
ShankStandard — PlainCMP-1LBL-7SRC-1CMP-1 compared with 203 catalogued hooks classified Standard
BendSproat, Standard gap, Offset / kirbed
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Smooth, continuous round bend with no angular sections; two hooks of each size match P. The label names the pattern 'Mustad-Limerick' P.

CMP-2LBL-7OBS-3OBS-10CMP-2 compared with 110 catalogued hooks classified Sproat
PointHollow Point
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Single barb cut from the point and standing clear of it, roughly 35 to 45 degrees to the point axis by eye E. Shorter on size 9.

OBS-5OBS-12
FinishBronzed — judged from the photographs
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Dark bronze-brown with warm gold highlights and even coverage P. The label wording after 'Bro' is not visible; a dealer lists the pattern as bronzed V.

LBL-7OBS-6SRC-1OBS-13

The eye is turned down toward the point side of the shank. The wire is narrower and flattened at the loop, and the loop curls back against the neck P.

The shank is straight and plain. The wire looks round, with no slices, barbs, kinks or ridges visible in side view P. The bend is a smooth, continuous round curve with no angular sections, and two hooks of each size match in outline P.

The point is long and tapered, with fine diagonal file marks on its flank, and sits in line with the bend in side view P. One barb sits clear of the point at roughly 35 to 45 degrees to the point axis by eye E. The photographs are flat side views and do not show whether the point is offset or its inner face concave.

Measurements

Measurements · grid photo
Overall length24.5 mm
Shank length8.5 mm
Gap width10.5 mm
Bend depth13.5 mm
Calibrated SVG True-scale preview

How hook dimensions are measuredA hook outline with dimension lines for overall length, shank length, gap, bend depth, and wire diameter.Overall lengthShank lengthGapBend depthWire diameter
Overall length
Eye to the farthest point of the bend.
Shank length
Eye to the start of the bend.
Gap
Point to shank, at right angles to the shank.
Bend depth
Shank to the bottom of the bend.
Wire diameter
Across the wire, measured by caliper where possible.

Specimens, packaging, and label

This record documents 2 specimens. Each describes itself only; none stands for every example of the model.

Grey-white box lid with pencil '1921' above '#3' on blue grid paper
Open full size

S1 · Box, size 3 (pencil-marked lid)

Size
3 (printed on the label)
Container
Box
Hook condition
Hooks are straight and undistorted with no visible rust. Dark bronze-brown finish with warm gold highlights; fine scratches and a coppery sheen on the outer bend (P).
Packaging condition
Good — moderate wear, legible
Wear
lid top face, left and right edges: Yellowed side edges; a small tan fleck of debris above the 9 of 1921; no tears or crushing visible on the face. LBL-3
Photographs
IMG-1IMG-2IMG-3IMG-4

Only the lid top face is photographed: grey-white card with yellowed side edges and a small tan fleck above the 9 of 1921; no tears or crushing visible on that face. Construction, lid fit, underside, contents and count are not shown. The hooks photographed as size 3 are associated with this box by size.

What the label says

LBL-1 pencil · lid top face, centre from IMG-1
1921
LBL-2 pencil · lid top face, below the 1921 line from IMG-1
#3
As entered on the specimen record
Layout
No printed text on the lid top face.
Later marks
Pencil, lid top face, centre: 1921
Pencil, below the 1921 line: #3

Care of this specimen: Store lid face up and avoid rubbing the lid, where the pencil strokes are broad and smudged.

Paper-wrapped packet with a cream printed label, turned a quarter turn
Open full size
Upright printed label with a key device and a snowflake-like border on a paper-wrapped packet
Open full size

S2 · Packet, size 9 (Key Brand label)

Size
9 (printed on the label)
Container
Packet
Hook condition
Hooks are straight and undistorted with no visible rust. Dark bronze-brown finish with gold-brown highlights and a slightly mottled sheen (P).
Packaging condition
Fair — significant wear, partially legible
Wear
label, right end, top edge and lower left: Crease where the label wraps the packet edge; brown and orange staining on the label; adhesive staining along the upper left label edge; a surface fibre on the label near 'Qual.'. LBL-11
Wear
wrapper, above and below the label: Dark brown spot on the wrapper above the label; overlapping paper seam at the lower left; toned, creased wrapper edges. LBL-12
Photographs
IMG-5IMG-6IMG-7IMG-8

Brown paper-wrapped packet with the label pasted across the front. Label damage: a crease where it wraps the packet edge, brown and orange staining, adhesive staining along the upper left edge, and a surface fibre near 'Qual.'. Wrapper damage: a dark brown spot above the label, an overlapping seam at lower left, and toned, creased edges. The inner box and hooks are not visible; the hooks photographed as size 9 are associated with this packet by size.

What the label says

LBL-4 trademark · label, left of centre, around key device from IMG-5IMG-6
Key
Brand
LBL-5 printed · label, upper right block from IMG-5IMG-6
O. MUSTAD
MANUFACT[?]
OSL[?] · NORWAY
LBL-6 printed · label, right side, middle block from IMG-5IMG-6
Qual. 1921 [?]
Hollow Point
LBL-7 printed · label, right side, lower block from IMG-5IMG-6
Mustad-Limerick Ho
T. d. tapered eye Bro
Short shank Rever
LBL-8 printed · label, bottom right, small serif type from IMG-5IMG-6
Made In No
LBL-9 printed · label, lower left from IMG-5IMG-6
100
No.
LBL-10 handwritten · label, lower left, to the right of 'No.' from IMG-5IMG-6
9 (purple ink, hand-drawn with a loop at the top and the tail curling left)
Trademark
Gold-olive printing on cream paper, with a border of small snowflake-like ornaments on all four sides. Left of centre is an ornate-bow key, bit to the right, with hatched shading, between the words 'Key' above and 'Brand' below. 'O. MUSTAD' is set large and bold at upper right.
As entered on the specimen record
Key
Brand
O. MUSTAD
MANUFACT[?]
OSL[?] · NORWAY
Qual. 1921 [?]
Hollow Point
Mustad-Limerick Ho
T. d. tapered eye Bro
Short shank Rever
Made In No
100
No.
Layout
Gold-olive printing on cream paper with a border of small snowflake-like ornaments on all four sides. The key device sits at left of centre between 'Key' and 'Brand'. 'O. MUSTAD' is set large and bold at upper right. '100' and 'No.' sit at lower left. The right ends of the text lines are hidden at the wrap crease.
Typeface
The 'Made In' line is in small serif type.
Later marks
Purple ink, hand-drawn: 9. It sits to the right of the printed 'No.', with a loop at the top and the tail curling left.

Care of this specimen: Keep the packet flat and dry, and avoid unwrapping or flexing the label, which is creased and stained at the wrap edge.

Condition

Hooks of both sizes are straight and undistorted with no visible rust P. The size 3 hooks show minor surface scratches and a coppery sheen on the outer bend P.

Pattern history and manufacturer context

Series

A dealer lists a size 7 box of pattern 1921 as Limerick, turned-down tapered eye, bronzed, hollow point and short shank, with 100 hooks to the box V. That wording agrees with the visible lines on the size 9 label P.

Dating

No date is printed on the size 3 box lid or on the visible part of the size 9 label. No source consulted dates the label style, so a date range is not established.

O. Mustad & Son — Mustad's origins trace to a works founded in 1832 by Hans Skikkelstad; Ole Hovelsen Mustad later took it over V. Hook production was industrialized in 1877, using a machine credited to Mathias Topp V. Read the maker’s history →
Mustad's Hook Range. Mustad company histories report that its hook portfolio peaked at more than 105,000 types and sizes V.

Use

  • Wet fly
  • Nymph
  • Bait fishing

Primary application

The visible label lines state no intended use. A dealer sells a size 7 box of the pattern under the title ‘Fly Tying Hooks’ V.

Collecting and buying

4 / 10CollectabilityRarity: Uncommon

Scarcity and collector demand are not established: no sold sales, surviving-example counts or production dates are on file.

A dealer lists boxes of 100 size 7 hooks of this pattern V. The record holds no other evidence on how often the model is found or how much collectors seek it.

Market value

Insufficient recorded sales data to estimate a reliable value.

0 sold observations recorded; 2 are needed, with the basis and date of the range, before a value is shown. Asking prices are shown as asking prices only.

No recorded sold sales are on file for this pattern, so the value range shown is not backed by sales.

Where to find

A dealer lists boxes of 100 online V.

Label and source analysis

Hand-Written Marks

Both packages carry a hand-written size. The size 3 box lid has pencil ‘#3’ beneath ‘1921’, in broad, smudged strokes P. The size 9 packet label has purple ink ‘9’ beside the printed ‘No.’ P.

Nothing in the images shows who wrote either mark or when.

Modern equivalents and related hooks

Modern equivalents
HookMatchNotes
Mustad 3906GoodSimilar shank length and bend but without offset point
Kamasan B175ModerateHeavy wire traditional wet fly hook with comparable proportions

Best matchRelated by Attribute

Computed automatically from catalog data — updated as new hooks are added.

SilhouetteHook ModelMatchAnalysisCompare
38943 No. 14 — Mustad 38943 Special Sproat silhouette38943 No. 14 — Mustad 38943 Special Sproat78%Matches: Bend, Shank, Wire, Eye Orient., Point +6 moreDiffers: Gap: Standard vs Wide; Eye: Tapered Eye vs Ball Eye; Gap ratio: 42.9% vs 40.2%Compare
7958 F No. (unspecified) — Mustad 7958 F74%Matches: Wire, Eye, Eye Orient., Point, Finish +3 moreDiffers: Bend: Sproat vs Viking; Shank: Standard vs Short (1X–2X Short); Gap: Standard vs Wide +2 moreCompare
541 No. 10 — Mustad 541 silhouette541 No. 10 — Mustad 54170%Matches: Shank, Wire, Gap, Eye Orient., Point +4 moreDiffers: Bend: Sproat vs Round / Kendal; Eye: Tapered Eye vs Ball Eye; Forging: Round vs Forged +2 moreCompare
3906 No. 12 — Mustad 3906 silhouette3906 No. 12 — Mustad 390669%Matches: Bend, Shank, Gap, Eye, Eye Orient. +5 moreDiffers: Wire: Extra-Heavy (2X+) vs Heavy (1X Heavy); Offset: Offset / Kirbed vs Straight; Application: Wet Fly, Nymph, Bait vs Wet Fly, Nymph +1 moreCompare
79625 No. 1, 2, 4, 6 — Mustad 79625 Viking Hooks69%Matches: Shank, Wire, Gap, Eye Orient., Point +3 moreDiffers: Bend: Sproat vs Viking; Eye: Tapered Eye vs Ball Eye; Forging: Round vs Forged +2 moreCompare

ExploratoryRelated by Shape (SVG)

Ranked purely by silhouette geometry — attribute labels are ignored.

SilhouetteHook ModelMatchCompare
1921 R No. 9 — Limerick Hooks silhouette1921 R No. 9 — Limerick Hooks80%Compare
3667 No. 9 — Mustad 3667 Limerick Hollow Point silhouette3667 No. 9 — Mustad 3667 Limerick Hollow Point77%Compare
92627 No. 6 — Flounder silhouette92627 No. 6 — Flounder73%Compare
3408 No. 5 and Size 6 — Mustad 3408 silhouette3408 No. 5 and Size 6 — Mustad 340872%Compare
3408 B No. 5 — O'Shaughnessy Hooks silhouette3408 B No. 5 — O'Shaughnessy Hooks71%Compare

Sources, open questions, and record notes

Sources & Documentation

This specimen and its packaging — photographed, 8 images
Supports: bendshankwirefinishconstructioneyebarbcondition notesmeasurement notessize documentedquantity per packagedating rangepackagingsecondary applicationsfly patternsmeta titlemeta descriptionprimary search termssummarytechnical notesidentificationseries historyprimary application

Entry last updated June 9, 2026. Entries are updated as new specimens, measurements, or documents come to light.