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Mustad Hooks – 541

Mustad 541 hook silhouette
Hook Reference › O. Mustad & Son Hooks › Mustad Hooks – 541

O. Mustad & Son 541

Mustad 5411925 or later I

Evidence reviewed October 13, 2026. Marks: P photographically · V verified · I inferred · E estimated · S speculative What they mean

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Summary

The Mustad Qual. 541 is a single hook with a hollow point, a closed ring eye turned down toward the point, and a round bend. The label names O. Mustad & Søn, Oslo — Norway, as maker and carries the Key Brand mark.

The entry documents the model from one size 10 box and the hooks photographed with it. The box dates from 1925 or later I; no source consulted narrows that.

The label names the point style as hollow and the wire as forged. The photographs do not show the offset the label calls reversed.

Photographic record

5 photographs

Mustad 541 original cardboard box with eight-line paper label — package front showing Key Brand logo, manufacturer, quality code, specifications, and size — size No. 10, 100-hook quantity
IMG-1Mustad 541 Size No. 10 Original Box and Label Front of the size 10 box, rotated 90 degrees. The gold label gives the maker, Qual. 541 and the specification lines, with their right ends wrapping around the box edge. The size 10 is written in pencil.

How to identify it

Look for the Key Brand mark at the upper left of the label: a gold key drawing with Key above it and Brand below. The quality line reads Qual. 541, followed by Hollow Point P.

On the documented box the size is not printed: 100 and No. appear at lower left with a pencil 10 beside them. The right ends of the lines run around the box edge, so a side view may be needed to read a label in full.

Technical profile and measurements

Features of the model, as recorded
FeatureRecordedEvidence
EyeBall Eye, Turned Down
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Photographed hook: closed oval ring eye turned down toward the point side P. Small raised nub on top where the ring meets the shank P.

OBS-1OBS-2
WireExtra-Heavy (2X+), Forged, est. ~0.6 mm, photographic grid (E)CMP-3SRC-1LBL-4MEA-8CMP-3 compared with 64 catalogued hooks classified Extra-Heavy (2X+)
ShankStandard — PlainCMP-1SRC-1LBL-4CMP-1 compared with 203 catalogued hooks classified Standard
BendRound / Kendal, Standard gap, Offset / kirbed
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Photographed hook: continuous round bend through about half a turn, no kinks or flats P. The label calls the hooks Round.

OBS-3LBL-4
PointHollow Point
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Photographed hook: small triangular barb cut from the inner face of the point, standing clear of the taper, tip angled back toward the bend, open cut notch beneath P.

OBS-7
FinishBronzed — stated on packaging
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Photographed hooks: dark brown to black with copper-orange highlights on lit faces P. Bend face shows mottled copper streaks and dull patches P. Label reads Bronze, last letters hidden.

OBS-9LBL-4
ConstructionForgedSRC-1OBS-3OBS-7

The label prints Hollow Point, Forged and Reversed P. A hollow point has a concave ground facet on the inside of the taper. The photographed point is a long straight taper with a flat-looking ground facet along the inside; concavity cannot be judged from these views P.

Forged wire is flattened by pressing. The macro shows streaking along the bend face, but side views alone cannot show flattening P.

Reversed is the term for a point offset to the right, seen from the eye looking down the shank. Every supplied hook photograph is a flat side view, so the offset, its direction and its angle are not visible P.

Measurements

Per size, with how each dimension was taken
SizeOverall lengthShank lengthGap widthBend depthWire diameterWeight
10Specimen S115.2 mm VcaliperMEA-18.1 mm VcaliperMEA-2—6.9 mm IcaliperMEA-40.51 mm IcaliperMEA-5—
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.

Size 10 box of Mustad Qual. 541 hooks, rotated 90 degrees on a blue grid, with a gold-printed Key Brand label wrapping the box edge
Open full size
Upright front of a Mustad Qual. 541 box with a gold Key Brand label, a pencil 10 at lower left, and a yellow-brown stain along the upper label margin
Open full size

S1 · Box of size 10 with hooks

Size
10 (printed on the label)
Container
Box
Hook condition
No orange-brown rust, flaking or bending visible on the photographed hooks (P).
Packaging condition
Good — moderate wear, legible
Wear
label, upper margin and upper right (upright view): Yellow-brown tide-line stain along the top label margin and upper-right area, running onto the wrapped part of the label; cause not determinable from the photos LBL-8
Wear
box top-left corner (upright view): Small whitish curled or lifted fragment of paper standing off the box corner above the label LBL-9
Wear
box bottom edge (upright view): Fibrous, frayed rough edge of the box paper along the bottom edge; it shows on the left side in the rotated view LBL-10
Measured
size 10
Photographs
IMG-1IMG-2IMG-3IMG-4IMG-5

Hook count not checked; interior, lid, back and sides not photographed. The loose hooks photographed with the box are probably from it, but the images do not tie them to the box.

What the label says

LBL-1 trademark · label, upper left from IMG-1IMG-2
Key
Brand
LBL-2 printed · label, top right from IMG-1IMG-2
O. MUSTAD & SÖN
Manufacturers
OSLO — NORWAY
LBL-3 printed · label, right of centre, upper from IMG-1IMG-2
Qual. 541
Hollow Point
LBL-4 printed · label, centre to lower right from IMG-1IMG-2
Mustad-Round Hoo[?]
Forged Reversed
T d. ball-eye Bronze[?]
Ex. strong
LBL-5 printed · label, bottom right from IMG-1IMG-2
Made in Norw[?]
LBL-6 printed · label, lower left from IMG-1IMG-2
100
No.
LBL-7 pencil · label, lower left of centre, right of 100 No., over the printed T (graphite, 0 retraced) from IMG-1IMG-2
10
Trademark
Gold line drawing of an old-style key with an oval pierced bow at the top and a toothed bit at lower right, with the word Key above it and Brand below, at the upper left of the label.
As entered on the specimen record
Key
Brand
O. MUSTAD & SÖN
Manufacturers
OSLO — NORWAY
Qual. 541
Hollow Point
Mustad-Round Hoo[?]
Forged Reversed
T d. ball-eye Bronze[?]
Ex. strong
Made in Norw[?]
100
No.
Layout
Key Brand mark at upper left; maker block at top right; quality and specification lines stacked at right; 100 and No. at lower left. The right ends of the lines wrap around the box edge. A gold snowflake-like ornament border runs along the top, left and bottom edges.
Later marks
Graphite pencil 10 at lower left of centre, right of 100 No., over the printed gold T; the 0 is a retraced oval and the 1 has a flag and foot bar P. Writer and date unknown.
Two Mustad 541 hooks lying flat side by side on a blue grid
Open full size

S2 · Second loose hook

Size
10 (measured)
Container
Loose (no packaging)
Hook condition
No rust visible; same eye, bend and point outline as the first hook (P).
Photographs
IMG-5

Upper-left hook in the two-hook photograph. Length on the photographic grid is about 14.7 mm, assuming 2.54 mm per square E. The images do not tie it to the box.

Condition

Photographed hooks show no rust, flaking or bending P. Box: yellow-brown stain along the upper label margin, frayed bottom edge, small lifted fragment at one corner P. Interior not photographed.

Pattern history and manufacturer context

Series

The label names the hook by quality number, Qual. 541 P. flyhooks.org records the model in size 10 only V.

No source consulted gives production years, a catalog listing, a predecessor or a successor for Qual. 541.

Dating

The label gives the maker's address as OSLO. The city took that name on 1 January 1925 V, so the label was printed in 1925 or later I. The label layout does not narrow this, and no source consulted dates the box more closely.

O. Mustad & Son — The O. Mustad & Søn name dates from 1874, when Hans Mustad became co-owner of the 1832 Brusveen works. Hook production there began in 1877-78 on a fully automatic machine built by Mathias Topp, kept secret rather than patented V. Read the maker’s history →
A Label Sequence Filed in 1930. A 1930 trademark filing by O. Mustad & Son shows the same label sequence for Qual. 9479 Viking hooks: maker, Oslo-Norway, quality number, Hollow Point, Forged Reversed, T.D. eye line, Made in Norway, Key Brand, 100 No. V. The wording was in use by 1930.

Use

  • Wet fly
  • Nymph

Primary application

flyhooks.org lists the 541 for wet flies, nymphs and soft hackles, fished for trout and grayling in fresh water V. Size 10 is a standard size for wets and large nymphs.

The label names no use, and no named fly pattern is documented for the hook.

Other uses

A dealer listing files the hooks under bait hooks; neither the label nor flyhooks.org does V.

Collecting and buying

2 / 10CollectabilityRarity: Common

Rated 2 (common): a dealer lists 100-hook lots of Qual. 541 in size 2 and shows five sold V. No source consulted shows collector demand beyond use, so the rating does not rise.

Basis: A dealer lists 100-hook lots in size 2 and shows five sold (SRC-6). No production, catalog or survival counts were found.

A dealer on eBay offers 100-hook lots of Qual. 541 in size 2 and shows five sold V. Sale prices are not shown.

No source consulted records collector demand, production years or a count of surviving boxes. The condition of the documented box is recorded with the specimen and does not affect the rating.

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 sold sales are recorded for Qual. 541, so no value range is shown. One dealer asks US$14.99 for 100 hooks in size 2 (listing updated 9 Oct 2026); an asking price is not a sale V.

Recorded sales and listings
ListingPriceDateCondition
100 MUSTAD # 6 FLY TYING RIG MAKING Mustad Round Hooks Forged EX. STRONG 541From $9.99 askinglive listingNew other (see details)
100 MUSTAD # 2 FLY TYING RIG MAKING Mustad Round Hooks Forged EX. STRONG 541From $10.99 askinglive listingNew other (see details)

Where to find

A dealer sells 100-hook lots of Qual. 541 on eBay V. No other source of supply is documented.

Label and source analysis

Handwritten Marks and Specimens

The label prints 100 and No. at lower left and leaves the size blank. A 10 is written beside them in grey graphite pencil, over a printed gold T P.

The 0 is a retraced oval, and the 1 has a flag and a foot bar. Who wrote the number, and when, is not shown by the photographs P.

No other pencil, ink or stamp marks are recorded on the visible face. The right ends of the lines wrap around the box edge and are not visible.

Modern equivalents and related hooks

Best matchRelated by Attribute

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

SilhouetteHook ModelMatchAnalysisCompare
7947 B No. 12 — Mustad 7947 B silhouette7947 B No. 12 — Mustad 7947 B73%Matches: Shank, Wire, Gap, Eye, Eye Orient. +6 moreDiffers: Bend: Round / Kendal vs Viking; Offset: Offset / Kirbed vs Straight; Shank ratio: 53.3% vs 69.3% +1 moreCompare
3984 H No. 8 — Mustad 3984 H silhouette3984 H No. 8 — Mustad 3984 H71%Matches: Bend, Wire, Gap, Eye Orient., Point +5 moreDiffers: Shank: Standard vs 1X Long; Eye: Ball Eye vs Tapered Eye; Offset: Offset / Kirbed vs Straight +3 moreCompare
1921 No. 3, 9 — Mustad 1921 silhouette1921 No. 3, 9 — Mustad 192170%Matches: Shank, Wire, Gap, Eye Orient., Point +4 moreDiffers: Bend: Round / Kendal vs Sproat; Eye: Ball Eye vs Tapered Eye; Forging: Forged vs Round +2 moreCompare
7958 F No. (unspecified) — Mustad 7958 F70%Matches: Wire, Eye Orient., Point, Finish, Forging +3 moreDiffers: Bend: Round / Kendal vs Viking; Shank: Standard vs Short (1X–2X Short); Gap: Standard vs Wide +2 moreCompare
79625 No. 1, 2, 4, 6 — Mustad 79625 Viking Hooks69%Matches: Shank, Wire, Gap, Eye, Eye Orient. +5 moreDiffers: Bend: Round / Kendal vs Viking; Application: Wet Fly, Nymph vs Bait; Shank Feat.: Plain vs BaitholderCompare

ExploratoryRelated by Shape (SVG)

Ranked purely by silhouette geometry — attribute labels are ignored.

SilhouetteHook ModelMatchCompare
S80-3906 No. 14 — Nymph Sproat silhouetteS80-3906 No. 14 — Nymph Sproat78%Compare
7947 B No. 12 — Mustad 7947 B silhouette7947 B No. 12 — Mustad 7947 B67%Compare
CS7 HW BL No. 10 — CS7 Wide Gape Captain Hamilton International Heavyweight silhouetteCS7 HW BL No. 10 — CS7 Wide Gape Captain Hamilton International Heavyweight62%Compare
R50-94840 No. 14 — Signature Fly Hook silhouetteR50-94840 No. 14 — Signature Fly Hook61%Compare

Sources, open questions, and record notes

Sources & Documentation

This specimen and its packaging — photographed, 5 images
Supports: constructionbarbbend depthbendcondition notesdating rangeeyefinishmeasurement notesmeta descriptionoverall lengthpackagingprimary search termsquantity per packageshank gap ratioshank lengthshanksub brandwirewire diameter measuredsummaryidentificationtechnical notesseries history

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