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Mustad Hooks – 31868

Mustad-Carlisle Hooks hook silhouette
Hook Reference › O. Mustad & Son Hooks › Mustad Hooks – 31868

O. Mustad & Son 31868

Mustad-Carlisle HooksUndated

Evidence reviewed October 20, 2026. Marks: P photographically · V verified · I inferred · E estimated · S speculative What they mean

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Summary

Mustad-Carlisle Hooks, Qual. 31868, has a Carlisle bend and a long plain shank P. The entry documents one boxed specimen of size 8 with a blue Key Brand label, plus two hooks photographed flat on grid paper P.

Photographic record

3 photographs

Blue label with a snowflake-like border on a cream box, reading O MUSTAD & SÖN, OSLO — NORWAY, Qual. 31868, Superior, Mustad-Carlisle Hooks, with a key drawing and a stamped 8.
IMG-1Mustad – 31868 Box Box label: Qual. 31868, size 8 stamped.

How to identify it

The quality number prints after ‘Qual.’ at the center of the label, above the word Superior P. The hook name, Mustad-Carlisle Hooks, is the largest line below it P.

The maker’s name reads O MUSTAD & SÖN, with no period after the O P. A key drawing with ‘Key’ above and ‘Brand’ below sits at the left, inside a border of snowflake-like motifs P.

Technical profile and measurements

Features of the model, as recorded
FeatureRecordedEvidence
EyeBall Eye, Turned Down
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Small ring eye turned down, with a slight swelling at the neck P. The label reads 'small ball-eye' P. Closure of the ring cannot be judged at this scale.

OBS-1LBL-6
WireExtra-Heavy (2X+), RoundCMP-3CMP-3 compared with 65 catalogued hooks classified Extra-Heavy (2X+)
ShankExtra-Extra Long — Plain
BendCarlisle, Standard gap
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Smooth, near-semicircular bend with a symmetrical outline on both hooks P. The point returns toward the shank. The label reads Mustad-Carlisle Hooks P.

PointSuperior
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Single short barb cut from the upper face of the point, rising at a shallow angle to a sharp tip P. The cut surface is rough and granular.

OBS-4
FinishNickelled — stated on packaging
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The label reads 'Nickelplated Special' P. The photographed hooks show a bright silver-gray surface with fine polish lines and no visible corrosion; the photographs do not identify the plating.

LBL-6OBS-7

The point continues the line of the bend end. Its inner face runs nearly straight from the barb cut to the tip P, consistent with the Superior point named on the label P. The metal around the barb and point forms a flattened, matte facet, unlike the round wire of the bend P.

The shank is long, straight and plain, with no kinks, cuts or ridges P. In the traced outline its proportion falls nearest the extra-extra long group, and the wire thickness nearest the extra-heavy group E. No wire diameter has been measured.

Measurements

Per size, with how each dimension was taken
SizeOverall lengthShank lengthGap widthBend depthWire diameterWeightShank:gap
(unspecified)No specimen recorded58.5 mm E Pgrid photo40.5 mm E Pgrid photo14 mm E Pgrid photo11.5 mm E Pgrid photo——~2.7-3.4 : 1
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 one specimen. It describes that specimen only, not every example of the model.

Blue label with a snowflake-like border on a cream box, reading O MUSTAD & SÖN, OSLO — NORWAY, Qual. 31868, Superior, Mustad-Carlisle Hooks, with a key drawing and a stamped 8.
Open full size

S1 · Box of size 8

Size
8 (printed on the label)
Container
Box
Hook condition
Two loose hooks photographed flat on grid paper; points intact (P).
Packaging condition
Good — moderate wear, legible
Wear
box, top-left corner: frayed brown paper fibres standing out at the corner LBL-9
Wear
box, left edge: brown board exposed and edge worn along the left side LBL-10
Wear
label surface, mainly lower border and lower left: uneven blue tone with small pale flecks LBL-11
Photographs
IMG-1IMG-2IMG-3

Wear on the photographed face: frayed paper at the top-left corner, exposed brown board along the worn left edge, and uneven blue tone with small pale flecks on the panel; all printed text is legible. Only one face is photographed; the interior and other faces are not recorded. The hook photographs are probably, but not certainly, from this box.

What the label says

LBL-1 trademark · label, left column, above and below key drawing from IMG-1
Key
Brand
LBL-2 printed · label, upper center from IMG-1
O MUSTAD & SÖN
Manufacturers
OSLO — NORWAY
LBL-3 printed · label, center from IMG-1
Qual. 31868
Superior
LBL-4 printed · label, center, large type from IMG-1
Mustad-Carlisle Hooks
LBL-5 printed · label, lower left margin from IMG-1
100
No.
LBL-6 printed · label, lower center from IMG-1
T. d. small ball-eye
Nickelplated Special
LBL-7 printed · label, bottom right from IMG-1
Made in Norway
LBL-8 stamp · label, lower left, right of 'No.', overlapping bottom border from IMG-1
8 (magenta-pink ink, rough-edged numeral)
Trademark
Key drawing in the left column with 'Key' above and 'Brand' below: oval bow with an ornamented rim, plain shaft, square-cut bit. A border of eight-armed snowflake-like star motifs runs around all four sides of the blue panel.
As entered on the specimen record
Key
Brand
O MUSTAD & SÖN
Manufacturers
OSLO — NORWAY
Qual. 31868
Superior
Mustad-Carlisle Hooks
100
No.
T. d. small ball-eye
Nickelplated Special
Made in Norway
Layout
Single blue panel. Center column, top to bottom: maker's name, Manufacturers, place line, quality number, Superior, hook name, eye line, finish line. Made in Norway sits at lower right. Key and Brand flank a key drawing at the left; 100 and No. are stacked at lower left.
Printed marks
Numeral 8 stamped in magenta-pink ink to the right of 'No.', overlapping the bottom border.

Care of this specimen: Support the box from beneath and avoid handling the top-left corner and left edge.

Condition

No rust, spotting, flaking, bent shank or broken point is visible on the photographed hooks P.

Pattern history and manufacturer context

Series

The box label names the line Mustad-Carlisle Hooks P. The introduction date and size range of the 31868 are not documented.

Design lineage

The origin of the Carlisle bend is not documented on this page.

Dating

The label prints no date. No source ties the OSLO — NORWAY wording, the blue panel with snowflake-like border, or the Qual. number to a production period. Only one face of the box is photographed, so other dating marks may exist.

O. Mustad & Son — Mustad's hook production began at Gjøvik in 1877 V. Oslo's Lilleaker works made nails, stoves and margarine V. This box's label prints OSLO — NORWAY under the maker's name P; no dated source ties that wording to a period. Read the maker’s history →
Key Brand Filed in 1939. A US trademark filing for MUSTAD KEY BRAND BEAK HOOKS is dated 4 December 1939 V. The filing names beak hooks, not the 31868, so it does not date this box.

Use

  • Streamer / bucktail
  • Bait fishing
  • Saltwater

Primary application

The box label states no use for the hooks P. Mustad’s current page for its 3191 Carlisle bait hook, a different model, says the long shank eases removal and keeps fish from swallowing the hook V. A bait use for the 31868 is inferred from the shared Carlisle name and the long shank I.

Other uses

Fly tying for streamers, woolly worms, and long-bodied wet fly patterns

Fly patterns

Grey Ghost, Woolly Worm, Mickey Finn, Long-shank streamers

Collecting and buying

4 / 10CollectabilityRarity: Uncommon

Availability and collector demand for the 31868 are not documented.

No sold sales, catalog listing or count of surviving examples is recorded for the 31868.

The one documented box is described in the specimen record.

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 this model, so no value range is supported by recorded sales.

Where to find

eBay, vintage tackle shows, estate sales, tackle shop old stock

Modern equivalents and related hooks

Modern equivalents
HookMatchNotes
Mustad 3261ExcellentDirect modern descendant with identical Carlisle proportions
Eagle Claw 214Very goodCommon modern Carlisle pattern with similar dimensions
Mustad 3191ModerateCurrent Mustad Carlisle bait hook with a long shank and ringed eye V. Finish is bronze and the point is a kirbed needle point, unlike the nickelplated finish and Superior point on the 31868 label V. Size 8 lists wire 0.76 mm, gap 6 mm and length 31 mm V.

Best matchRelated by Attribute

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

SilhouetteHook ModelMatchAnalysisCompare
3189 A No. 5/0 — Mustad-Carlisle Squid Hooks silhouette3189 A No. 5/0 — Mustad-Carlisle Squid Hooks84%Matches: Bend, Shank, Gap, Eye, Point +5 moreDiffers: Wire: Extra-Heavy (2X+) vs Heavy (1X Heavy); Eye Orient.: Turned Down vs Straight / Inline; Application: Streamer, Bait, Saltwater vs Bait, Saltwater +2 moreCompare
3489 No. 3 — Pacific Bass Hooks silhouette3489 No. 3 — Pacific Bass Hooks81%Matches: Bend, Wire, Gap, Eye, Point +3 moreDiffers: Shank: Extra-Extra Long vs 4X Long; Eye Orient.: Turned Down vs Straight / Inline; Finish: Nickelled vs Tinned +4 moreCompare
3193 No. 6 — Carlisle Hooks silhouette3193 No. 6 — Carlisle Hooks77%Matches: Bend, Shank, Eye, Point, Forging +2 moreDiffers: Wire: Extra-Heavy (2X+) vs Standard; Gap: Standard vs Narrow; Eye Orient.: Turned Down vs Straight / Inline +3 moreCompare
3215 A No. 6 — Carlisle Hooks silhouette3215 A No. 6 — Carlisle Hooks76%Matches: Bend, Gap, Eye, Point, Forging +3 moreDiffers: Shank: Extra-Extra Long vs 4X Long; Wire: Extra-Heavy (2X+) vs Standard; Eye Orient.: Turned Down vs Straight / Inline +4 moreCompare
3498 D No. 10 — Pacific Bass Hooks silhouette3498 D No. 10 — Pacific Bass Hooks76%Matches: Bend, Wire, Eye, Eye Orient., Point +3 moreDiffers: Shank: Extra-Extra Long vs 4X Long; Gap: Standard vs Narrow; Finish: Nickelled vs Tinned +4 moreCompare

ExploratoryRelated by Shape (SVG)

Ranked purely by silhouette geometry — attribute labels are ignored.

SilhouetteHook ModelMatchCompare
3718 No. 3 — Mustad 3718 Carlisle silhouette3718 No. 3 — Mustad 3718 Carlisle82%Compare
3203 No. 5/0 — 3203 silhouette3203 No. 5/0 — 320379%Compare
3719 No. 7 — Mustad 3719 silhouette3719 No. 7 — Mustad 371977%Compare
36862 No. 8 — Limerick Hooks silhouette36862 No. 8 — Limerick Hooks77%Compare
3193 No. 6 — Carlisle Hooks silhouette3193 No. 6 — Carlisle Hooks75%Compare

Sources, open questions, and record notes

Sources & Documentation

This specimen and its packaging — photographed, 3 images
Supports: eyebarbfinishcondition notesconstructionis snelledquantity per packagemeasurement notesdating rangemanufacturer period contextpackagingprimary search termssummaryidentificationtechnical notesseries historydesign lineageprimary application

Entry last updated June 18, 2026. Entries are updated as new specimens, measurements, or documents come to light.