Ahrex FW503 Light Barbless Dry Fly Hooks

When you’re tying delicate dry flies and need an ultralight wire hook that doesn’t sacrifice strength, Ahrex has just what you need in their FW503 Light Barbless Dry Fly Hooks. Chemically sharpened with a black nickel finish, these barbless hooks are super strong and have excellent holding power, while their light wire construction keeps your dry flies riding high all day long. Crafted in sizes 10 through 20, the FW503 Hooks have an option that lets you match almost any hatch you’ll encounter. 

Uses

With their light wire build, these hooks are excellent for dry flies and emergers that aren’t heavily hackled. This makes them perfect for flies like spinners, dries and emergers with a CDC wing, or Comparaduns. And although these hooks are great for more delicate patterns, you can just as easily turn to them for dries like classic Catskills, terrestrials, and even attractors like the Adams or Royal Wulff. 

Comparisons 

Hooks made specifically for dry fly fishing have been around for decades, and a hook that you can compare Ahrex’s FW503 to is Daiichi’s 1190 Barbless Dry Fly Hooks. These hooks are also barbless and have a similar length shank, but they aren’t a light wire-specific hook. This makes them a better choice for bushy flies or terrestrials tied with foam, and should you be tying dry flies that aren’t too buoyant, you’ll want to go with the FW503s.