Trautman Hook Update · 15 April 07 by Jonathan Kuniholm
We’ve had four more prototypes made of the Trautman Hook by Rapid Tool, Inc. The folks there were very helpful getting what we needed done, and we ended up with two each left and right hooks in their ST-100 bronze-infused stainless material, which we are confident will be strong enough for daily use. The design changes Jesse made, coupled with the stronger material, should eliminate the common fractures we have seen on a lot of older hooks.
We had much better luck with this batch than with the previous metal process we tried, and dimensional tolerance issues with assembly were minimal. All of the prototypes were usable after tapping, threading and, in a couple of cases, a little filing. Because the build process involves building some of the parts on a scaffold, the surface finish resembled a clean sand cast on some parts and a brushed sanded surface on others. We may explore powder coating or chroming the material if users are interested. This will require adjusting the dimensions to account for the added surface material.
Because we’re still working out how to get these made and distributed, we were happy that Tackle Design was willing to donate the prototyping costs, and we provided the hooks free of charge to four longtime users of the hook in Minneapolis and Sartell, MN; Lacrosse, WI; and Seattle, WA.
Once these users have had a chance to try and break their new hooks, we’ll see if there are further changes that need to be made to the design. We are exploring ways to get the hooks made and distributed as cheaply as possible, and will keep everyone posted on these developments.
