Hi all,

 My home state ( Maine) has tightened their lead ban starting Sept of 2026. Up until then we can use painted lead hooks/weights, but after , not so much. I made inquiries at my local sporting goods store ( KTP) and was told that they are trying to find a good source of non lead tackle, but as of now, no joy. I know I'm jumping the gun a bit but I'm trying to be proactive. I already have tungsten bullet weights and just ordered some tungsten ned rig and shaky head tackle from Sieberts outdoors. I'm still trying to find tungsten weighted swimbait and tube hooks that won't break the bank. Can anyone steer me towards the best place to look for these types of hooks? I'd appreciate it.

 And just as an FYI: Per the KTP fishing Dept. spinnerbaits, chatterbaits and jigs are exempt from the upcoming ban. At some point I will be verifying that with Maine fish & game.

     Thanks.  

Zappu makes a tungsten Bredy but it's tiny.

 

I'm sure Great Lakes Finesse will make a tungsten tube hook, if they don't already, because they love charging $7 for everything. 

I've got quite a bit of tungsten items.  

 

https://siebertoutdoors.com/products/ols/categories/tungsten-tackle--weights-punch-rigs-etc

1 hour ago, Siebert Outdoors said:

I've got quite a bit of tungsten items.

As I said in my post, I just ordered a selection of tungsten ned and shaky head hooks from you. Do you carry tungsten weighted swimbait and tube hooks I missed?  

Just read the law, definitely strict.  We have similar in Vermont.

Jigheads made of Tungsten are available at all the big dealers.  

Lead free jigs (name) is a Massachusetts jig maker that uses tin I believe.

1 hour ago, jbmaine said:

As I said in my post, I just ordered a selection of tungsten ned and shaky head hooks from you. Do you carry tungsten weighted swimbait and tube hooks I missed?  

 

I'm going to be adding more in the future with more state regulations changing and customers moving to more  tungsten products.  I've been testing tungsten spinnerbaits lately.  Its one I've been wanting to add for awhile now.

25 minutes ago, Siebert Outdoors said:

I'm going to be adding more in the future with more state regulations changing and customers moving to more  tungsten products.

That sounds good, thanks

1 hour ago, Siebert Outdoors said:

 

I'm going to be adding more in the future with more state regulations changing and customers moving to more  tungsten products.  I've been testing tungsten spinnerbaits lately.  Its one I've been wanting to add for awhile now.

Question: how do you produce your tungsten? Is it like lead where it is melted down? Do you buy tungsten bars and melt it down? If this is a trade secret I understand. I’m just curious.

39 minutes ago, woolleyfooley said:

Question: how do you produce your tungsten? Is it like lead where it is melted down? Do you buy tungsten bars and melt it down? If this is a trade secret I understand. I’m just curious.

It can be melted down but it requires a much higher temp (6000f vs 600f for lead)

 

Old friend of mine was a part-time blacksmith and he forged a tungsten knife....when he was done he said 'never again'.

I get my tungsten goods from @Siebert Outdoors and Tackle Warehouse, when on sale, of course.

I didn't know lead free fishing was a thing, thanks for sharing. I hate it for ya'll up there.

Pure tungsten is very hard element to work with.  It took a long time for Federal to find a solution so that they could produce a perfectly round non tox waterfowl load that would perform far better than steel, have similar ballistics to lead and have superior deformation resistance than bismuth.  

They eventually figured out that a tungsten iron alloy had a slightly lower melting point and enabled the alloy to be molded into any desirable shape. 

30 years later they still use iron, but nickel and other elements are added to attain the desired properties.

Pure tungsten has a melting point north of 6k degrees.  You can't melt it in a crucible or forge; specialized furnaces are required.

Zinc/zinc alloys or tin would be much cheaper and easier non tox metals to work with.

 

I can tell you that whipping a tungsten Keitech jig off an iron railroad trestle will result in sparks and a ricochet sound.  You get a hook and trailer back.

 

 

4 hours ago, MN Fisher said:

It can be melted down but it requires a much higher temp (6000f vs 600f for lead)

 

Old friend of mine was a part-time blacksmith and he forged a tungsten knife....when he was done he said 'never again'.

So how do companies make tungsten weights? They buy them pre-made and repackage them?

57 minutes ago, woolleyfooley said:

So how do companies make tungsten weights? They buy them pre-made and repackage them?

 

Ever notice how they say 97% pure tungsten?  The other 3 percent will be other metallic elements mixed into an alloy.  That 3% will be specifically formulated to make it easier to work the tungsten.  

 

With that said, A LOT of tungsten fishing products are made by a few big players.  They'll make stuff to order provided the order is big enough.  

19 hours ago, MontanaBasser said:

 

Ever notice how they say 97% pure tungsten?  The other 3 percent will be other metallic elements mixed into an alloy.  That 3% will be specifically formulated to make it easier to work the tungsten.  

 

With that said, A LOT of tungsten fishing products are made by a few big players.  They'll make stuff to order provided the order is big enough.  

That’s what I figured. Thank you!