Cox & Rawle Mutsu Circle Hook

Overview

The Cox & Rawle Mutsu Circle Hook (SCR44) is a forged sea-fishing circle hook finished in Black Nickel and built with a specialist circle bend, offset point and straight eye. It's part of Cox & Rawle's Mutsu Circle range and shouldn't be confused with the heavier SCR45 Mutsu Circle Extra.

Cox & Rawle describes the SCR44's wire as a standard gauge for the Mutsu pattern, while also noting it's finer than many competing circle hooks on the market. The forged-wire construction and specialist circle geometry give the hook its distinctive offset point, angled towards the shank as part of the circle-hook design.

The range spans an unusually wide spread of sizes, from size 8 right up to 10/0, with pack quantities varying from 10 hooks in the smaller sizes down to just 3 in the largest 10/0 size.

Perfect For

Cox & Rawle lists the smaller sizes of the Mutsu Circle as suitable for plaice, flounder, dab and bream, while the larger sizes step up in strength for rays and tope. The manufacturer has also documented the SCR44 being used for bass, dogfish, smoothhound and cod, widening its appeal across general UK sea-angling.

The SCR44 is particularly well suited to dongle-rig fishing. Cox & Rawle publishes a braid-dongle tutorial using a 2/0 SCR44 on a pulley rig, and states there's no need for a pennel hook arrangement with this method. It's also documented in use from UK beaches and over rougher ground such as the Bristol Channel, and the pattern isn't restricted to shore work either — it's marketed for general sea-angling use, so it suits boat fishing too.

Technical Insight

The circle-hook geometry is engineered to encourage the hook to locate naturally in the corner of a fish's mouth rather than being swallowed, which Cox & Rawle links to better fish conservation, a more secure hook hold once set, and fewer snagged or lost fish. This makes the SCR44 a strong option for anglers practising catch-and-release.

Fishing a circle hook does require a change in technique from a conventional J-hook. Rather than striking hard on the bite, Cox & Rawle's guidance is to let the fish take the bait and simply tighten and wind into it, allowing the circle shape to turn and take hold around the mouth. This is worth bearing in mind if you're new to circle hooks, as fishing them like a J-hook can result in missed takes.