Item TB427
This Item was Sold on 30 July 2018
for $250
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This strip laminated Gerhards hook is Offset Laminated with two White Oak blanks glued together for added strength before the airfoils were added. There is a full weight in each blade tip and a half weight in the elbow. The lift arm weight has " O 7 " stamped as a unique I.D. It is signed and dated 1990. This hook was part of Al's personal throw kit until 1990. It was signed and dated when he gave it to Volker Behrens. These offset laminated hooks were almost never sold. Al kept them as part of his personal throw kit or gave them to close friends. They are very rare. The low serial number indicates it was made in the late 1970s I have never thrown it, but if it was part of Al's personal throw kit and then thrown by Volker, it is probably a very nice flyer. It is in excellent condition with a fine patina from constant use. Al left his penciled fine tuning notes on the underside. There are a couple of very tiny marks on the tips, but no cracks or major dings. This is probably one of the most valuable Gerhards hooks I have seen. A wonderful collectible.
Al Gerhards is one of America's most famous pioneers in the development of long distance boomerangs. Al was an active thrower, manufacturer and competitor in the 1970s and early 1980s. His most popular model is the Standard Weighted Hook which was made out of strip laminated hardwoods. The standard hook was occasionally made without weights, but the majority of these hook boomerangs had a single lead weight on each tip with a unique serial number stamped in the weight near the lift arm tip. The earliest examples (1970s) had an additional half weight inserted into the underside of the elbow. This was discontinued on hooks made in the early 1980s because the elbow weight was often the source for the initiation of strip delaminations. Al also made strip laminated large hooks, small hooks, omegas, traditionals and the awesome Big "U"s. The large hooks were sometimes called "White Lightning" hooks and Al used one of these to set a World Record in the long distance event with a documented throw of more than 125 yards in the late 1970s. Only 500 standard weighted hooks with numbers were made. The last one has a silver star inlayed in the dingle arm tip and this one is displayed in Al's living room in a specially made holder that also displays his world record "White Lightning" hook. I visited with Al Gerhards in early 2006 and asked him about the integrity of his boomerangs after 25-30 years. Al assured me that he used strong epoxy glues and that he still throws boomerangs that he made 30+ years ago without any problems. Al recommends that the owners of his boomerangs rub the surface with Tung oil or Gun oil prior to throwing if it has been in storage. The boomerang should be oiled at least once every 3 months if it is thrown regularly. However, I discourage the throwing of old collectable boomerangs unless it is thrown under very carefully controlled conditions. I would prefer that the owner make a copy of this boomerang for his own use and save the original as a fine collectable. |
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