Long hook with tail can sometimes be used as a block catalyst. Since it is a rock during catalysis, it can be used when the block gets destroyed by nearby junk while undergoing catalysis. An example can be seen in a high-clearance variant of the eater 5 that allows the compression of Herschellooposcillators to periods of 57, 58, 59, and 60. For more of the usage of this catalyst and other block-replacement catalysts, see Tutorials/Catalyses#Block_replacements.
A variation of the tub-with-tail eater using a long hook with tail (click above to open LifeViewer) RLE:herePlaintext:here
Glider synthesis
The long hook with tail is known for being more difficult to synthesize than other still lifes of this size. Of the 31 strict still lifes of 9 bits and below, only 2, long hook with tail and long^3 snake, cost 5 gliders, which is the maximum glider cost in this group of small still lifes.