08-13-2003, 02:33 PM
[cool]I use several different things for the tail...depending on mood and what is on my bench at the time. Hackle fibres are always good. I usually use a few fibres of dyed quill for the red or orange...and sometimes yellow. But, again, dyed hackle fibres work well too. For white, silver and rainbow bodies, I may use Krystal flash or a bit of marabou.
I tie the wings just about flat over the back...with a bit of a "V"...which gives them a pulsing action when stripped in. I also sometimes include a bit of a beard or throat of yellow, orange or red...to simulate perch colors, red gills or whatever.
For the gold and silver, I use metallic sparkle braid or that craft cord like I sent you. If I want a thicker body, I underwrap with chenille or even a short length of the craft cord before the final metallic wrap.
The key seems to be simplicity and sparseness. I do much better on the thinner flies than big thick overdressed ones. If you watch perch fry underwater, there is not much about them that is readily visible. They are almost translucent until they reach about 3". Then they begin to assume more yellow coloration, with barring and a dark back.
That brings up another line of flies I think I have mentioned before...my "over and unders"...with "shell backs" or bellies of a different contrasting solid color...metallic blue or red, black, purple, green or orange. Again, many small minnows and the fry of bigger fish are seen as horizontal lines with eyes underwater. Many predatory fish key in on stripes and bloodlines.
One of my best all around warm water flies is a white 2" shad fly, with a metallic blue "over" stripe, and a silver under stripe. Wherever shad or other silvery baitfish are found, the predators love them. I used to fish them on my bubble chucker rod at Willard Bay, wading out from shore and casting long distances with sinkers on the bottom and one of these flies on a 12" dropper about 3 feet up from the sinker. When hopped and bounced along the bottom, I caught lots of crappies, walleyes and even channel cats on these flies. When trolled on a sink tip line...or full sink...they absolutely laid waste to crappies and walleyes...and cats. That was in the days before wipers were a part of the ecosystem, but they will hit them too.
I need to replenish my flies for the oncoming fall fling. I will be making up a new batch and will post some pics.
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I tie the wings just about flat over the back...with a bit of a "V"...which gives them a pulsing action when stripped in. I also sometimes include a bit of a beard or throat of yellow, orange or red...to simulate perch colors, red gills or whatever.
For the gold and silver, I use metallic sparkle braid or that craft cord like I sent you. If I want a thicker body, I underwrap with chenille or even a short length of the craft cord before the final metallic wrap.
The key seems to be simplicity and sparseness. I do much better on the thinner flies than big thick overdressed ones. If you watch perch fry underwater, there is not much about them that is readily visible. They are almost translucent until they reach about 3". Then they begin to assume more yellow coloration, with barring and a dark back.
That brings up another line of flies I think I have mentioned before...my "over and unders"...with "shell backs" or bellies of a different contrasting solid color...metallic blue or red, black, purple, green or orange. Again, many small minnows and the fry of bigger fish are seen as horizontal lines with eyes underwater. Many predatory fish key in on stripes and bloodlines.
One of my best all around warm water flies is a white 2" shad fly, with a metallic blue "over" stripe, and a silver under stripe. Wherever shad or other silvery baitfish are found, the predators love them. I used to fish them on my bubble chucker rod at Willard Bay, wading out from shore and casting long distances with sinkers on the bottom and one of these flies on a 12" dropper about 3 feet up from the sinker. When hopped and bounced along the bottom, I caught lots of crappies, walleyes and even channel cats on these flies. When trolled on a sink tip line...or full sink...they absolutely laid waste to crappies and walleyes...and cats. That was in the days before wipers were a part of the ecosystem, but they will hit them too.
I need to replenish my flies for the oncoming fall fling. I will be making up a new batch and will post some pics.
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