flycaster1

Thanks for all your input, guys. You've certainly given me enough to think about. I do agree that I should learn to do deer hair, but I'm just too lazy. However, the idea of using sculpin wool on the muddler pattern does appeal to me.

I will most likely be using some type of sinking line (maybe a 200 Tiny). Will a foam slider head interfere with getting several feet below surface? How does one use sculpin wool? Just wrap it around the head of the fly? What is "magic head?" Do the deceivers and clousers (know how to make them and have used them) push enough water to attrack the gd in dark water? How about simply wrapping some wool around the head of the clouser? I know these fish are not all that particular about what they eat, which fits in perfectly with my style of tying...keep it basic and simple, but strong.

I'm off to fish golden dorado this mid-February. I've been told that mudlers (4"-6") are the best bets. My problem is that I don't spin deerhair well, at all. So I'm thinking how can I get the mudler effect (a lot of vibration) by tying a "mudler" using some other materials. Any suggestions and directions are most welcomed

Made up some tarpon toad flies on 2/0s. Question is should I add some head cement or something like that to the merkin part of the fly?

Not only amy I a lazy fly tier, but I'm just plain lazy. Your suggestion is really the right thing to do and I'll probably give it a try. And, if I do, I'll let you guys know the outcome.

Good idea, but I've already tied my flies and am trying to determine if I should glue or not glue. If I were to glue, I'd only be gluing a very small portion of the tail as it comes from the bend.

Making up bunny style flies for a trip to Belize. I used to tie in a 20# loop of nylon above the bend of the shank to prevent the bunny tail from wrapping around the gap of the hook. It worked quite well. I'm now trying a bit of straight, single nylon (30# test) above the hook's bend (the nylon only extends beyound the bend in the shank by about 3/8 to 1/2 inches). When I using this method, it was also suggested that one crazy glue a bit of the tail to the straight nylon. While fiddling with the fly while dry and trying to get the tail to wrap, it looks to me that the little bit of nylon may just prevent the tail wrap. Comments on gluing or not gluing the tail to the bit of nylon.

Got a tarpon trip coming up and I have several flies (tied with feathers) from previous trips that were never used. However, after lying around for several years, they need a little perking up. Any suggestions on how to 1.Get feathers to lie right along their spines 2. Straighten out slightly mis-shapen feathers 3. Put back the curve in splayed feathers I think I may have read somewheres that wetting them between paper towels and placing them in the wanted position will do the trick, but I'm open to any improvement on this method or any other methods. Thanks.

I think that this will be the stuff I'll go with. Suppleness and not kinking, a good combination. I won't mind an occasional bite off.

Soon I'll be casting to 42+" northern pike up in NE Manitoba. This will be my third year and previously I've used knotable wire without much problem. Ocassionally krinking up was the biggest problem encountered. I'd like to use something like braided line or hard mono, but don't know how well they would work. Any suggestions? Thanks.

Does one really have to make the fly as big as one can? I know most say that the bigger the fly, the bigger the fish. Frankly, I'm not sure if I really agree with that, especially when throwing surface flies. It seems to me that makeing a disturbances and getting the fly within the fish's "excitement area" may be all that there is to it. Anecdotal evidence really doesn't mean much, but I've caught 4-5' baraccuda on 1.5" pencil poppers and my largest bass came on a smallish Sneaky Pete. Also, I've done quite nicely catching Amazon peacock bass (12-20 pounds) on 4-5" poppers (like the one in my avatar). Nonetheless, Dble Haul, what overall length of a surface fly do you think would make a right sized fly for a trophy pike? BTW, the guides at the place that I fish in the early spring, Edmund Lake, all say that 4" streamers are the best at that time of year. However, as the water warms into summer, they then recommend larger streamers.

I've already gone up to northern Manitoba twice for northerns. Will be up there just after ice-out early this June when a fly rodder has the best chance of catching these guys via sight fishing. Anyway, as the weeds won't be up that early, I'll be looking for fish along the shore in relatively shallow waters, 2-5 feet. I've used poppers before with success. But now I would like to use gurglers. I'm what can be called, or at least I call myself "gross" tyer. That is, I try to keep things real simple and easy when tying. Especially so when fishing on the surface for very aggressive fish. For examle, my poppers were made with closed cell foam (1/2" to 5/8 " diameter, and about 1/2" long), no eyes, colored them bright with indelible markers, and a tail of whatever would hold up, giving an overall length of about 5-6". I've never made a gurgler before, but the general simplicity of it, appeals to me. So, I guess my question is what size(s) should I make? I really don' think that color will make much of a difference as long as I can get the fly near the fish and make a dis turbance. Thanks all.