SpeiserStudio 0 Report post Posted May 10, 2010 This guy is my second fly pattern tied (if you can call it a pattern)....this is a Carpet Shrimp LOL I have never made a shrimp or crawfish before, and I do not have any fly tying materials except some hackle feathers, and feathers from our ducks. The only flies I have made recently were for the newbie swap and I made some overly fuzzy Cahills LOL. They didn't turn out too horrible for me not tying since I was 8 years old...I am 37 now. This little guy is made from...carpet strands, that's why I named him a carpet shrimp I made the skin from translucent sculpey as a separate piece, tied the feathers and feelers and eyes to the hook, then tied on the body shape (made from carpet strands) on the hook with invisible thread, then covered it with the skin part, then wrapped it in invisible thread for the shell sections. Eyes are made from fishing line, and I used feathers and string for the rest He has cute little eyes, those turned out the best of the whole critter I need to make the tail fan better and I am thinking a curved hook would look much better too. Also the body crest should be fuller and taper down to his head smoother, his feelers should also be placed better...and he needs some legs. Anyway, I hope he makes you smile Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Olefish 0 Report post Posted May 10, 2010 I like him, but then I like sea food also Keep your eyes open :bugeyes: there is alot of yard sales going on and you would be sirprized on the tieing things out there. I tyed with alot of wool yarn for alot of years. :wallbash: Good Luck and keep the little guy around Kenn Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JohnP 0 Report post Posted May 10, 2010 Looks great, Lora. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Flytyer14 0 Report post Posted May 10, 2010 Looks great to me! Excellent job! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rockworm 0 Report post Posted May 10, 2010 Very nice profile. And the eyes are great. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SpeiserStudio 0 Report post Posted May 10, 2010 Thanks Everyone! I am going to make another one today...with a modified skin from what I learned last night with this one. I hope it will look better...and I hope I can figure out how to add some legs. I will keep him around, kenn I am thinking I might have to keep all the 'firsts' that I make so I can laugh at them as I progress. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kirk Dietrich 0 Report post Posted May 10, 2010 Good start, nice shape so far. I have to say though, I don't see any carpet fibers unless they are the underlayment for the over skin? The legs should be easy, after you make your underbody, form a dubbing loop and fill with the carpet fibers and wind over the body, trim the fuzz from the top and pull the skin over and secure with your mono thread leaving the long fibers from the dubbing protruding from the bottom. Or, you could use silicone legs. Kirk Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
c-denby 0 Report post Posted May 10, 2010 That little guy looks great.. I'm sure he will catch some fish.. You have endless opportunities with shrimp because you can make them so many different ways and they always turn out looking great. Good luck.. Cheers, Chris Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SpeiserStudio 0 Report post Posted May 10, 2010 Thank you Chris! Kirk, Yes, the carpet strings are underneath the skin,you can see the little fuzz sticking out under the tail. The skin is clear with tiny air bubbles in it and you can see the dark colors of the fibers through it. Kind of looks like the insides...kind of, but I know I can do better on that too. I will try adding the legs with a dubbing loop, after I figure out what that is and how to do it Thanks so much! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kirk Dietrich 0 Report post Posted May 10, 2010 Speiser, here is a link to some great information on dubbings and different ways of applying them. I think the dubbing loop method is explained about halfway down. http://ukflydressing.proboards.com/index.c...4046&page=1 Although I'm sure you can find some videos on Youtube on it too. While you're at it, you can do split thread dubbing that is similar to the dubbing loop. Learning the loop and split thread methods are worth it as they have many applications. Basically, you're making your own chenille so, you can vary the length to make a spiky dubbing that is good for a multitude of bug parts on different flies. Good luck and can't wait to see the progression of this fly. Don't loose heart if you have a good idea on a fly. I have several flies that took a year or more of trial and error of tying/fishing/adjusting/fishing/adjusting...until I got it how I wanted. There is a design I've been fooling with for over 5 years now and I still can't get it down-pat; it isn't something I work on constantly but its always in the back of my mind and I'll usually commit a few weeks a year trying a different approach. Kirk Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Robert M 0 Report post Posted May 10, 2010 That shrimp fly sure looks a lot better than the first one I ever tied For that matter it still looks better than a mess of the ones I tie now :wallbash: Keep up the good work. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SpeiserStudio 0 Report post Posted May 10, 2010 Robert, thank you LOL. I doubt yours are bad what-so ever! Kirk, THANK YOU!!!!! Still reading, I just wanted to thank you for the link and all the information, I am so happy I joined this forum, everyone has been wonderful Question, What is used for the tail on this fly? Is it the feather spines? Thank you for the answer, gpd4 and FlyTyer14! Golden Pheasant Tippets. Thought I would leave this here for others that might be wondering the same thing Speiser, here is a link to some great information on dubbings and different ways of applying them. I think the dubbing loop method is explained about halfway down. http://ukflydressing.proboards.com/index.c...4046&page=1 Although I'm sure you can find some videos on Youtube on it too. While you're at it, you can do split thread dubbing that is similar to the dubbing loop. Learning the loop and split thread methods are worth it as they have many applications. Basically, you're making your own chenille so, you can vary the length to make a spiky dubbing that is good for a multitude of bug parts on different flies. Good luck and can't wait to see the progression of this fly. Don't loose heart if you have a good idea on a fly. I have several flies that took a year or more of trial and error of tying/fishing/adjusting/fishing/adjusting...until I got it how I wanted. There is a design I've been fooling with for over 5 years now and I still can't get it down-pat; it isn't something I work on constantly but its always in the back of my mind and I'll usually commit a few weeks a year trying a different approach. Kirk Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gpd4 0 Report post Posted May 10, 2010 Looks like golden pheasant to me. Cool shrimp. What is the shell material? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Flytyer14 0 Report post Posted May 10, 2010 Golden pheasant tippets on that tail. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SpeiserStudio 0 Report post Posted May 10, 2010 Thank you gpd4 and FlyTyer14, I used translucent sculpey to make the skin. I made a thin layer on a piece of glass and then baked it at 295 for 20 minutes to get it clear. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
