attaching legs foam poppers

[milo3 0]

I'm wanting to tie foam poppers for bream fishing, what tool do I need to pull legs thru the body. I've looked on many sites but have not seen a tool for this. Many thanks for this site, I have really enjoyed reading ideas as I'm new at tying and need all the help I can get, George

[Flyman416 0]

Hey milo3, you might want to try a good stout needle with a large eye. And then have a long 5-6 inch peice of rubber leg. Pass it through the body and cut off at the needle when you reach the desired length.

[tidewaterfly 0]

George, I stopped pulling the legs thru popper bodies a long time ago. Instead, I tie them in behind the body. I buggered up too many bodies & the paint by putting holes in them, plus I always had some I just didn't get them perfectly even, so the popper would tilt to one side. I punched some holes in my fingers enough times too!

 

The way I do it now works just as well, and no need for extra tools or punching holes.

 

You can use a large sewing needle, such as a carpet needle or a folded piece of wire. Stainless wire used to make lures or trolling line works.

 

You can also use a piece of heavy fishing line & a sewing needle. Push the needle thru, then pull a folded section of the line thru, inserting the legs in the fold. I used braided dacron for this, and the smallest needle I could get that the line would fit thru the eye. Worked well for the smaller bodies since the bigger needles always seemed to split the body.

 

When I put legs thru the body, I tried all of these & they all will work. Some better than others depending on the size of the popper body, and what's it's made of. When I used cork bodies a lot, I liked the large needle best. If you're making bodies with balsa, it's best to drill a hole with a small bit & hand vise because balsa will split easily. When I started using the preformed hard plastic bodies, I had already stopped trying to put the legs in the body.

 

If you're using cork or a soft foam body, and try the needle to both punch your hole & thread the legs, it's best to hold it with some type of pliers. A small pair of vise grips works well. Otherwise, you can easily slip & end up with it stuck in your fingers. Actually, you'll likely stick yourself anyway using the needle or the stainless wire. I know I did!

 

You do have to work slowly with all of them, or stand the risk of cutting your legs as you pull.

[bluegill576 0]

heat up a needle or bodkin and then push it through the body. I have a little piece aluminum to push it so it doesn't hurt my hand if I am using a needle. I like to use two strands of rubber, so i tie a simple knot in the middle of the two strands and then pull one end through with the threader. Pull the two strands tight, so that the knot becomes small and then when it gets halfway through let go and the knot will expand again. This way the rubber wont come out. I know these instructions, so in the next couple days I will try to make a video for it.

[Stippled Popper 0]

It depends on which foam you are dealing with.

 

If it is the hard foam, one sure method is a fine drill bit turned by hand. Another option is to lash

the rubber legs behind the head instead of through the body. This is often done by others and

my preferred method.

 

If it is the soft foam, flyman416's suggestion is a good one unless you have the silicon rubber(sililegs)

which come packaged like the four strips on the left of the following image. Just shoving them

through the body with a needle will probably result in the legs breaking. The round ones

such as the ones on the right side of the image are less brittle and will stretch much farther

without breaking.

 

At least that is my experience.

 

[NJ All Day 0]

Here is one way to do it.

[Flyman416 0]

NJ All Day, how do you use that whitlock tool? I dont understand sewing deer hair could you explain?

[TheCream 0]

I agree, add 'em to the shank behind the body. Here's my #1 color for gills:

 

[flytire 0]

The first hard foam popper I made I just drilled a hole and pulled the rubber legs thru with a doubled length of copper wire

 

[milo3 0]

The first hard foam popper I made I just drilled a hole and pulled the rubber legs thru with a doubled length of copper wire

 

Thanks guys, I tried the needle trick and it works great. Thanks, milo3

[Rick Mc 0]

I do the needle trick and then use my bobbin threader to pull the legs through.