saltwater skill building no 2 - deceivers

[vicrider 0]

This is a post I did on another thread when PJ2 and Joe were complaining about small flies. Here's my take on it.

PJ2 and Joe, I found the opposite. I just finished my salt water deceivers for Li'l Dave's swap. They are technically for Lefty's Deceivers but never have liked the basic tie and exploring options I found anything tied as a streamer seems to get called a Deceiver. With that in mind I tackled some of the more popular types of ties for salt water and GGRRR, what a mess. I found several Deceiver patterns with synthetics and know a lot of salties use them. So I had enough bentback salty hooks in a nice size (I think) and went to work. Okay, line things up. Congo hair Baitfish Blue, Minnow Belly White, Mixed Minnow back (3 colors blended). Down the sides I used a small amount of SF Crackly Flash of some kind. Now I gotta tell ya', this stuff is 10 times messier to work with than any feathers or fur. I'd lock in bentback hook and start with point up. Take a small bundle of blue, try to sort it out, throw it out. Try again with a small bundle and grab one end HARD and pull a bunch of short chit out. Split that bundle, tie half down one side of hook and half on other side lateral line like. Poke finger on hook smoothing it out. Turn hook over put the belly on not quite reaching end of blue. Take small bites SF and tie down each over top of blue Congo Hair and cuss a blue streak as half of it falls out. Roll hook back up, put minnow shaded hair on top trying to keep a mix of the 3 colors in the big bunch.

Okay, now singe any fuzz that couldn't be trimmed or covered by head and try not to burn fly up. Then take off and smooth side of fly and attach eye on each side and dig in good. Then use a bunch of UV to lock eye in and stiffen front of fly and add gloss to head. I would much rather do a dozen size #24 Adams Parachutes than another bunch of these. Even the Hog Snares went together with less cussin' even if they took longer.

No, they don't have different colored eyes on each side. Half are blue and half are silver with what I had left. And I can still only post through photobucket.

[Horseshoes 0]

anorexic clouser Is what I just finished. A beauty of bait fish it is. Wish I was going south this spring, but alas I just get to send mail out to a fish maniac in the middle of the sea.

[Horseshoes 0]

Vic, I feel ya with those sharps reminding you where your fingers are. Some of mine may have a sense of reality looking like gills. Lol. It is always a pleasure to add your flies to my humble fly box.

[vicrider 0]

Hey Dave, are these going across the pond to the continent with more poisonous snake, insects, animals and plants than anywhere in the world? No wonder England sent all their prisoners there to establish a colony. Ya' had to be mean right from the start.

[Li'lDave 0]

Yes mate. These ones are coming to me, here in Oz.

 

 

one more player please!!!!!

[jd1983 0]

I'd be willing to handle the flies like Rich did in the last swap, Dave.

[Adam Saarinen 0]

Ok! "I'M IN" If i can put Boobs on it? Tying trout creations swap flies this weekend, so i'll have time to put some feathers & fluff on salt hooks!:-)

[Li'lDave 0]

Thanks Adam,

 

You're in...

 

JD1983. Thank you for the offer, although I think some ties may have already been sent my way. Please hold on to that thought though. Really appreciate it.

 

There has been someone leave the swap due to outside commitments, so that still leaves us with one more space to fill.

 

Ca'arn. You know you want to!

[PJ2 0]

so glad I decided to read this thread. I was getting ready to send my flys to Rich.

 

BTW Vic: I do complain, alot. Mostly caused by my lack of tying skills. And the mere fact that tying anything under a 4 seems impossible because i have sausages for fingers...

[Saltybum 0]

Just a little preview of what's soon to be heading south. I haven't tied a real deceiver in a while so it was challenging. Tied on 4/0 and 2/0 VMC hooks for heavier animals.

[vicrider 0]

Salty bum, so if I'd used a feather for a lateral line instead of Congo Hair it would be a real deceiver? I tied some deceivers some time ago for a swap and they were totally feathers. Matching pairs of feathers building steadily outward to cheeks. I think synthetics have become so common in saltwater and progressing into freshwater that our synthetic ties can be used wherever a "real" deceiver would be put to use.

 

PJ2, your post reminds of a friend up north. Wally was in on the first wave of snowmobiling and got a Scorpion dealership. Thing was, his fingers were about the size of Bratwurst with palms like hams. Whenever anybody would stop in the shop for anything he'd get us back into the rear work area to fix or reach or get into some area his hands had no chance of reaching into. Finally had to hire a guy to do a lot of that stuff and snowmobiling boomed back in those early years up north.

[Saltybum 0]

Well I think you would need to ask Lefty about what a real deceiver is and how to define it. I like the way Dave basically said "get creative" and think outside the box. I just happened to have enough (barely) white and chartreuse hackles to tie ten flies. Most of the time when I want a baitfish imitation

I use SF blends and craft furs etc.

[vicrider 0]

Yep Salty, that's what I used. I like the idea of the long feather that would give the impression of the lateral line and the see thru synthetic combo of yours. These are really the first saltwater baitfish style I've tied and when I found those bendback hooks rummaging around I put them to use. I have exactly 12 of them. Tied 5 using up the silvery eyes. Tied two more and used much bigger silver eyes. Gooped them all up put them in the pile but as I removed the rubber protecting the hook I realized the gap left for the hook was down to nothing. The eyes were too big. Rummaged around some more and found the same size blue ones to finish off, so I too had (barely) enough hooks to finish out. Looking forward to these ties for the bass box. Was going to go down to one of the ponds to see if there were any bed going from the warm weather we're having but winds were howling as they usually do in spring. Wing big tomorrow but supposed to let up on Saturday so I need to flail around out there a little.

[agn54 0]

Salty those look like snook candy! Mine aren't nearly as nice but should fish alright

 

[Li'lDave 0]

Bump bump, bumpity bump.

 

come on boys and girls... room for one more swapper. Mailing deadline is 31 march. That's plenty of time to bang out a set of sexy deceivers.