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Fly Tying

FrenchCreek

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About FrenchCreek

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    Advanced Member
  • Birthday 10/07/1947

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  • Location
    Bow River - Calgary
  1. Joe, here are some of my observations on the design of Mouse flies. The tear drop shape (as in your pictures above) is more suited to frogs. If you see a small mouse on land chomping on grain, it will probably look like the ones in the picture. But, a wet mouse trying to swim for it's life will be elongated. and wet whiskers will be laid back along the body. Eyes are more for the FFsher than for the predator, but they don't hinder the action as long as the profile is a more elongated shape. The mice I tie are more like a truncated (at the rear) football shape, leaving the rear 1/3 somewhat bulkier than the front 2/3 taper. A longer tail, say 4 inches helps with the swimming action in moving water and in still water. Also, a loose pack Vs. a tight pack of deer hair allows the water to move along the profile with less hinderance while still csuing the "wake" effect that triggers strikes. But, they don't look as pretty as the ones in the pics.
  2. Flies were mailed to you on June 1,2006. They should be there by now, usually it is a 5 day delivery. Sent to the address you Emailed to me.
  3. They look great. What type of hook are you using & why?
  4. AN OPEN LETTER TO: DBL HAUL – Piker Fly R&D Dept. FROM: FRENCHCREEK – Piker Fly Field Testing Dept. SUBJECT: Wooly Bully Pink Variation Test Summary: You submitted the subject fly for our field testing program 2 seasons ago, after your laborious R&D shop came up with this design. Our testing was comprehensive and thorough. The subject fly came through with flying, albeit somewhat unusual colors. During the testing period, the subject fly was scrutinized by several fellow anglers who affectionately dubbed it with additional monikers such as; The Pink Floyd, The Commie Fly, The Sexually Altered fly, and finally, the Pinko-Dinko. Others were more reserved and adapted quite well to its given name. Species Targeted: Pike Seasons: Spring, Summer and Fall fisheries Duration of test: Approximately 6 hours of hard core fishing with the subject Species caught: Pike and Walleye Test Platform: Power Boat and Pontoon Test equipment: 9 Wt. dry line 50% of the time and Sink Tip line 50% of the time Test Area: 4 Central and Southern Alberta lakes and one North West Territories lake TEST RESULTS: The subject fly was solely responsible for the successful capture and release of over 15 Pike and two Walleye. Pike ranged from one 22 pounder, 5 pike in the 15 to 20 pounds, and at least a dozen other smaller pike. This attests to your claims of attractiveness to pike and durability in the face of toothy critter mouths. There were at least 4 “first Cast” fish caught, among them the 22 pounder, and on average, 60% of the fish caught were attracted during the first 5 casts. It is my contention that the flashy material used in the design is a key factor to the success of the subject fly. Being Metrosexual myself, I can't bring myself to comment further on the color scheme. The subject fly has now been retired to our Hall of Fame and archived in the category of “BEST PATTERNS”. It is blind on one side and requires serious surgery to the other eye. The body has deteriorated, understandably so, and we just cannot justify using this subject in any further testing as it would be cruel and unusual punishment, as can be verified in the attached picture. RECOMMENDATION: Our primary concern with this subject fly which further testing will clarify is that we had one occasion whereby a small pike, about 22 inches long, refused the fly several times before deciding to actually eat it. It is our opinion that this fish was either scared of becoming bi-sexual or of being constantly teased by his buddies for being attracted to a pink fly. Further testing of our theory requires that you send us a full dozen so that we may conclude our field-testing program in the many lakes we are planning to use at testing grounds over the coming seasons.
  5. Just to add to Al's very correct advice, try to get Mule Deer hair rather than any other deer type. It is the best for spinning, it is usually longer and more hollow so it compresses and flares well without cutting through. Unfortunatly, most store bought hair is not classified or identified, but some stores do a very good job of providing the correct details. One of the best alternatives is to find a fellow hunter and get the entire hide from them, ask that they skin the animal leaving most of the leg fur and neck fur on the hide. Then prepare the hide for your use by cutting various sections into 1"X1" and staple this to a piece of wallboard (rock board etc), Cover this with lots of salt and let it dry. Make sure you mark each piece properly, neck, leg, rib, belly etc. No need to have the hide tanned, but tanning the whole hide is an option. When you are done, have a deer hair "trading" party with fellow tiers and you can get lots of very neat stuff for your efforts!
  6. They look great. That much flash will surely attract big ones. Give us a report onn durability after you have caught a few pikers on them.
  7. I use Yak Hair a lot, for long 5-7 inches pike patterns. I've also used it for some SW patterns. It is not very good for short/small flies. I like it because it has very good "durability" on pike flies, compared to some other materials and it does not get fouled in the teeth or in casting. Disadvantage is that it is stiffer and krinkly compared to other materials. Overall rating 8.5 for pike & some SW patterns. Others have made good comments as well.
  8. How many?, by when?, send to? etc?
  9. This is the same fly viewed from the top.
  10. A new addition to the fly pattern database has been submitted by FrenchCreek: Moth Beast (click link for more info)
  11. I'm keying in to your words "keep it simple ti tie", so poppers, gurglers, splatters, swimmers etc are all intended for one purpose, paricularily in early spring pike fishing. They create a lot of water disturbance/displacement. Early post spawn pike are not the most aggressive, so you are trying to annoy the heck out of them while they are sunning themselves in shallow warmer water. Size matters most for the amount of "annoyance" you can create and trigger a strike. I use larger hooks for poppers because of their strength and large gap, makes it easier to release the fish and the flies are generally 4" to 6" inches long, but I've also caught early pike on very small (1-2 inch long) slim floating minnow patterns tied on size 2 4Xl hooks. My absolute best success in early spring (Northern Alberta, Saskatchewan & Manitoba) has been with Deer hair "bugs/froggies" that are relatively small, say 1- 2 inches long. So go with what you are comfortable with and keep your design simple to tie and cast. The Trilobal design is a good one to look at.
  12. Try a little bit of candle wax on there before you bend it. Might save you the cost of a new bobbin!
  13. I use a small Hot Glue gun (craft store type) with a very fine tip, I'll do up a few doz hooks with cones and then fill each one with hot glue. It makes the cone sit right and centering can be done while the glue is setting.It also prevents the cone from slipping back.
  14. I think the original calls for Elk hair taken from the lower legs (Elk Hock" because that hair is very small and has very nice tips. Last I saw you can buy Elk Hock. Regular body hair is longer and more coarse so it will flare more.
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