Steve Horgan

FishDragon, how about calling your fly the Seaducer Shrimp.

They will all fish! Nice job.

Hook : TMC 9395 size 2 Thread: 3/0 olive Eyes: medium nickel/yellow-iris real eyes plus (Feather Craft) tied under shank about ¼ in. behind hook eye. Tail: tie in large clump of fluorescent orange rabbit hair just forward of hook bend, then tie in two splayed pieces of medium white rubber legs trimmed to tail length Tie in large copper wire (used UNI-French from Feather Craft) just forward of tail. Dub cahill-cream antron dubbing length of shank to within 1/8 in. of eyes. Throat: tie in large clump of fluorescent orange rabbit hair over two splayed pieces of medium white rubber legs just behind eyes under the shank, legs trimmed to throat length. Wing: tie down magnum olive variant zonker using copper wire, tying off just behind eyes with the wire (lightly wetting the zonker strip using your finger tips makes working with it easier). Head: cut and place olive variant rabbit hair in a series of dubbing loops, forming a collar around the eyes (muddler style). Trim the head to a bullet muddler shape, and trim the collar underneath to fully expose the orange and white throat. Comments: length of fly from hook eye to end of rabbit strip is 3 ¼ in.; this fly was used in Labrador rivers where 3-5 lb. brook trout were plentiful; a good choice in any water containing brook trout, this fly can be downsized to suit the size of the predators. Species caught: brook trout, lake trout, landlocked atlantic salmon, and northern pike

Materials Hook: Patridge 4/0 Ad Swier Black Nickel Absolute Pike hook Thread: Red, 3/0 Yellow bucktail Gold flashabou Peacock herl Yellow saddle hackle Red Chinese saddle hackle Sally Hansen’s Hard As Nails Tying Instructions 1. Place hook in vise and tie in an underwing of yellow bucktail approx. 4 in. long (two pencil widths). 2. Tie in wing of approx. 40 strands of fine gold flashabou approx. 5 in. long. 3. Tie in overwing of approx. one dozen strands of peacock herl approx. 4 in. long. 4. Tie in two yellow saddle hackles approx. 4 in. long on each side of body. 5. Tie in head using red Chinese saddle hackle. 6. Coat head with Sally Hansen’s Hard As Nails. Comments: surprisingly rugged fly for peacock bass; casts and fishes well on T-300 line coupled with 9 wt. rod and 40 lb test leader; strip quickly for peacock bass; length of fly is approx. 5 ½ in. Species caught: peacock bass and jacunda

Tying Directions: Place a Mustad 3361 size 1 hook (or similar) in vise. Using white GSP thread, tie on a pencil width portion of white bucktail about 3 ½ inches long about one-third of hook shank up from the hook bend. At the same tie point as above, tie in about 20 strands of pearl flashabou which extend about one-half inch past the end of the bucktail. At the same tie in point as above, tie in about 20 strands of silver flashabou so that they extend about one-half inch past the end of the bucktail and about 1 ½ inch past the hookeye. Tie a one inch long portion of white EP fibers (or similar) on each side of hook at same tie in point as above. Pull back silver flashabou that extends beyond hook eye, tie down at same tie in point as above, and trim it to same length as EP fibers. Tie in medium white chenille behind hook eye and wrap down shank to original tie in point, back to hook eye, then back down to original tie in point (I do this to give a head that has some bulk). Tie in opalescent white estaz at rear of head and wrap forward using tight wraps to hookeye. Trim estaz as needed to give desired head shape. Color top of head with gray marker. Glue on ¼ inch silver eyes using Zap Gel. Comments: Originally tied by Bill Murdich to fish for ocean-going stripped bass. Fishes well with variable stripping speeds but I prefer to strip it quickly. I like to fish it using a Type 5 Scientific Angler’s full sinking line with a 4 foot long fluorocarbon leader but you can of course fish it using a floating line. The fly is approximately 5 inches long. I tie it 8 inches long (an extra 3 inches of flashabou) for northern pike. Species caught: bluegill (!), channel catfish, hybrid stripped bass, largemouth bass, northern pike, and smallmouth bass.

Tying Instructions: Place Mustad 3366 size 1 hook (or similar) in vise. Use olive 3/0 thread for tying. Tie portion of EP 3D olive fibers on top of rear portion of hook shank. Tie portion of EP golden olive fibers under hook shank. Tie portion of EP 3D olive fibers on top of hook shank. Tie portion of EP mutton snapper fibers under hook shank. Tie portion of EP 3D olive fibers on top of hook shank. Tie portion of EP orange fibers under hook shank. Mark vertical side bands with black Sharpie. Tie a half dozen EP sparkle gold fibers on each side of fly at midline that run full length of fly. Attach ¼ inch red eyes using Zap Gel. Whip finish and trim fly to shape. Comments: Try this fly in any body of water containing bluegills and larger predator species. Fly is approximately 3 inches long. Species caught: largemouth bass

Coinman66, You will find that fish will often eat this fly while it is pausing. I caught a 27 inch channel catfish while trying to catch largemouth bass in a 4 acre pond. It was a nice surprise. Good luck with it.

Tying Directions: Hook: Gamakatsu T10-6H size 2 Thread: pink 3/0 (shown) or orange Body: Tie in the rear egg using medium florescent fire orange chenille (or fluorescent orange or dark pink), tying an egg 7-8 mm. in diameter. Tie in a band of silverholographic chenille, 2-3mm wide. Tie in the front egg as done for the rear egg. Veil: Tie in a veil of white marabou in front of the front egg. DO NOT make it too heavy. Whip finish the head and touch it with Hard As Nails (or similar). Comments: This double egg fly traces its origin to the Babine River system in British Columbia, where it was originally developed as a steelhead fly. It has since been used to catch all Pacific salmon species. You can find several variations of this fly, including versions which use white marabou behind the rear egg and/or between the eggs. Another popular version uses red hackle between the eggs. And there is a version sold commercially featuring eggs that are 10+ mm. in diameter. Real Chinook salmon eggs are nearer 7-8 mm. in diameter. Fish this fly dead drift near the bottom under a strike indicator. I have never fished it for steelhead. Species caught: Chinook salmon

Hooks: rear, Gamakatsu T10-6H size 2, front Gamakatsu B10S Stinger size 2/0. Thread: Olive 3/0 Rear Hook: tie olive marabou on top, white marabou under, each about 1.5 times length of hook shank. Connection to front hook: pass 6 in. of 20 lb fluorocarbon or similar through eye to form loop, thread 5 red beads over loop [used ruby red large hi-lite glass beads (Spirit River)], wrap head of loop securely on front hook shank, finishing back of tie down ca. 1/3 of shank up from hook bend, glue tie down with super glue, trim off excess fluorocarbon Flashabou: single strand of pearl saltwater flashabou doubled over and tied off at center of hook shank Marabou: tie olive marabou on top, white marabou under, each about 1.5 times length of hook shank Flashabou: cut off to length of marabou Head: spin white deer body hair under, then olive deer body hair over, or in the fly pictured, spin complete head of white deer body hair, trim head fairly narrow and at RIGHT ANGLE to hook bend – see picture then color top of head with olive Sharpie. Eyes: hologram dome eyes 1/4” yellow held in place with Zap Gel Comments: make sure head is trimmed at right angle to hook bend for appropriate action; commercial tie, originally tied for large trout, has smaller hooks; fish using sink tip line or full sinking line (e.g., Scientific Anglers Type V) with 4-5 ft. leader; strip, strip, pause in clearer water; keep it moving in colored water; fish in slower moving water in rivers; can vary color of marabou and head; total length of fly about 5 in. Species Caught: largemouth bass, channel catfish, and hybrid stripped bass

How about calling it the Seaducer Shrimp?

Materials Hooks: Gamakatsu B10S Stinger size 2/0 (rear hook) Patridge 4/0 Ad Swier Black Nickel Absolute Pike Hook (front hook) Thread: Clear fine (.006) monofilament (White River) Body: Olive bucktail, yellow bucktail Fluorocarbon, 20 lb test Five minute epoxy Pearl flashabou Red hologram dome eyes, 3/8 in. Zap Gel Head cement: Sally Hansen’s Hard As Nails Black Sharpie Tying Instructions Place rear hook in vise. Tie in olive bucktail approx. 4 in. long (about two pencil widths) behind hook eye. Coat thread with head cement. Cut off hook point of rear hook at the hook bend. Thread 20 lb. fluorocarbon through hook eye, then double it up and tie it down on front hook, about ½ in. behind hook eye. Coat the mono with 5 min. epoxy and allow it to dry. Tie an underwing of yellow bucktail approx. 4 in. long (about two pencil widths) on the front hook. Tie in wing of olive bucktail approx. 4 in. long (about two pencil widths). Tie in approx. 10 strands of pearl flashabou slightly longer than the bucktail on each side of front hook at midline. Glue the eyes in place using Zap Gel. Coat the head and ½ of the eyes using 5 minute epoxy. Mark three vertical lines on each side of body. This is a rugged fly that holds up well. Strip it quickly when fishing for peacock bass. Casts and fishes very well on T-300 line coupled with a 9 wt. rod and 4 1/2 feet of 40 lb. test tippet. The length of the fly is approx. 6 ½ inches.

Materials: TMC 5262 size 8 or size 4 5/32 inch gold tungsten BH (for size 8) or large gold cone head (for size 4) Fluorescent green thread 6/0 0.025 lead wire (for size 8) or 0.030 lead wire (for size 4) Fluorescent chartreuse/pearl sparkle braid Mallard flank feather, natural Fluorescent chartreuse/pearl crystal flash Tying directions: Pinch barb on hook. Slide BH or cone head over hook point up to hook eye. Wrap shank with lead. Tie in sparkle braid behind lead wire and wrap over lead wire to about 1/8 inch behind BH or cone head. Tie in a mallard flank feather on each side of hook shank behind BH or cone head. Use head cement on wraps immediately after tie in to secure the feathers. Tie in about 6 strands of krystal flash behind BH or cone head. Whip finish and coat threads with head cement. This fly is attractive to many species. It fishes very well when stripped slowly. Species I have caught on it include bluegill, brown trout, golden rainbow trout, hybrid stripped bass, largemouth bass, rainbow trout, rock bass, and yellow perch. Steve Horgan

Here is a fly that I think works particularly well for midging trout. It can be tied quickly and does not require any tying thread. Tying Materials: TMC 2487 size 20 hook (2X wide, 2X short) 1/16 inch gold bead head 1/8 inch clear scud back Tying Directions: Slide gold BH behind hook eye. Tie scud back at middle of hook bend with tight half hitch, wrap forward around shank (do not stretch scud back) to behind BH, wrap back to hook bend (do not stretch scud back), then stretch the scud back, wrap forward to behind BH giving a segmented appearance, then tie off with half hitch behind BH. Touch the two half hitches with a very small amount of head cement and you are done. No thread! I initially tied it using 6X tippet for thread but prefer this method. The idea for this fly came in October 2007 after fishing friend Felix Villarreal gave me a gold BH fly he had tied using thin strips of rubber he had cut from a translucent glove he was using in his printmaking at Miami University. I was unable to neatly cut strips from a rubber glove so I thought of using clear scud back instead. Clear scud back can be colored with a Sharpie (or other marker) or you can use other commercially available colors of scud back to vary the color of the fly. Clear scud back also dyes readily. You can also wrap different colors of thread or materials such as peacock herl or various dubbings around the hook shank followed by the clear scud back to vary the color of the fly. I prefer to put a small strike indicator 6 feet or so above the fly to aid in strike detection but you don’t have to use one. This fly fishes very well when you see midging trout. I have had success with size 18 and 22 versions of this fly but my favorite size is 20. Steve Horgan

I'll be fly fishing the surf in the Outer Banks this fall for the first time. I would appreciate suggestions of what flies I should have in my fly box. I have a lot of freshwater experience fly fishing but negligible salt water experience. Thanks for your help!

Who do you buy your long saddle hackle from? Thanks for the information.