Seems the guides for Florida's inshore fishing rely on mostly 3 types of bait. Shrimp, mullet and pinfish. Shrimp are relatively easy to duplicate using clouser type ties, but finding a tying method that duplicates full-bodied baitfish was something I found very frustrating.
I've used yak hair and synthetic wool for shad type imitations, but found the hair is really too soft and tangles frequently along with loosing its shape. While leafing through some baitfish patterns in a few catalogs I found that Enrico's patterns fit that bill. I ordered a bunch of the 3D fibers from Stockard, which come in a variety of blended colors. Those along with Blueman's Peanut Bunker article (December 06) made the learning curve quite short.
Adding silicone to the head allows them to keep thier shape and it adds just enough weight for them to break the surface and still stay out of the grass. The sinkrate was a major issue with some of the clousers, especially while fishing the denser grass for reds and trout.
