fishabuoy

Personal Best....

My best fish off a beach in the Bay Area this past summer... 34" just over 18#

Will second the suggestion of Chris Helm's video - I learned to spin and stack hair from his videos years ago... Chris was a master at deer hair, and his knowledge endless, both what hair to use for various applications and techniques to use. While dated a bit they're filled with excellent info. Chris's videos are available on the Bennett -Watt website in the catalogue under "hooked on fly tying...." http://www.bennett-watt.com/ best- Bobby V

excellent stacking work Bruce - really nice ties. I haven't tied with deer hair in years - I think I've been inspired to start again!

WOW! Low water or not, that scenery is gorgeous. I've fished bits of the eastern section of the park - on a family trip back in 2000. Looking at your pics makes me want to plan another trip back there!

Hey Rich - Thanks again for all your help & thanks for chiming in.... those exact instructions helped me a LOT in understanding how it is tied. It's one of those things you see... and go "OOOOHHHH" but it's not readily apparent before you see it. What do you use to water-proof the tail? I'll have to try that. Another question... have you ever died the yarn? They don't carry black - but I'd think it'd be pretty easy to use rit or some other dye to make our own? You could even use the darker brown colors to get a mottled "blackish" yarn.... What do you think? BTW- For those interested in tying some for themselves..... when pics and version of the Ultimate Worm started showing up on the web several months back - Patons had very little choice of colors of the yarn available....As of a couple weeks ago, they had an excellent selection available. I have a lifetime supply of yarn for ultimate worms.

After some one on one tutelage from the originator himself, Rich McElligott - I think I understand how to tie these now. Getting ready for a week long trek into some back-country lakes that hold trophy bass/bluegill/crappie.... I think these might come in handy Thanks to Rich McE for coming up with such an awesome imitation of a senko - I tried these out a couple weeks ago, and they are the best looking, & acting, "plastic worm" imitation I've fished to date. I'm gonna put them to the test at the end of the month at my favorite place to chase LMB. bob V

AWESOME shots! Bob V

+1 to Kirk's and Steve's responses.... It really depends on the design of each rod, and IMO, you should cast any rod you intend to purchase, especially one requiring such a hefty investment. I have about a dozen and half or so rods from different manufacturers, and within those I have 4 sage rods. Most of them I purchased because I cast them against other less expensive rods, and they had an extra something that made the higher cost worth it to me. I also have several very inexpensive rods, that fish really well or just feel "magic" to me - that cost far less. Even within a company, and line of rod there can be huge differences. I had a Redington 3wt that I purchased many years ago for bluegill that used to be my favorite rod - it was a pleasure to cast and fish, but my niece accidentally slammed a car door on it on a camping trip, so I had it replaced for free under warranty. It had been several years since I bought the rod, and the replacement they sent me was the "new & improved" line that replaced my discontinued version. It was COMPLETELY different, a horrible rod - difficult to load, weird action, and just felt dead.... like a broomstick in my hand. In fact after that first time trying to fish it, I don't think I've fished it since, I dislike it so much. Thankfully I found a TFO 3wt that cast nearly like my old Redington that I loved so much. A rod that feels like magic in your hand is worth it's weight in gold IMO - & price or name rarely has a thing to do with that. bob V

:blink: WOW! Charlie and Ron - AMAZING work! I love the popper shape/profiles - just awesome... and the painting...amazing craftsmanship Ron - I'd almost not fish those!!! What hook chassis are you using for those ? Top notch work guys - thanks for the inspiration! Bob V.

nice job and really nice ties! BV

thats a char from alaska caught with bead. oops .....so it is (I should have opened the pic and studied it better ) bv

Hey CJ - Fellow NorCAL member here, from the south-bay. Welcome to the site! NICE brookie! \m/ best- Bob V

Thanks for the pics Rockworm! You have some very unique and creative storage ideas that I may just have to borrow as I complete my new tying area over the next few months!!! Good luck with the move - hope it goes smoothly... Best- Bob V

Deeky- Another option that has generated a lot of interest out west is "rear-weighting" a streamer pattern. There are various ways to do this, from using solder or fuse wire, to lashing dumbbell eyes to the shank, to attaching a piece of weight to a length of mono then attaching that to the shank. The important thing is the weight needs to be back of the center of mass, and the materials used for the body can't be too bulky or they ruin the action of the fly. Dave Sellers applied this idea most recently for striper flies tied for the Delta and other striper fisheries in CA. His original idea can be seen by doing a search on "SST Fly" with a SBS on Dan Blanton's hot fly page. He has since refined the technique to using channel lead wire lashed to the bend. The fly darts strongly side-side on the pause. It has been a go-to fly for stripers out here, especially when they get into a soft-bite during the winter. A more thorough search on Blanton's board archives will turn up some other pics of flies tied by both Dan and Dave using different techniques to weight the fly. If interested, let me know if you can't find them there, and I'll post the links or could PM them to you also. best- bob V

GREAT SBS & Outstanding production on the VID! Looking forward to the completed series! best- Bob V

Paul - Excellent looking tying area - very very functional ideas in there too! Vacuum, Fly Studio, storage ideas etc.... I will be stealing some of that when I put mine together here in the coming weeks. Thanks for sharing ... Bob V

Really nice woodwork in that! Great looking tying space as well.... I'd need one about 10X that size though with ALL the crap I've collected over the years best- Bob V

Braided loop connector to end of flyline - Double Surgeons loop in butt of leader.... Surf, Salt, Trout, Panfish - all set ups get this treatment - never had one fail.... :headbang: Best- Bob V

iFly- That head/rod combo should be just fine... I fish the Pacific beaches of Northern CA a lot and pretty much all I use is shooting heads of various weights. I used to fish a lot with a 10' 6wt TFO Pro - which is a moderate/fast rod and it handles 30"ish" ft. of LC13 or T14 just fine (390 and 420gr heads). I'd think casts of 60-80' would be a breeze with that setup. Curious - is the line piling up...like never straightening out when you shoot the cast? Or, is it piling up at the END of when you fire off the cast, because it's straightening out, then shocking to a halt (known as "dumping") at the end of the cast ? Another question - are you stripping off enough shooting/running line behind the head to allow it to sail without restriction? best- bobV

CenCal - I have to tell you - I literally chuckle out loud every time I see your avatar - it just CRACKS me up!!!

I don't know a source for transparent EP like fibers, other than the couple of suggestions made here and elsewhere....however I do know a couple things.... "Housewolf" knows more about how trout react to our "artificial" offerings - than anyone I know or have read. When he makes a conclusion about trout behavior - there is more than a pretty good reason. I also know that some of the greatest advances in my own trout angling are a direct result of employing those observations, changes in pattern or technique. I don't know or care what the trout think, but I am very confident that if Wolf is developing a new pattern, or change in technique for tying an existing pattern - it most likely will be a game changer and work, and work very well.... I'm just saying... Fishabuoy (aka wXman )

Hey Bryan- WTG!!! Were you fishing from the shore or out in a boat of some kind? I've never targeted them specifically with the fly rod, but they'd be a worthy fish. I have a kayak now, and am hoping to get out before the season shuts down again. Try a crease fly on top next time you go out for them...I have a couple friends that just kill the rockies on topwater.

Nice fly - looks very similar to Jay Murakoshi's (one of the pioneers of West Coast FFing) Rusty Squirrel Clouser. I'm further north (Bay Area) but I travel to SoCal frequently as I grew up down there and still have family. SoCal is a blast for surf-fishing, more species willing to eat a fly, waaaay easier conditions to fish compared to NorCAL, and the bonus of Corbina. I would miss our beloved Stripers if I moved from NorCal - they are a blast in the surf - I think one of the more challenging species to land (outside tropical latitudes), especially those above 15lbs or so. However for over-all experience, I'd choose SoCAL hands down - great fishery! Here is that link Bryan was talking about - I posted my favorite perch fly on there too. I'd imagine the Croakers would love it! Surf Perch Flies

Great looking slider! Excellent paint job and finish. I've done my weed-guards in a similar fashion for awhile, with one difference. I take an initially couple wraps, tight enough to hold things in place, then adjust the guard upward enough to take a match and burn a small ball on the mono without harming the rest of the fly, you want this to be a bit "short" on the mono initially, then you pull it back down to the finished position, whip and glue. Adds a touch of insurance to the guard pulling out - not that I've ever had one come loose Best- Bob V