Hairstacker

Interesting evolution of the discussion . . . . I tie all my deer hair poppers with flat bottoms and I don't recall one ever landing upside down. With that said, I tie all my deer hair divers with flat bottoms as well, and on occasion, I'll have one that consistently lands upside down. I don't know why but I saved one of these aberrant divers to do a detailed study to see if I can figure out why. I do insist all my deer hair flies land upright and don't require a strip to flip them over. I throw to a lot of small holes in weedbeds and I expect each presentation to be as perfect as I can make it. If the fly doesn't perform to expectations, I will immediately change it to one that does. -- Mike

Very nicely done! I like your sizing template idea . . . wished I'd of thought of it myself, thanks for sharing it! -- Mike

I don't pay too much attention to the color of the water. I pay much more attention to water clarity -- if visibility is bad, I start focusing more on flies that push a lot of water. -- Mike

There are those who will say to match the rod/line to the flies and conditions you will be fishing and there are others who prefer to match the rod to the fish. There are no wrong answers, as it really comes down to personal preference, but I prefer to straddle the two ends. Personally speaking, if all I was going to do is target big bass with big flies on mats or timber, I might consider a 10 weight. But I generally find myself fishing in all kinds of conditions, and since I fish out of a kayak, I typically only have one rod with me, which is a 9' 7 wt. rod lined with an 8 wt. weight-forward bass bug-tapered floating line. Sure, I have several heavier, more powerful rods in my arsenal but I've settled on this rod as the best overall compromise that still allows me to throw weighted flies up to 5"-long but yet also still allows a nice fish to show off a little and put a decent bend in the rod. If I only had a 9' 5/6 wt. rod in my arsenal, there's no question that I would next purchase either a 7 or 8 wt. rod. I too think you would be disappointed if all you end up with are one 5/6 wt. rod and one 10 wt. rod, as I think you would find a 7 or 8 wt. rod far more versatile and enjoyable. Just my 2 cents. . . . -- Mike

I tie and fish a lot of deer hair poppers, and the way I tie them, they end up with a somewhat cupped face. I don't apply any cement or anything else to the face to make it stiff and I like how they fish just fine. I'm a big diver fan as well but I've experienced times when poppers would get them but divers wouldn't and vice versa; accordingly, I'm never on the water during the topwater season without both types of flies. -- Mike

Outstanding! That is going to be one happy collector . . . I know I would be. Very nice! -- Mike

gpd4, thank you for your very kind comment regarding its cleanliness and organization. According to my wife, sometimes it gets completely out of control:

Fly tying working area? You bet. Kitchen table:

The strung saddle hackle in that link you posted should work perfectly. -- Mike

For a "Saltwater Clouser or Deceiver" swap, I can see tying up a conventional Half-and-Half, since it represents essentially a combination of the other two patterns. That is, if it is tyed with feathers. Tying it with magnum strips, though, is something else and seems like it would fall outside of the scope of the subject swap. That's my view but this is really a question for the swapmeister -- if he/she says ok, then go for it! Of course, a fly that substitutes magnum strips may very well be more effective. -- Mike

Great work! I especially like that last one -- aside from being very well-tied (as they all are), I especially like how the color of the eye matches up to the colors of the rest of the fly. How did you do that -- is the eye transparent from front to back? Very cool! -- Mike

For "something that goes streamlined when stripped and then flares out when at rest," I don't think anything works better than streamer neck hackle. If you don't want to spend much money or you want to get more colors than the single color on a whole cape, you can also find these feathers in just about any fly shop sold for about $5 labelled as "strung neck hackle." A whole neck is a little bit easier to work with, though, because you can more easily match up feather sizes and pull feathers from opposing sides of the cape to match up curvatures. -- Mike

I use 200-denier GSP.

bb123, you've received some great advice so far. I think it would help, though, to understand the details of how you're tying these flies. For example: Are you laying a foundation of thread as suggested? Are you spinning/stacking really large bundles of hair? Are you adding tight, securing wraps after stacking/spinning the hair? Are you adding thread wraps between bundles? Are you adding half-hitches between bundles? Are you adding superglue to those half-hitches? Are you packing as hard as possible both the hair and thread wraps/half-hitches between bundles? You don't necessarily have to do every one of these things (e.g., go to smaller bundles, use superglue between bundles, etc.) but all of these factors in combination are contributing to why your hair is not secure and spinning around the hook. I would closely examine and consider how you're currently tackling each one. -- Mike

Considering you've only been tying for 2 weeks, I think you've done quite well. I wouldn't have even attempted some of those flies at that point in my tying career. Proportions are always a struggle for beginners. Just focus on getting each part right as you go and re-do as necessary before moving on to the next part. Regarding tail length, I actually prefer 1 1/2 times shank length even though perhaps most strive for 1 shank length. I just like the looks of a longer tail better and figure the real bugs have longer tails as well. Anyway, I think you are very well on your way. By the way, if you can't find any suitable spade hackles for tailing, an excellent alternative is the Whiting Tailing Packs that contain coq de leon feathers like these: http://www.feather-craft.com/wecs.php?stor...mp;target=TK010

That is an awesome tie! Talk about thinking outside the box . . . . I really like that bird-like profile when viewed from below. Major kudos! -- Mike

I think Steve makes a great point. I take a completely different set of fly patterns and sizes when I'm fishing local creeks for smallies and spots compared to what I carry on the California Delta for bigger largemouths. The rest of my tackle is also quite different for that matter. For example, I like to wet wade small creeks with a 2 wt. - 5 wt. rod and toss size 6 leeches and sculpin patterns, whereas on the Delta you'll find me in a kayak with nothing less than a 7 wt. rod and nothing smaller than big deer hair poppers and divers tied on Tiemco TMC 8089 size 2 (equivalent to size 2/0 Gamakatsu B10S) hooks. Moreover, I shift away from topwater fly patterns to subsurface ones once water temps start plummeting in the late fall/early winter. Averages are somewhat useful but I would focus on a set of nearby waters that are known to be productive and learn their particular secrets and idiosyncracies -- topography, water depth, types of coverage, forage, etc. I would experiment with different fly patterns and approaches and keep track of the specific spots and tactics that produce. I would also keep track of water temps so you can get a sense of how the fishery evolves during the season. If you're doing it on your own, it can take a several seasons of regularly fishing it to really feel dialed into a specific location but the results will often be worth it. -- Mike

Well, as you know, it comes down to the application. In the waters I most often fish for largemouths, the water is shallow and there are mountains of weeds a couple feet below the water surface. You wouldn't want to drag a line or a fly through that stuff. The floating line also tends to be easier to manage in current when you're also trying to maintain kayak position due to wind. On the other hand, I know of some relatively non-weedy, rocky lakes where sinking lines or shooting heads would be the preferred approach for smallies, no doubt.

I second your suggestion. I still think kits stink too. I bought a couple of Cabela's kits for my boys several years ago. The "Master" vises they came with required so much force to tighten the jaws on trout-sized hooks to keep them from slipping that the boys were simply not strong enough to clamp hooks without my assistance. They also weren't strong enough to release the hooks once the flies were tied. Who knows what all that force did to the integrity of the hooks. I would suggest purchasing an inexpensive but decent, reputable vise outside of a kit. I agree, you can do all this within $200 without resorting to a "kit." -- Mike

I'm in. I'll tie my no. 1, go-to fly for fishing warmwater creeks -- Jurassic Sculpins. -- Mike

Great suggestion. By the way, the HMH comes with a lifetime guarantee and the HMH website states the Spartan should be expected to last several lifetimes. -- Mike

Good for you, still waiting here. I guess when you do a swap involving Canada, you've got to figure you're going to be waiting a long time to see flies.

Very nice, love the colors! I'd fish that in a heartbeat. -- Mike

On the next one, on the face of the popper, shoot for the same profile below the hook eye as you have on top, so that it has more of a cupped face shape -- it'll "pop" better and push more water. When you tie in the hair at the tail, make a couple of rear-most thread wraps cinching it down a little looser to provide a tighter profile without letting it flare up as much. Lastly, orient the rubber legs so that their lower sections extend downward. Just suggestions since you asked -- I've no doubt it'll catch fish as is. -- Mike

Those are gorgeous!