Bucktail Rattle Rousers

[Kirk Dietrich 0]

I posted this under the Flies From the Bench, August but I don't think everyone looks there and I wanted to share these old school bunch of my Rattle Rousers for the natural material guys. When I first came up with this fly back in the late 1980's, bucktail is all I uses as the nylon hair was so thick although I used to incorporate Craft Fur in some of the color schemes. I have since used the fine crinkled nylon with success but decided to make this batch for a friend the old way.

After putting the belly (mylar tubing with worm rattle inside) together, before epoxying, I apply super thin CA to the mylar that soaks in and glues the rattle to the inside of the mylar. I found in the early days that after a couple dozen redfish, the epoxy coating that protects the mylar will wear off and the mylar will break open and the rattle will fall out. The CA helps hold the rattle inside after this happens so you get a handful more fish before you have to retire it.

The eyes are hand painted acrylic paint with 30 minute cure epoxy over the thread head but I've fished these with success without the eyes and only nail polish on the threadwraps.

 

Kirk

 

 

Just another view with the Chartreuse thrown in.

[tidewaterfly 0]

Kirk, as always, you tie some awesome flies!

[C LeBo 0]

Great flies as usual, sir!

[dreamcaster4639 0]

Those are cool might have to try some for the largemouth

[iFly 0]

I will definitely tie up some of these. Great ties as usual!

[Kirk Dietrich 0]

Thanks Tidewater, I actually had you in mind with your affinity for natural materials although mylar and rattles aren't exactly natural, I thought you'ld like the bucktail.

 

LeBo, man, I thought 50 years old wasn't old, being called sir makes me wonder now. Thanks.

 

Dream, thanks. LMB love these. Years ago a friend of mine caught some nice Brown Trout on them in Arkansas too.

 

iFly, thanks too.

 

For ya'll that tie them up, I insert the rattle in to the mylar belly followed by a BB or size #5 lead shot. The weight up front does two things, well three I guess. First, it keels the fly to allow for a faster strip if you decide to speed it up. Second, with the weight in the front, it makes the fly jig up and down, which makes the bbs inside the rattle go back and forth. If they don't go back and forth, you don't get a clicking - when you strip, the fly noses up and the bbs click in the back of the rattle chamber, on the pause and the nose down, they roll to the front and click again against the front of the chamber. A rattle fly that doesn't do this has less "click" as the bbs are just in the back of the chamber on a level running/floating fly - granted, when you shake it back and forth by your ear it rattles but I haven't been able to duplicate a back and forth motion like the shaking of a hand with a flyline strip/retrieve.

Third, the front weight makes it sink.

Good luck and Keep on Tying,

 

Kirk

[agn54 0]

Awesome work Kirk. Do you use 34007 hooks or long shank ones like 34011?

[Kirk Dietrich 0]

Awesome work Kirk. Do you use 34007 hooks or long shank ones like 34011?

 

Thanks. I use the 34011 in order accomodate the length of the rattle in the belly. You can use the 34007 on 3/0 and larger as the shank on those is long enough.

 

Kirk

[bad fish rising 0]

i attach my rattle with 200gsp after i put ca cement on the thread base

this really keeps the rattle in place on the hook

[FlyFishin'Jam 0]

Wonderful rattle rousers, interesting to know that when they were developed i hadn't even taken up fly fishing. Also this pattern was adapted for Australian conditions and still is an incredible fly for Barramundi - the barra rattle rouser which is black and red with gold myar. A full SBS can be found in flylife magazine. I will take 1 dozen thanks Kirk

[Kirk Dietrich 0]

Bad Fish, that is how Jon Cave, the originator of the Rattlin' Minnow does his. I came up with this method to shave a few seconds off the construction of the body, to give it a more streamlined appearance and with the plastic rattle capsules that we use, the thread can compress it and not allow the bbs to click around.

 

Jam, thanks. With Barramundi, you'll probably only catch a dozen fish with a dozen Rattle Rousers. Oh, thanks for helping me feel my age.

 

Kirk

[FlyFishin'Jam 0]

Hah Kirk you are not old yet, not even close to vintage. Once you have a walking cane, hearing aid, and one tooth named 'chopper' i may joke

 

12 Barra sounds great to me! Heading up to Exmouth in April *cough i mean going to Aus for my brothers wedding* but i accidentally booked a fishing trip, going to have to start tying some big salty presentations at some stage and the box needs some of these for sure.

[Peterjay 0]

Hah Kirk you are not old yet, not even close to vintage. Once you have a walking cane, hearing aid, and one tooth named 'chopper' i may joke

 

Guess that lets me out - my teeth are named John, Paul, George, and Ringo. And I don't use a cane - carrying a blunt instrument would be a parole violation and put me back in my suite at the Crossbar Hotel.

 

Hey Kirk, beautiful flies - I love 'em. Gonna have to whip up few.

[tidewaterfly 0]

Kirk, I'm glad someone is thinking about me!

 

 

I've tied up some similar ones before too! It's a great pattern for bass & Striped Bass, and I expect many other species. Never thought of adding the bb or shot in there for weight. I have added barbell eyes, with the rattle behind them, and that works well in places with strong currents.

 

I've even made some Zonkers like that too, with barbell eyes, (hook point up) and rattles inside a mylar tubing body, & the body epoxy coated. Have added some weed guards on some too.

 

bad fish rising, I've tried adding rattles & binding them down with tying thread, but frankly I feel it muffles the sound they make, so now I do similar to what Kirk does & just put them in the mylar & epoxy them. IMO, I want them as loud as I can get them, and the epoxy overcoat seems to amplify the sound. I also have come to prefer the large plastic rattles, like those used on jigs. I still use some glass, but feel the plastic is louder.

 

Something else I've experimented with is threading mylar tubing inside EZ Body or Corsair, which adds some extra toughness to the mylar and reinforces the epoxy coating a bit too so makes them a bit more durable.

 

I've got a few flies around here I've made, I'll have to locate them & take a few pictures!