Merkins Style Crab Question

[terrymiller1973 0]

I know this question is going to be a lot of individual preference but with the Merkins style fly is there a general idea of how wide the body should be. Like do you try to shape the body so that each side is about the gap of the hook. I have watched a lot of videos on this style but can never get a feel for the width of the fly.

[ditz2 0]

Coming from a rookie.....I believe that a true Merkin body is actually shaped like an arrowhead. Point towards the hook eye. ......That being said, the few that I have tied I have been roundish or ovular and I have gauged the hook by the the shank length compared to the diameter I intend to tie. If I want a nickel sized crab body I use a nickel to gauge the hook shank length. I have tied some down to a dime size. I don't remember what hook it took but it was probably a 6 or 8.

 

You would get better answers if you posted in the saltwater section

[flytire 0]

ive tied them sorta roundish like this example from the interweb

 

[walpy 0]

Got a REAL simpleton question here.. how do I get my hackle-tip tails to "flair" out to each side? Mine laid dead straight back!

[walpy 0]

Got a REAL simpleton question here.. how do I get my hackle-tip tails to "flair" out to each side? Mine laid dead straight back!

 

Ignore this idiot above... I've got it now *facepalm*

[fshng2 0]

As with any fly type, impressionistic or vague impressions are all that are needed for them to work.

That said I sometimes use a real example for a reference to help approximate size, shape and maybe color.

[fshng2 0]

Crabs and tutorials tied by Dron Lee

 

.

Buggy Crab Tutorial. http://flytyingnation.com/buggy-crab/

Fighting Crab Tutorial. https://flytyingnation.com/fighting-crab/

[Barbless Bob 0]

In the 1990s, when fly fishing in the Keys, I used to stay at a small motel in Marathon Key that was across from the airport. At that time, Del Brown stayed in the same motel. The real-life Merkins tied by Del had arrowhead shaped bodies as described above by DITZ2. Many saltwater books and fly catalogs show the Merkin with a round or roundish body, which is NOT how Del actually tied them. In fact, the arrowhead shape is a major part of the fly's outstanding success. Another very subtle component of the original fly which seems to have gotten lost in literature is that the hackle (claws) was Cree hen, which is nearly impossible to obtain now. The best description of Del's Merkin that I have found is contained in Dick Brown's book, BONEFISH FLY PATTERNS, Lyons & Burford publishers, copyright 1996, page 68. However, even though the fly in the photo of the book was of a fly Del tied himself, the Merkins which I have found to be even more effective for permit are a little more tapered at the head, accentuating the arrowhead pattern. (I don't know if the author of the book is/was related to Del Brown.) The arrowhead shape helps simulate the action of a diving crab, whereas a round shape causes the fly to float and wobble unnaturally while sinking.

[mikechell 0]

Gotta love Dron's work.

[tidewaterfly 0]

Dron is an artist!

 

Part of the issue with how these Merkins are tied, is they're not just used for Permit. Permit are more aware of how the fly acts, than other fish seem to be. Bonefish in some places might be put off if the fly doesn't dive correctly, but perhaps not. I know folks who use them for Striped Bass, Redfish, and even brackish water bass and this aspect of how they act isn't as important to them, so the fly shape is trimmed in various manners.

 

One Keys guide that I used to supply with flies, sent me a sample that he had tied and it wasn't arrow shaped, but more of a heart, so interpretation has a wide range. That fellow insisted the legs be long. I just sent a couple off to customers who wanted them trimmed round. One planned on using them for Bonefish, and the other for Redfish. I suspect they see them in catalogs and magazines and don't know they're not really tied correctly.

 

There is now a difference between the Del Brown Merkin, and most other "yarn crabs" and everyone who ties them has their version. The same is true of the Clouser Minnow.

[Edward Snowden 0]

I don't know anything about the Brown family line. I never knew him, but Dick Brown died last year. He was a prolific poster on another forum. Was totally passionate about fly fishing, especially around Sanibel Island, where he had a condo he lived in part of the year. I think he had a good sense of humor too. He posted using the name, Bonefish Dick.