tube flies for steelhead

[square tail]

new to tying tubes and will be going to the skeena system for steelhead in october and would like some help with tying on tubes for steelhead will be using spey rods and intruders as well; any help on colours and how to tie would be excellent thanks.:confused:

[Big Tuna]

Blue Moon. I haven't fished the Skeena system, but have been told it's an effective fly up there. It's my personal favorite as well:)

[Bruce Davidson]

95% of my Skeena flies were blue, black, or purple, or combinations thereof.

[Philster]

Though not BC oriented this might help for some very simple patterns. http://www.flyfishusa.com/events/round-tables/01-tube-flies.htm And this is their recommendations on usage http://www.flyfishusa.com/flies/stl-wet-tube.html

Nothing earthshattering, but a nice bit of info from a shop

[Les Johnson]

Spun marabou tube flies are what I use a lot for steelhead and salmon. I tie mine with just a single plume to keep the bulk down. They look about like the ones Philster linked to the Welches site. I also use a spun marabou tied on a hook and have several dressed tubes in various colors that I can slide on in front of it. This is an old Mike Kinney and Dan Lemaich trick for offering big, big flies to winter steelhead on the Skagit and Sauk rivers.
Les Johnson

[Bruce Davidson]

Les,
You just gave me one of those 'smack myself in the head and say why didn't I ever think of that' moments re: tubes in front of a regular hook. Of course, I'm too stupid to think of that, but that's beside the point. That is just a brilliant idea. I wish I had thought of that YEARS ago. This is the kind of nugget that makes the WFF Forum such a treasure at times. Thanks to you, Mike, and Dan for such a wonderful idea. I can't wait to start tying a few and see how the go together. The combinations seem endless in my mind at the moment.


p.s. I was at WeighWest the same week as you about 5 years ago. Fishing was a little tough that week, but my dad and I enjoyed meeting you. Thanks again for this wonderful nugget.

[Les Johnson]

Bruce,
That particular tube fly system was in the book, "Tube Flies - A Tying, Fishing & Historical Guide" co-authored by Mark Mandell and me published in 1995 and is now in a second printing. (see Skagit River Winter Fly, page 78). Dan Lemaich used to slide on several tube sections in front of one of his dressed trailer hooks to shake up Skagit and Sauk steelhead. His concoctions were multi-colored and probably 5-inches long -- and they worked. I still employ this system, using the same single plume spun marabou dressed trailer hooks. I never use more than a single large plume. Spinning too many marabou plumes onto a hook tends to fill the gape and sometimes makes the fly ride erratically and turn on its side. Either of these faults can reduce hooking efficiency.
Good Tying,
Les