HEY I hope its not considered high jacking for what I posted? Its been a lot of fun with these post and very informative for patterns and techniques! I love seeing your patterns , I don't tie by formulas most of the time and try and make my own patterns from looking at others or thinking of patterns myself----the joy of tying your own! You've showed me some great ideas. thank-you!
Not highjacking at all mark. I have really enjoyed reading your posts and seeing your ties. I have learned an awful lot from all of you. This forum is truly a treasure trove of knowledge and I really appreciate how willing everyone is to share. That is one thing I really love about stillwaters, there sure seems to be a lack of competition and for the most part people I encounter on the water are always quick to give suggestions or give up a hot fly. All the great flies you all have been sharing have got me totally inspired to tie. So much in fact that I spent the past couple weeks getting my tying stuff semi stocked and have whipped up a couple dozen bunny leeches that have been so productive lately. Gonna start in on some microleeches next, followed by some 'mids
Now might be the time to post the picture of the outhouse wall at Pass. Not everyone is so willing to share.
I thought I tie up a couple of variations of the leech. I think I like the white and red the best. View attachment 48476 View attachment 48477 View attachment 48478 View attachment 48479 View attachment 48480
I love the tan-white-grey one. thanks for posting the pics, I was looking on the swap thread and saw some of your work, Its very good! now where's some of blues softy's and leeches? Love her work also.
I learned something many years ago referring tomthe less is more, that I would like to bounceof you all. Mohair, many times this comes on a string. Take it off that string. Pull, pluck, whatever. The string is way too thick. Then put it on a dubbing loop using thread for the loop. I don't have pictures to show the difference, but there is one. My Leech pattern is much easier, and moves/ungulates right up to the eye. I love this new pattern, but I am seeing more a bait fish pattern. Whites, browns, even yellows. I amreally liking this pattern. Thank you so much for sharing.
iagree That's what I do. It definitely slims down the bulk. The "plucked" mohair is also a great component for custom dubbing blends.
I like this idea. I tie a bunny strip leach and in an effort to slim the pattern I use thin strips and scales the hide as thin as I can before tying in.
You are correct, my patterns do edge more on the side of bait fish not leeches and in away that's what I was going for. As for steel, I suppose, but these will stay in my lake boxes and out of my steel boxes.
Irafly, I'd be tempted to use that white and red one for searun cutts in my local estuary and tidal creeks. They wouldn't care whether it represented a leech or a baitfish. They'd just eat it.
Blue, I love that leech of yours. Looks a lot like that real one in the other pic. Looks like you might have palmered the marabou over some body material, but I can't really see for sure. My ears perked up when you mentioned that it was an easy tie.
Thanks Jim, but just two Marabou tips wrapped softhackle style on the front of the hook by the eye. The hook is bare. I have added dubbing/chenille to the hook (Polar Chenille is awesome) to create a thicker body more baitfish look (without chenille and bottom with Polar Chenille)
Here is another simple leech which uses otherwise discarded materials- pheasant philo flumes left over from tying six packs. Hook: 3x long nymph Bead: red glass tail: marabou body: olive pheasant Philo plumes reinforced with wire. This fly is somewhat delicate even with the wire, but it looks great in the water and fish like it.
Very nice. I tie something similar but load the philoplumes into a dubbing loop creating a "chenille" of sorts that also reinforces the fly. View attachment 48601 View attachment 48632
Ha ha. Me too. I've dubbed some bodies on dries, like comparaduns, but I need to get over my laziness-based reluctance to use this technique and get better at it. Troutpocket, that dubbed leech looks deadly! I need to get some red beads, too like on thesankers' leech. In fact, I need to get a whole collection of glass beads! Now I have a huge backlog of patterns that I want to tie. The head spins!
This vid is how I do the dubbing loop http://youtu.be/Zh6TwdQlNhw The way he ties the starting loop (wrapping around it before he starts) off is very important.
Same way I do it. I always used my hackle pliers for the dubbing loop and hated the time it takes to do it. then I bought the dubbing tool or "hook" and found it much easier, the thing I would add is that I bought the longer version and should of bought a shorter version which would make the tool much easier to work with. Mine is as long as my gluing needle. I really don't like using to many tools just takes more time to switch back and forth, but there's no argument that a dubbing loop does the best job when dubbing! His tool was cool but the plain dubbing hook is all I use.
