FLYMPH FORUM

Jeff, you have a WONDERFUL idea there. Let's see it.

btw, finally got some antibiotics perscribed yesterday.........have another doctor appointment schedualled for today to see bout getting some camera work done in my stomach. They'll have to knock me out in order to do that. i've never been "under" before. Also.....i should be getting the results of my second cat scan today..........

Good luck, Mark. I hope the Doc can find out what's going on.

Tkx. Ray.......did you ever seen that purple fly above.............?

Thanks for pointing that out to me Mark. Somehow I had missed the purple fly. Very cool. That hackle is dynamite!

I have used very similar Keel Wave Barbless hooks in the past (thanks Karsten). They make great bendback minnows (sorry for the non-wingless wet content / just sharing another use for the cool hook). According to what I have read, these hooks act as a keel and they tend to ride hook point up in the water. That gave me the idea to use them as the basis for a bendback minnow pattern. I can tell you from experience that these hooks are sticky sharp!






The body on the bottom fly is created with a wire dubbing brush, which adds a little additional weight to the fly to make it fish deeper.

This is kind of what I was thinking of, many here could do it better..... but it gives the idea.

Green Highlander & Irish Grey Thunder soft hackled.

Sweet conversions, Jeff. You've done a nice job capturing the colors of the traditional patterns in. I'd like to see more conversions.

Thankx for the reply Ray.....informative. Those hooks ARE perfect for Bendbacks........i've got a great video of Lefty tyin' Bendbacks........another of the all-time great little streamer patterns. Actually i've got a couple or more of Lefty's tying videos and his Saltwater tyin' book, amoung others........what a master tyer, etc., etc., etc..........lol. He's gonna be at the show in Houston i'm sposed to do on Feb. 4th. Hope i can make it.........always cool to see him again.
Your flies are perfection.
Jeff, you got it goin' on Bro. Please keep 'em commin'. Nice work.

Nice job Jeff. Those are really nice. I've taken quite a few hairwings and made them into wingless. Even simplified them and reduced the size for trout. There is some great inspiration out there. Next to wingless wets classic hairwing steelhead flies are my favorite to tie. I have also taken many of the classic spider and flymph patterns the other direction and made them hair wings.

You've tackled some complex patterns there and they both turned out very well.

Carl

Ray, they may not be the true wingless wets we are meant to be concentrating on, but they are very nice bent backs.

Mark, keep tying to keep you mind off the poking & prodding and I hope all goes well for you.

Carl, the bodes of built wing or made wing salmon flies I seem to be able to turn out with some kind of respectablity, it is the wing I struggle with! With both of those I tried to stay true to pattern with the body, each has an underwing of tippet, so it was the first to be wrapped as a hackle. Then each fly got the top wing colour as hackle.
I do not kow they will catch, was just something "different" and I like your idea to simplify them down in style and size for trout- and work the other way with traditional soft hackles.
Just goes to show tying is only limited by the tiers imagination.

Thanks to you all for your kind words.

Call it what you will, tied from memory...... from what I can remember of a picture seen somewhere.
We do not have a lot of Salmon here and I have not seen anyone target them with fly gear, so I am kind of "winging it" here!
The materials will not be the same as the original, not everyone can shoot Australian Brushtail Possums out of their own plum trees when running short of dubbing- or have Paradise duck feathers for hackles........ I use what I can get my hands on easy!
But I think colours and style were pretty close.