Hey Fly Tiers...What's In The Vise?

[fishnmachine]

thats  too  hard  for  me

[rgfixit]

Give Josh a call Trapper. He'll tie some up for you

Rg

[Bluegillonafly]

Nice, Bob.  I think we need to have a competition.  Bob's FP vs John's GP.   The loser has to fillet the winner's catch.

[rgfixit]

10 fish limit......you're on!
 
Rg

[Bluegillonafly]

I forgot to mention whomever is older gets a 5 fish handicap.  Oh, that be me!!  If you saw me cast you'd understand why.  Tried to fish this morning but I was not successful with the 3 wt. due to a late start & the wind.  But, did have fun with the ultralite.

[rgfixit]

You can't be older than me......q

Rg

[WANNAKETCHUM]

Rg,

Great idea for cheap foam poppers! I will definitely look for some of that foam stuff next time I'm at Wally's. I already have an abundant supply of rubber skirt material for Bass spinnerbaits in different colors that works fine for legs.

Why do you use the curved shank nymph hook vs a straight shank? Do you hook up more consistently with the curved shank?

WK

[Bluegillonafly]

Rg...Some people say I'm a young looking 63 yr old cause I still got most of my brown hair.  If I remember correctly from a previous post you just turned 63 earlier this year.  Dec.24, 1950.  And for all you young bucks, don't laugh, you'll get there some day!

[rgfixit]

64 last March.
Sorry I missed your question. I like the nymph hooks. They end up better exposed. I seem to do much better hooking gills with them on poppers. I guess a wide gape hook might work, but gills have a small mouth. Anyway, I like the way they work.
Rg

[icejohn]

Here's my all time favorite bluegill fly. Bob's Foam Popper.
What you need:
1/4" foam (I get mine from Wally World. It's some kind of door knob craft stuff)
6/0 Uni or whatever thread you like. Orange is my favorite color for these
#10 curved nymph hook
Rubber legs. I use round medium orange
Super glue


Cut your foam into strips about 1/2" x 3/4" or so. Cut the face at a slight angle and taper the tail. No need to be too fussy, they seem to work no matter.




Most nymph hooks are offset. Bend the hook to be inline.



Cover the hook with thread from behind the eye to halfway around the bend. Return the thread to about even with the hook point and tie it off with half hitches or a whip finish.


Put a bit of super glue on the thread and tie in the foam body with a few ever tightening wraps.


A drop of superglue on the bottom will help make things a bit more durable.


I tie in one length of rubber legs affixing it to both sides then cut the loop to form the back legs. I've found using a single set of legs increases hookups dramatically.



Bite sized bluegill morsels.  


A very simple fly that really works well.

Rg


 

hey rg man that's a great simple popper that i'll have to try...i used to do more fly/bug fishing for gills, but lately just once in a while and usually only when they're on their beds....what type of water would you fish now for panfish when it seems the gills are usually in deeper water?
icejohn

[rgfixit]

If the conditions are calm, big gills will rise from 12' or more to hit the surface. Any water over weed beds will produce gills and the bonus bass on occasion. I have a stream close to home with lots of gills. I use these a lot. Rockies love them as well and hit them with a vengeance.

Gills may hang out in deep water but they travel to and from the weed beds to feed. That said, early and late are usually best for poppers in my opinion.

It's a super easy pattern and you can play with the angle of the face to produce more "pop" when skittered across the surface.

Rg

[myemmy]

Not a fly tyre but remember buying and using deer hair bugs for bass do you or any of you colleagues tie them, they were hot in the 80's

[trapper2000]

Not a fly tyre but remember buying and using deer hair bugs for bass do you or any of you colleagues tie them, they were hot in the 80's

i may have  tyed  one  or  two in my day  .......  it's all in  spinning  the  hair

[Raquettedacker]

I dont tie and or fly fish..  But i have a great collection of vintage O.C. Tuttle bugs...
They were made in Old Forge a long time ago..

[rgfixit]

I've tied some like the Devil Bugs Dom. Those originals are a nice addition to any collection. I'll have to see if I can find my versions.

Rg