Tom L Posted February 1, 2015 Report Share Posted February 1, 2015 It is my winter therapy: a fly here and there. These are some of my new/old creations. CF Bunny CF Minnow Tube CF Minnow This is what-you- end-up once you add them up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Clifford Posted February 1, 2015 Report Share Posted February 1, 2015 Awesome collection!That CF Minnow would tear it up on the Kank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Loebach Posted February 2, 2015 Report Share Posted February 2, 2015 Nice variety & some interesting colors. I like the purple, good low light choice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Wright Posted February 2, 2015 Report Share Posted February 2, 2015 Tom, fine craftsmanship! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Gillio Posted February 2, 2015 Report Share Posted February 2, 2015 Oh so nice! A fantastic collection. That first Craft Fur Bunny is a real eye catcher. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob G Posted February 2, 2015 Report Share Posted February 2, 2015 Tom, are the heads spun craft hair? and will they sink without the barbell eye? Eye catchers as well as fish catchers for sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom L Posted February 2, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 2, 2015 Awesome collection! That CF Minnow would tear it up on the Kank. Thanks Mike. The CF Minnow is an off-shoot of my CF Muddler which had been pretty good on both the Fox and the Kank. But there are some situations that I'd like the fly to sink a little faster and deeper than the CF Muddler does. That's the reason I replaced the deer hair head of the CF Muddler with the Craft-Fur head and added the chain eyes. The new fly still fishes and acts similar to the old CF Muddler but just sinks a little deeper and faster. Nice variety & some interesting colors. I like the purple, good low light choice. That's exactly what I'd in mind for the purple and also for the times when all the proven colors (white, yellow, tan, chart, brwon) fail. I'd switch to some funky colors like purple and hot pink. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom L Posted February 2, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 2, 2015 Tom, fine craftsmanship! Hey Jim and anyone else that might be interested, we're going to have a 4th Monday tying at the Thai Garden on 2/23/15 and I'll be demo the CF Minnow. John L is working on that to set it up. Mark your calendar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom L Posted February 2, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 2, 2015 Oh so nice! A fantastic collection. That first Craft Fur Bunny is a real eye catcher. Thanks John. That CF Bunny in the first pic was tied with a Fire Tiger Bunny strip. I inserted a rattle in the belly of some of the CF Bunnies (can't tell from the pics). Planning to experiment with rattle this coming season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom L Posted February 2, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 2, 2015 Tom, are the heads spun craft hair? and will they sink without the barbell eye? Eye catchers as well as fish catchers for sure. Yes Rob, they are all craf-fur heads. I used craft-fur stumps in a dubbing loop and figured-8 for the head. Craft-fur stump is the part that is closest to the craft-fur patch, approx 0.5-1". It is the densest part. It includes the under-fur and craft-fur. The flies would sink without the barbell eyes or the chain eyes. As I'd mentioned before, the craft-fur head is not as buoyant as the deer-hair head; and it is not as absorbant as the wool head. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom L Posted February 6, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 6, 2015 An Update: I was bathtub testing the flies the other day. And to my surprise, I found out that the CF Bunny stood on its head and the tail pointed vertical while the fly was at rest. I was not sure how long the fly would stand on its head vertically, so I soaked the flies in a glass vase and timed it (see the pics). It took over an hour before the fly would lay flat. I think the buoyancy of the craft fur and the bunny strip cause the fly to stand on its head, but once the materials became completely water logged the fly laid flat. I'd heard that some fly tiers glued a piece of foam at the tip of their bunny strip fly to raise the tail. Jeff Little said that he get more strike out of his paddle tail when the tail is raised when it crawls along the bottom. I guess this is a good trait of a fly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Gillio Posted February 6, 2015 Report Share Posted February 6, 2015 An Update: I I'd heard that some fly tiers glued a piece of foam at the tip of their bunny strip fly to raise the tail. Jeff Little said that he get more strike out of his paddle tail when the tail is raised when it crawls along the bottom. I guess this is a good trait of a fly. CB_Hdown1.jpgCB_Hdown2.jpg Tom, I agree. It is a good trait. I believe your Foxy sits at an angle when at rest. It is a great fly. I have had tremendous luck with jigs tied on heads that sit upright or at an angle. I have also noticed that in my large fish tank at work, a dying minnow with it's tail sticking up seems to be a signal that says eat me an.d put me out of my misery Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom L Posted February 9, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 9, 2015 Tom, I believe your Foxy sits at an angle when at rest. It is a great fly. You're right, John. Tested and confirmed. Thanks for pointing that out. It is hard to visualize what your fly is doing under water when you fish the murky water of the Fox most of the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike G Posted February 9, 2015 Report Share Posted February 9, 2015 Too many to comment on. All look great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colt Johnson Posted February 16, 2015 Report Share Posted February 16, 2015 Great looking flies! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikea Posted February 17, 2015 Report Share Posted February 17, 2015 Like Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom L Posted February 19, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 19, 2015 I'll demo the CF Minnow at the Monday Tying night 2/23/15. Please join us. Tiers and non-tiers all welcome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Posted March 5, 2015 Report Share Posted March 5, 2015 Tom, Consider a simple SquareSpace account with e-commerce. Think your colorful, quality creations would sell worldwide. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim A Posted March 6, 2015 Report Share Posted March 6, 2015 Nice flies, Tom. I like that you use beadchain eyes in the CF Minnow. I've been doing this lately on a fly similar to what you've tied as a CF Muddler. Beadchain has a rattle to it if you cut it yourself (the linkages fall into the beads when you cut it), and I think that has a positive effect on the fishiness of the fly. Had a lot of luck in the Everglades with that this winter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom L Posted March 7, 2015 Author Report Share Posted March 7, 2015 Beadchain has a rattle to it if you cut it yourself (the linkages fall into the beads when you cut it), and I think that has a positive effect on the fishiness of the fly. Had a lot of luck in the Everglades with that this winter. Thanks for pointing that out, Tim. The eyes do have that little rattle effect. I'd love to see some pics from your Everglades trip, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim A Posted March 14, 2015 Report Share Posted March 14, 2015 Here you go, Tom. These are the fly patterns I used mostly. Weedguards were a must for fishing around mangrove trees and turtle grass. Bonefish was actually oceanside in the Keys, but ate a monotone tan version of the same fly, except bigger beadchain & lighter hook to flip it over. Spent 2 days in the Everglades: Lunch of choice for South Florida anglers, plus my weak beverage choice for hydration Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom L Posted March 14, 2015 Author Report Share Posted March 14, 2015 Nice multi species trip. Thanks for sharing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob G Posted April 6, 2015 Report Share Posted April 6, 2015 Tim, great lookin' pics. The only one of those species that I've ever caught was the fried chicken. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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