Red and White Hackle fly / Sea ducer

[Rob G]

Have read a couple narratives about this fly and just wondered if anyone has used it extensively, been around a long long time but both Bob Clouser and Lefty speak highly of it. Just curious if I should be tying up a few of these but would need some red saddle hackles that I presently don't have.

 

[Steve S.]

Have read a couple narratives about this fly and just wondered if anyone has used it extensively, been around a long long time but both Bob Clouser and Lefty speak highly of it. Just curious if I should be tying up a few of these but would need some red saddle hackles that I presently don't have.

 

 

The r/w hackle fly was the first fly I tied (since they are fairly easy). I used it more in my first year of fly fishing than I do now, probably because I read about it in one of Clouser's books and decided to give it a shot. Two things I like about them are they are simple and inexpensive to tie and very easy to cast and fish. They are a film fly and I like to use them when bass are active and holding in shallower water. I've even caught walleye on them in the evening. What I don't like about them is I've seen bass follow and look at them and not hit, whereas in my experience a fly with more volume and action seems to illicit more strikes. Therefore, I lost a little confidence in them and don't fish them much anymore.

 

I would suggest you tie up a few and give them a try. I'm certain they are effective in the right hands.

[Mike Flyrodder Miller]

It's an easy tie and you can get red and white hackles at most fly shops including Bass Pro Shops. If you don't want to go that route, you can get the fly at Bass Pro Shops. The Bolingbrook store carries it in the Bulk Fly Bin.

[Mike G]

If Lefty and Bob, like it that is all we need to know. I tied some with wire weed guards that I will be trying this year.

[SKollmann]

I tied a half dozen of these Red-Faced Wobbler flies in different colors . . . red + white; red + black; red + turquoise; red and root beer. Whipped them out in no time flat over the winter. Then I turned around and accepted an offer of employment starting in mid-March, so I'm hoping to find free weekends to try them out on smallie rivers this Spring.

[Steve S.]

I tied a half dozen of these Red-Faced Wobbler flies in different colors . . . red + white; red + black; red + turquoise; red and root beer. Whipped them out in no time flat over the winter. Then I turned around and accepted an offer of employment starting in mid-March, so I'm hoping to find free weekends to try them out on smallie rivers this Spring.

 

I used them too in red/olive, red/white and red/chartreuse. They worked well, though I didn't tie them that well.

[ronk]

I won't tell the smallies if you don't but I believe Lefty designed that fly for saltwater species & given his color choice of red/white maybe for northerns too.

[Steve S.]

I won't tell the smallies if you don't but I believe Lefty designed that fly for saltwater species & given his color choice of red/white maybe for northerns too.

 

Red and white is one of my favorite color combos for my divers - because they work well for bass!

[Mike G]

In one of his books, Lefty sez Homer Rhodes designed the fly for tarpon in the '50s-aptly named Homer Rhodes Tarpon Fly. Lefty discovered the red/white combination's effectiveness for bass and warns that other color combinations do not work as well, hence Lefty's Red and White. He thinks it works because looking up from below bass see a baitfish's white belly and red gills. I like Lefty's humility in not claiming the Seaducer as his own creation. Clouser's Crippled Minnow capitalizes on that same red/white combination.

[Rob G]

Mike, one of the articles I read, claimed the fly to have been used as far back as the late 1880's, so ole' Homer may have just updated it or tweaked it a bit?

[Stuart_Van_Dorn]

In his fly fishing for bass video, Lefty Kreh uses the red and white hackle fly to catch bass from a small pond he fished. I commercially tied these flies for the bins at fly and field. They are as noted, a quick and easy tie. They can also be tied in a number of colors to sort-of match the local bait fish. They can also be tied in a number of sizes. Let the feathers be your guide. The hardest part is getting the tails on straight so that they don't turn on you and so they look good in the water. I put down a good thread base, tied one side then the other making sure that the hackles matched then put in my flashabou, and hit it all with a touch of super glue. Keep your hackle stems long and if you flatten then with a needle nose pliers they'll sit better on the hook shank. Use good quality feathers for the front, you want them to push a little water and pulsate. You can also weight this fly if you want by wrapping some lead on the front end, covering it with thread and wrapping over it with the hackles. It's a good fly to have in your box.

The origin of hackle flies is quite old and they were indeed one of the earliest patterns tied. So tie a dozen and go have fun.

[Rob G]

Thanks for all the input guys. Stuart, since you tied these commercially, did you have a favorite type of red hackle up front, say Dyed-Over-White Strung hen Saddle Hackle or

Saltwater Neck Hackle?

[Mark P]

Its got the right colors and size to be a good Pike fly.

[Rob G]

A little update, tied up a few of these, yet to do any good on the smallies (although I can't figure out why), but have done real damage to the largemouths at the local ponds and lakes. Again this evening, took almost a dozen with three going between 2-3 lbs. It's easy to cast even with a lighter 5 wt. rod. You can really get it out there and it runs about 1-1.5 ft deep on the retrieve keeping you just over the weeds. Also the hook up to hit ratio is quite good. Great action from the hackles but might try some different colors, I'm thinking a couple pair of black hackles might be really enticing kind of like a small snake.

[Guest rich mc]

how durable are they?i always figured that thelong feathers wont last long rich

[Mike G]

Rob,

 

I have has similar good luck with the Red and White on Largemouths. I will be interested to hear your results with other color combinations though Lefty sez that other combinations do not work nearly as well.

 

Rich,

 

The fly is durable though it probably will not survive a lot of pike hits. Consider how many bass bug have hackle tails. They hold up.

[Rob G]

Rich, have to agree with Mike, all dozen fish on the same fly and it could be fished some more. Other decent fish count evenings yielded same durable results. It's so limp and flexible that it holds up well, and I like the fact that even the dink bass can inhale the thing.

[ronk]

I believe that it's Lefty's go to fly for northern pike. The red/white color mimics a daredevil.

[Steve S.]

I believe that it's Lefty's go to fly for northern pike. The red/white color mimics a daredevil.

 

What does a red/white daredevle mimic???

[mannym]

Here is my attempt at this fly. Please note that this was my 3rd fly tied by my green hands.

 

 

I will be trying this out tonight after work on a local stream known to hold Largemouth and Pike......

 

 

[Mike G]

Good Luck, Manny. That one should work but do not take my word. Lefty sez.