Mike G

So once I made the Bunnybody, I began to think it sounded familiar. Turns out it is very similar to one of Brad Miller's top 10. It is nice to know I am tying with the stars. Check The Fly of the Day: The body is white ermine. Red and white is a true Northwoods color, and that is where the pattern comes from, MN exactly. I reinvented the wheel. Credits: "Tied by, Designed by Dave Kollmann St. Cloud Fly Anglers Hook: #4 4XL streamer design – mustad #3665 Thread: light brown – 3/0 Tail. red marabou – 12 strands silver flashabou Body tourmaline mink (cross cut) palmered to 1/8″ behind eye Hackle: ruffed grouse shoulder feather, 2 wraps Weight: .030 lead. 8-10 wraps on front 1/3 of shank Note: you need a piece of cross cut mink hide 1/8″-3/lfi” x 4 3/4″ long for a 4xl hook. Notes: coat the hook shank with cement to bond the mink hide to the hook. don’t overlap the Hide when palmering hide on the hook."I still struggle with the red tail. So my variation will sub red bunny for the body and use white marabou for the tail.

Rob, Nice report. In the big leagues, weight gets the check. So I would not knock 18 especially a hefty specimen. On a rare occasion I once caught prespawn back to back 19s. The first I assume was a male in fighting shape. The second a female heavy with eggs was so big around that I could hardly grip it. BTW Photobucket's retroactive rule on hosting really messed up this thread. I went back to look at your flies and mostly found upgrade notices. Now can a guy with Dr. in his name come up with 4 bills to ransom his pictures?

FYI Overnight 7/22-23 Two more inches fell, same location. Look for current breaks near the entrance to parking lots. Submerged picnic tables are good. Drowned fire pits are best though hard to find in murky water.

Dabbling?

Dabbling?

2.5 inches in my gage 20 miles NW of Rockford.

Photobucket really went down and dirty. All pictures previously posted with photobucket as the host have been replaced with a notice about updating my service to allow third party hosting. It turns out that it costs $399.99 per year for the service. Thank you for the tips on alternates.

For a long time i have used photobucket's free hosting service for the pictures I put up on the net. Besides the "free", It gave me the ability to insert my picture practically anywhere on the Net." Lately free Photobucket is so bogged down with popups that I can't do anything. Before I buy into pop-up free service at a price, can anyone tell me if there is a free photohosting out there that I can use?

Photos of Wild Hares Photobucket is cranky. I hope these give you the idea

Bass Buggers owe a lot to Craig. He gave us several excellent patterns and was happy to share his techniques at Thursday Night tying sessions or whenever they were. To me two of his best were the Hairy Fodder and the basic Receding Hare Leech. then about 2 years ago he produced a Hybrid called the Wild Hare. I simplified it a bit by mounting my #02 wire double weed guard on the 60 deg section of the 413's shank and subbing gilt eyelash for the body. I skipped the extended body. (Bunny gets a bit soggy when there is a lot of it.) Pictures in the making.

I seen it. It looks like a lot of work to fabricate the segments and a lot of specialized materials which Craig tells us are common in WA and OR fly shops. I just finished a couple of variations on his Wild Hare that have a similar profile and might serve as well. So my challenge statement is,"How does this advance the science of fly design?" I am keeping an open mind>

That is such a heavy list that I can't even lift my lap top with it on the screen. I am glad to see you are setting a high bar for yourself. I am not sure how you feel about fiction. If you need to come up for air sometime in there, here is a lighter list in the fishing fiction category. Moby Dick (fishin' fer the whale) The Old Man and the Sea The Nick Adams Stories A River Runs Through It The River Why Note that this list is in order by literary value. If it were a list of my favorites, it would read in reverse. There is a movie version of each one though the Nick Adams is hard to find. The others come in CD, Streaming, and sometimes VCR. (Jaws and The Perfect Storm are also rans.) From second hand experience of people in my family, I know that cancer treatments are taxing, draining, or whatever. I will be pulling for you.

Generally I agree with John about the direction. I am worried because this was not "repeal and replace." There is no replacement for the order. Both the good and the bad of it are gone. I can see the confusion about rich's opinion since this site still lists him as an officer along with listing Joz as the president. In the current political climate, we may be lucky if "best agricultural practices" survive. They do burden big and small AG with obligations their third world competition does bear. For the sake of the Kankakee and other waters large and small, I hope the "best practices" band aid holds till we get the wagons turned around.

Rob, Here's the BunnyBody that can't stop moving. 3" Hook, #2 EC 455 Tail Blood Quill Marabou Silver Flash Body Cross Cut Rabbit

You have to read Dr. Doug Hannon on the attracting and triggering characteristics of lures; it applies as well to flies IMHO. Sometimes the best action is no action.

My offer still holds. I will send you the floppy tail and the bunnybody.

So I think a marabou tail and bunny wrapped body is what you are really looking for. Pmail me your address-betaman.

Rob, You really are fixated on material action. At one end of the range are marabou, ostrich plumes, and bunny strips which won't stop moving. Hackle and synthetic hairs in the middle. Squirrel tail and bucktail are near the other end with deer body and elk hair at the other end. And they all catch fish. Woody sez it is best to start with figuring out what you want the fly to do. Then pick materials.

did someone say white? 2.5 inch Beadhead Leech # 4 Eagle Claw 410, the shank length is the same as the #2 Octopus, there are eagles within 10 miles of Lake Summerset.

I found lots of wooden spools for craft projects on Amazon. When the time comes, I will use PC 7 2 part paste to be the sandwich rings when the time comes. Thanks for all the tips.

Rob, When I put up the photo, I did not have time to add the text. This is the fly and material rich is talking about. I am sure he will chime in.

Look great. Are you going to use a trailer on them?

2.5 inch leech, looks like a minnow. #2 Octopus Hook, there isn't an octopus within 800 miles of Lee, IL. I am rich's ofishal fly fotografer. Rich says that the fly gets better the more you use it. Like this one that has caught 20 bass rich says.

Wish this was the KIsh.