Rob G

Well now that you have my anchoring system taken care of, two more questions, Has anyone mounted oars in their canoe ? (Read it in Holschlags' fine book) or does anyone use a double sided paddle like used in kayaks, it seems it would have to be rather long for the clearance but what do I know?

Mike, what do you think it would cost us in order to pay off someone on the panel so they would declare in their recommendations that under no circumstance should a Smallmouth Bass be eaten because of extreme toxicities?

Mike, here's the one John was talking about, offered at Bass Pro http://www.basspro.com/Attwood-Deluxe-LiftNLock-Anchor-Control/product/840/-268837

coryg, I don't know how far you are from Bloomington but on March 13th we will be meeting there for our next event, Flies, Pies, and Spin Guys and we'll have our popper forms and Crease cutters there at your disposal. Hope you can make it. Rob

Rich, I'll definitely have some made up for the raffles but sure could use another pair of hands, hint hint.

John, will do. Thanks

Speaking for myself and the dozen or more that were able to make it, I think all had a great time. We were able to learn a few new techniques and all walked away with some very fishable flies. A big thank you goes to BrianJ for displaying his talents with the Crease Fly and Jim Z for exhibiting how to produce commercial grade poppers using the Gary Krebs popper forms. Don't miss out on our next gathering, FLIES, PIES, and SPIN GUYS on March 13th in Bloomington.

Thanks for the quick replies. Norm, I like that one but would a crank be overkill since I would rarely let out more than 6 ft of rope. It would be nice but I hate drilling too many holes in the canoe, wonder if I could mount both crank and pulley on a board and find a way to attach it to the canoe for temporary use as needed? Mike, thanks for the links. I notice the Anchor Pulley had a ton of poor reviews saying that the spring is weak and breaks very quickly. Others said the spring wasn't even needed? Any personal use with that one? The other Cabela's one, which I guess is a rebadged Scotty, seems to have better reviews. Also, you say you mounted it to a board so it could be extended out back and not allow the anchor to continually bump into the canoe, how did you attach the board to the canoe itself? Les, searched their catalog but couldn't find what you were referring to.

I would really like to install an easy to use anchoring system for my 14 ft Wenonah canoe, maybe one that I can crank up and down easily while sitting by myself in the stern. Does anyone have a sytem that is easy to install and works well when you are solo? Any photos would be great. And as always, thanks for your input.

Just want to mention to those that are interested in coming to our February 20th fly tie in Urbana, that this would be an excellent time to bring in or tie up some flies that you could donate to the ISA. These flies are used for auction items and promotional give-aways. Also please bring all materials that you might want to use in order to dress up your poppers and crease flies. We should have some cylindrical foam, hooks and some flat foam for you to play with. Hope to see you there.

Nice job Terry, yea we tried them one time on Lake Earie but had no luck.

Over the years, I've been a member of several conservation minded and angling organizations but I must say that the Bronzeback Bulletin is at the top when it comes to a professionally designed and executed bi-monthly magazine. At one time I worked for another organization in putting together something similar and it's amazing how much work and how many hours it requires to produce a publication of this quality. So again I say "Bravo" and may you never burn out.

Unfortunately there was a mistake I didn't catch in this recent Jan/Feb Bronzeback Bulletin on page 6, Central Region Fly tying Schedule. It was stated in the Bulletin that the next gathering will be on February 13th in Urbana but in fact the next gathering will actually be on February 20th 1:00 - 4:00 PM at the Urbana Free Library. I'm sorry if this has caused any confusion and if you have any further questions please feel free to contact me. Hope to see everyone there on the 20th for Popper Mania. Rob G.

Mike, I might agree with all but the one point underlined above. I can't say for sure that markings or eyes on your popper make it more attractive to fish but the fact that they are above the waterline does not mean the bass can not see them. That is false, fish can and do see above the water surface quite well. I know this for two reasons, a doctorate in optics and zoology and the fact that last summer I had on two occasions a bass leave the water and literally catch my popper in mid air one to two feet above the surface before it even touched down. And of course we've all seen them trying to catch dragon flies on your local pond in mid air as well. I personally like "eyes and stuff" on my poppers but only because they appeal to my eye, and you're right, the fish probably couldn't care less. I'm definitely going to follow your lead and tie up some Lefty's minimal poppers and give them a shot this season. Again, thanks for sharing your photos.

Mike, those look great. You'll have to report back how they work as the season progresses. Especially curious how that ultra simple Lefty's popper does. Thanks for sharing.

We're going to try and make it over there on the 13th so hopefully the eagles will hang around. Plus I remember there is a neat little Irish Pub that had a great burger and corned beef sandwich at a small town near by. Think it was like Duffey's in Utica?

Thanks Brian, you know the more I look at that shape, I think I can imagine a grasshopper with a little bit of deer hair or wing material. hmmmm? I've got some olive and tan sheet foam, something to play around with I guess.

Van, we have both sets of forms which allow for 5 sizes of poppers. These were made with 3/8" round foam, 2 larger sizes are available and one smaller. The 1/4" is more panfish related.

What else are you going to do on a day like this? Actually we got off quite lucky compared to the snow and ice amounts of others. Anyway, had a chance to play around with the Gary Krebs foam popper jigs that will be available at our Popper Mania Day. See the event calendar or the Central IL Region Fly Tyers meeting schedule thread within this forum for more specifics.

Thanks for all the information. It's been immensely helpful. These are a few I just "tied" up. I used some Gamakatsu #1 straight shank worm hooks that I had around. Size #1 hook for the size #2 Crease Fly pattern and they seem to fit fairly well. I tried using a Sharpie red pen for gills but the Sally Hansens, made the red ink run. If you have any suggestions or other ideas, please keep them coming.

Well, I tied up a couple out of different foam. Both on a size 4 Mustad 33903 hook. One sits more erect in the test tub than the other but not sure why. Look decent but I think I can make some modifications to improve their actions. BrianJ, do you use that Goo to completely cover them, I only had some Hard as Nails to use.

Hopefully Brian J and others will chime in here but a question on using Crease flies for smallies, do you desire for your fly to lie on its side like a wounded minnow or sit more upright in the water? How do you like to work these flies? Any other tips you would care to pass along? We just received our cut out stamps for the Crease Fly patterns which will be available at our upcoming Popper Mania (Central IL Region fly tyers get together on February 20). As always, thank you for your input.

Walmart carries them (Wilkinson) and they're much cheaper than Walgreens and a lot cheaper than CVS if that helps.