INSIDE THE ULTIMATE FLY BOX
movement when in the water. When would be using as many synthetic career is to keep accurate records of
tying a number of traditional saltwater materials as we are if you could find a where and when you have success.
patterns, such as the Clouser Minnow, good supply of the following: an endless Information concerning water temperature,
I use a combination of materials as supply of inexpensive polar bear hair, what the tide is doing, what type of
well. With that particular pattern, soft bucktail in six- to eight-inch structure you’re fishing, which flies are
when I’m looking for a sparser feel, I lengths, and feathers with real flash. working, and which way the wind is
find that I like the translucency that a We use synthetics because of the blowing can be invaluable on future
material like Kinkyfibre produces over the demands of saltwater flies. To begin, we outings. When you are fishing from a
standard bucktail design. Outstanding tiers tie larger flies for the sea. We need boat and are concerned about moving
Ken Abrames and Bill Catherwood materials that are long and soft for from place to place quickly, you often
tend to design a lot of their patterns action, and that do not hold water. We don’t take the time to enter all this
from predominantly natural materials, need our flies to be light and easy to information in a log. One way to do
whereas Bob Popovics has certainly cast long distances. Also, baitfish in this in a fast, effective manner is to
mastered the use of synthetics. So, in the salt contain exceptional shine or carry a small, hand-held tape recorder.
my mind, a well-designed fly is well flash; the various synthetic mylars All you need to do is quickly record all
designed no matter what it is replicate this shine. Much of the bait is the factors you feel are pertinent, and
constructed from. very translucent, which we duplicate when you get home transcribe this
Murphy: Synthetic materials come accurately with the use of epoxy, as in information to a permanent book. You
in textures and colors that really can’t shrimp or spearing. can even take this one step further and
be matched with naturals. Say, stuff create a spreadsheet on your computer
like Krystal Flash or EZ Body or
WHAT WISDOM DO YOU WISH
to keep track of a number of factors.
Successflies’ Polafibre or Kinkyfibre.
SOMEONE HAD SHARED WITH
When you start to do this over a period
Synthetics—specifically, stringy nylon
YOU WHEN YOU STARTED
STRIPER FISHING?
of years, at a glance, you’ll start to see
materials such as Ultra Hair or patterns to your fishing success. These
Superhair—can be significantly more
Berke: One piece of advice I wish I
can be extremely valuable.
durable than any natural material I can
had followed early on in my guiding
If you are shorebound, take the time to
think of. Given the harshness of the
marine environment, durability is a Strung saddle hackle is used for shape in many saltwater fly patterns. Layering the feathers
desirable material characteristic for a
creates important silhouette. Comes in many colors with popular white shown here.
saltwater fly pattern. Tail and wing
materials, especially Fish Hair or Ultra “Schlappen” is the name fly tiers have given the wide, soft
Hair, can be processed into much hackle feathers used to add bulk to a fly. Sometimes these
longer usable lengths than natural
feathers are too wide with too little taper to be used in anything
materials. (Just try to find high-quality
but big flies—size 6/0 and larger. Comes in assorted natural
one-foot-long polar bear!) Synthetic
and dyed colors (kingfisher blue shown here).
materials are processed in large batches,
so as to yield consistent quality with little
Polafibre is among the new wave of synthetic materials
variation. Packaged natural material can
that is beautifully soft and alive when wet. It comes in
vary significantly, with the stuff in one
nearly unlimited colors (royal blue and fluorescent
package better or worse than its neighbor.
white shown here), is easy to work with, and holds its
I still use natural materials in all my
color well underwater.
patterns. Polar bear or bucktail have
characteristics I have never seen duplicated
Attractive molded eyes are easy to use by
in a manufactured material. These natural
peeling off the covering of a sticky back and
hairs have dramatic tapers in diameter
applying them with your fingertips to any fly
from base to tip, making them stiff at
the point of attachment to the fly pattern
with a substantial forward section. They are
and increasingly more supple along
available in many sizes and several colors.
their length. Saddle and neck hackles
Once such eyes are attached, it is best to cover
will provide the same tapered effect if
the entire head with a brush coat of clear
the entire quill length is used (fluff and
epoxy to ensure the eyes stay put.
all). This characteristic can reduce hook-
fouling potential while helping to create
Kinkyfibre is another manmade
realistic swimming action. Additionally,
material that is extremely durable
natural materials retain a trace of lanolin,
and can be used for wings and bodies
which I think helps to mask
of saltwater patterns. This fine-
corresponding trace odors of adhesives
gauge material can be trimmed to
and synthetics used in a pattern’s layup.
shape (where fine tapered hair
Chouinard: Well, I don’t think we ends are not a necessity).
A UTUMN 2001 67
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