Some Salmon & Sea-Run Softies

[Mataura mayfly]

Jeff,
These are gorgeous. The application of giant soft hackles for sea run fish is an idea that I have seen come up once in a while, but I don't know how successful it has been. At those sizes, what might the fish take them for? Or does it even matter, so long as they bite? Carl Old Hat has experimented with them. Stendalen was posting some big flymphs for seatrout in January, under Soft Hackle Seatrout flies collection:
http://www.flymphforum.com/viewtopic.ph ... len#p31874

You are definitely on a roll here. Keep 'em comin'.
Lance

Lance, to be honest..... I HAVE NO IDEA!! I am just playing, but if anyone wants to test fish these, let me know. We do not have a Salmon fishery that lends itself to fly fishing, nor do we have sea trout. We have the odd brown trout that heads out to sea and comes back. If caught in the lower reaches of the rivers here they are a silvery salmon type colouration, but they soon change back to normal after a couple of weeks back home in the river. I have fished for them with smelt/whitebait imitations but nothing like what I have on display here. Here, I'm just having fun and hoping to inspire or entertain at least.
It is my understanding that salmon and sea trout coming up to spawn don't really eat whilst in fresh water, others will know better on the subject, so I guess strikes are an anger response from having their space invaded? Bit like a grumpy teenager?

[JohnP]

Your flies beat the pants off the purple egg-sucking leeches I was tying. Well done!

[Mataura mayfly]

John, I am sure your egg sucking leech is a fine looking honest fishing fly...... I am unsure if these will even appeal, just ideas rolling around and falling off my vice .

Last nights efforts.
If Purple is up there in a must have colour, orange mustn't be far behind?



Hook: Mustad 9850 hollow point #1
Thread: Orange
Tag: Orange rubber leg/ jelly body kind of material
Tail: GP Tippet feather, caught in a couple of loose wraps and pulled through to tent over tag.
Rib: Medium copper wire
Lower body: Orange craft string plastic tubing
Upper body: Orange dubbing
1st Hackle: Yellow dyed blood marabou
2nd Hackle: Dyed orange cock hackle
Front Hackle: Brown orange feather from Golden Pheasant Cock breast
Head: Orange tying thread.

Dull 'n Drab



Hook: Mustad 36890 #1/0
Thread: Black Uni #8
Tag: Fine copper wire
Tail: Clump of Red Deer hair
Rib: Fine copper wire
Lower body: Natural string, probably Jute.
Upper rib: Medium gold wire
Upper body: Grey Australian possum fur with good guard hairs
Back Hackle: Soft black hen
Front Hackle: Soft brown hen

Peacock & Green



Hook: Gamakatsu T10-6H #4 blue (Mark R)
Thread: Yellow #12
Tag: Medium oval silver tinsel
Rib: Medium flat tinsel
Lower body: Green lurex
Upper body rib: Medium oval silver tinsel
Upper body: Mid green seal fur
Back Hackle: Dyed green Guinea Fowl
Front Hackle: Peacock "mini eye like" feather from the lower back, just above tail
Head: Black varnish.

Black Spey



Hook: Black Magic N series #4
Thread: Light purple #12
Tag & Rib: Fluro yellow rubber leg/jelly body type material
Spey body hackle: Pukeko flank
Body: Hends black spectra
Hackle: Silver Pheasant Cock belly
Head: Black Ostrich herl.

[gingerdun]

Very cool flies Jeff, and good variety.
Now, the photography seems to have popped up a few notches. How'd you do that?
Did you discover the AWB (Auto White Balance) control? Color is perfectly lovely.

Lance

[Mataura mayfly]

Thanks Lance, no real secrets with the photos, just good natural light diffused in a cardboard box and tissue home-built light box..... none of the dreaded yellow lightbulbs included.
Camera set to AV (super macro) auto.

[Ron Eagle Elk]

Jeff,

These just keep getting better and better. If your serious about a test run, I'd be happy to swing them through a couple of runs, but it may be a while. We are experiencing winter pacific storm after winter pacific storm. All of the rivers are blown out, running high and chocolate milk brown. Not a trace of the lovely steelhead green we like to see.

Also, PM me your snail mail addy, I have a couple of tid bits you might like to play with.

[Roadkill]

Mm,

Jeff those great flies just keep on coming! Your Dull 'n Drab doesn't even need a test dunk before you tie more. It is a close fancier cousin to an old NW steelhead fly the Burlap.

[CreationBear]

Very cool series--I was just about to comment on the "Dull and Drab" when Roadkill (aka "The King of Spades"? ) beat me to it. Whenever I was fishing any rod north of a six weight, both it and the Burlap would be in the flybox.

[Mataura mayfly]

Mm,

Jeff those great flies just keep on coming! Your Dull 'n Drab doesn't even need a test dunk before you tie more. It is a close fancier cousin to an old NW steelhead fly the Burlap.

See, you cannot reinvent the wheel and there ain't much that ain't been done in fly tying.
The Burlap looks very nice and simplistic. Is that Coastal deer hair in the tail? What kind of hook sizes would you be looking at for these?
Maybe I am trying to be too fancy and should simplify my offerings........

[redietz]

Nice flies all of them. The orange one looks like it would make a killer shrimp, and the black one has that green butt skunk mojo about it that says proven fish getter.