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"THE RAT"

3K views 12 replies 6 participants last post by  fcch 
#1 · (Edited)
If you were expecting some dear hair thing with cute little ears and leggs ...oh well.

Nothin fancy here just rabbit hair on a big 3/0 Gami spinner bait trailer hook.

Tying Instructions He He:


Lay down a good base of heavy thread and tie in the tail of pink zonker strip rabbit hair. Then wrap another good layer of thread down.

Tie in a strip of gray cross cut rabbit strip at the bend of the hook .

Wet your fingers and stroke the gray hair back from the hide strip.

Goop some fabric cement on the hook, and spread it around evenly and let it sit for a few seconds then palmer the rabbit strip forward evenly and tie off at the head.

I have found that with big rabbit strip flies like this the glue really helps. This is a very durable fly and will take repeated chewing.

Its heavy when its wet (like the proverbial wet sock) and I throw it with a 9 or a 10 wt rod.

Natrix
 

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#2 ·
BOO! I wanted to see it in deer hair! :)

I think you should clip the zonker tail down so the hair is shorter, then add a couple of black eyes to it, and tie in a little hackle as whiskers. Take a couple of short strips of the pink zonker and tie them in as you're tieing in the grey so they stick out from the grey like feet.

Yeah, ok, I'll shut up now. :)
 
#3 ·
I like this! This is a super effective style of fly; there's no way you can really have enough of them. I see that it's more for the movement, and less for silouette. I have just one suggestion. It's very helpful if you put a loop (with some hard mono) to keep the tail from fouling. On the ones with really long tails you can glue the tail to the loop for added effectiveness. Great tie man, keep it up!
 
#4 ·
a loop (with some hard mono) to keep the tail from fouling

Yes I have some of these tied with fish I mean weed guards. Some times I get fed up with weed guards and just cut them off. It depends on what Kind of a mood Im in, and of course wheather I was lucky enough to get it just right when I put the weed guard on the fly.

It sure is nice to be able to throw the fly up in the sticks though
 
#5 ·
Oh no. I'm not refering to weed guards. This is what I actually meant: While the hook is bare, tie a piece of roughly 20-25 lb (hard) mono in. You only need to cover ~ 1/8 of an inch. The thread wraps stop opposite the barb. Then, you bend the mono back towards the hook-shank, and tie in the end next to where you tied in the first end. The result is a quarter inch long loop (although this really depends on the length of mono you tie in), straight out, protruding out as if it were a continuation of the hook shank. I hope this makes more sense. It's really less of a pain than a full blow weed gaurd. It's more of a foul gaurd, primarily designed to keep the flexible tail from getting caught in the hook gap.
 
#7 ·
I like it :biggrin: . Simple and effective!

natrix said:
. . . Some times I get fed up with weed guards and just cut them off. It depends on what Kind of a mood Im in, and of course wheather I was lucky enough to get it just right when I put the weed guard on the fly. . . .
Yep!!! I usually tie in a single or double loop mono weed guard when I tie the fly, then cut it off when I'm fishing because it doesn't work right :hihi: . I've tried making other types of weed guards with mixed success. They are definitely an advantage when they work well.

Q
 
#8 · (Edited)
BOO! I wanted to see it in deer hair!

teflon_jones

OK here you go.

Hook:3/0 TMC salt water popper
Body: Deer belly dyed grey
Ears: Taned leather. (this is suede fringe that you can get at the craft store)
Feet: Single strand tan Vernille.
Tail: Two strand tan Vernille rope.
Eyes: Black plastic dumbbell.

Natrix
 

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#9 ·
natrix said:
teflon_jones

OK here you go.

Hook:3/0 TMC salt water popper
Body: Deer belly dyed grey
Ears: Taned leather. (this is suede fringe that you can get at the craft store)
Feet: Single strand tan Vernille.
Tail: Two strand tan Vernille rope.
Eyes: Black plastic dumbbell.

Natrix
Wow, thanks! Now THAT is a nice rat/mouse fly! I bet pike and LM bass will hit that thing like mad!!! :biggrin:
 
#11 · (Edited)
my cat would like it

Possumface

For cats use a loop of yarn tied to the end of your leader. Cast near Cat and effect a twitching retrieve. Most of them are smart so once you’ve caught them they probably wont fall for it again. If they get the yarn caught in their claws they go like hell, sometimes up a tree.

My cat is stupid he has been caught multiple times and he goes for it just about every time.

Although I’m no expert at casting to cats, its usually an incidental catch while I’m practicing my cast on the lawn.

Natrix
 
#12 ·
You'll have much better luck landing the cat if you rub the mouse in an attractant such as catnip. They have a hard time letting go of the fly! Make sure you use a beefy leader since they'll tend to wrap you up in some heavy cover, and some of them run BIG! You also have to watch out since sometimes a neighborhood dog will sneak up on you and try to steal your fly. They've also been known to try and steal the cat off the end of the line, just like a shark with a bonefish.
 
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