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[cool]Kent's quest to become a proficient jigger, and to capture the world record for macks, has gotten him exploring every angle. Well, actually, his first plateau goal is to get a 10 pounder...and I'm sure he will exceed that soon. If determination is ever a factor, Kent will succeed in scoring some big mamas this year.
P-Hopper provided Kent with a sample of the bunny fur jigs being used successfully at the Gorge by some of the "drift jiggers" over there. Kent sent it on to me, along with a new bunny skin he had bought. Using some of my fancy jig heads, and some single stinger/trap hooks...instead of the customary trebles...I turned out some first generation models for Kent to introduce on his next trip. Thought others might like to look at 'em.
You can't see the stinger hook in the grey fur model, but it is the same big spinner bait hook as the one more visible on the larger white one. I did not include stinger hooks on the smaller sizes. Note the Krystal Flash I added to one of the white ones. These should be ideal size fot fishing with a strip of cisco or chub meat.
I am planning to get some different colors of bunny fur to make some jigs for bass and other species too. I have tied "Zonker" flies from rabbit fur strips for many years, and have taken some big fish of several species on them. The soft fur really moves underwater, with only minimal action.
[#0000ff]EDIT: I have added a couple more pics of later versions, both large and small.[/#0000ff]
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Looks good tube, looks real good.
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no doubt about it,they will work.
magnum strip jigs are very effective at the Gorge.
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I've been trying to find a store that carries them, or someone to make them for me for almost 2 years now. I fish the Gorge often, and saw and heard the results of using them 2 summers ago. I even tried to get the local fly shop to tie some for me where I have no knowlege of such things. Lori, at Big Foot Fly shop was going to tie them for me, but she hasn't been feeling well. If you know of where to find these, or know of anyone who would make them for me, I would be happy to pay premium dollar for services rendered. That sounds bad, doesn't it? Oh, well. Live Happy, Fish Happy!
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TD, Those look great. I have used the fur jigs in past that did not look near that good. I have wondered if anyone has an idea as to how to make them glow without loosing the soft fur aspect which makes them so effective. I went so far as trying a cylum stick on them didn't work so well.
Any ideas are well apreciated. Also TD do you know of a way to die the fur in a perch pattern. That would be killer at Fish Lake as well as an awsome way to try for Muskie on a fly rod. You would just have to lighten up the lead of course.
tightline
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[cool]Man, I hate to see a growed man beg. I'm not in the commercial tying business but I'll be happy to offer help to anyone who wants to give it a whack.
Here's a list of things you'll need. (1.) A tanned rabbit skin (2.) Large jig heads with heavy duty hooks (3.) Trebles or single hooks for the "stinger" hooks. (4.) Wire, heavy dacron line or mono to attach the stinger hooks to the jigs. (5.) Contact cement, hotmelt glue or quick epoxy to glue the edges of the bunny strips over the jig and trailer hook rig. (6.) A razor blade or sharp craft knife to cut the strips out of the skin.
Cut the strips from the hide SKIN SIDE UP. If you try to cut through the fur, or use scissors, you will end up with loose bunny hairs all over the place. Put a piece of indoor/outdoor carpet on your work table and it will help hold the loose hairs until you can comb them off or use a Dustbuster to get rid of the stuff.
Assemble your jig and stinger hook rigs before tieing or glueing the strips on the jig. Hook the jig hook up through the skin, in the middle of the strip, just far enough back to allow the strip to fold over the jig just below the head. Then, measure out where the point of the trailer hook will come out and run that hook up through the skin also.
Using contact cement or fast-drying glue, put a little on the inside edges of both sides of the skin. Allow to dry to the "tacky" stage and then press the two parts together, making as clean an edge as possible. You can trim later if you need to. DO NOT TRY TO GLUE THE WHOLE LENGTH OF THE JIG AT THE SAME TIME. Do only an inch or two at a time, to allow you to hold the pieces in place until they set. Although a small clamp might help for slower setting glue. Repeat in steps until you have the whole strip of fur folded over the hook rigs and glued into place.
The last step is optional, but good insurance against the fur being pulled off the head by a big fish. Put the hook of the jig head in your fly tying vice and wrap a few good wraps of heavy thread around the junction of the skin and the jig head. Whip finish it and apply a good coat of thread cement.
And, don't get all hung up on how lovely they turn out. Sometimes ugly is beautiful to fish. In my formative years of fly tying and lure making, some of my worst creations turned out to be very popular with the fish. It's kinda like the common situation of having a fly get better and better, the longer you use it and the more chewed up it gets.
The two things going for the bunny jigs are size and action. They represent a big mouthful...and that hair just comes alive in the water. They are designed to be fished virtually without any jigging action...except the motion of the boat rocking on the waves, as you drift across fish-holding structure or bottom contours. And, the takes are not always aggressive. You need to watch your sonar and your rod tip or you will miss some of the votes.
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[cool]The best bet for a glow would be to use a good glow paint on a big head. The other option would be to tie in some of the glow-in-the-dark flashabou. I use that on some little jigs to good effect. It would also be a simple matter to tie in a strip of plastic along each side, painted with glow paint. I am going to be ordering some new stuff I have found on a website that is "industrial grade" glow powder...to be mixed into a clear base. I am especially intrigued by some of the reports I have gotten as to the effectiveness of the blue glow paints on macks. That seems to be a real "hot" color for them...not only at night, or under the ice, but during daylight hours in low light conditions too.
The use of bunny fur for big flies is well established. And, there are sources of "barred" died rabbit fur. I saw some the other day when I was researching my little project for Kent. If you go to any good search engine and type in "Rabbit fur jigs", you will find thousands of sites...including some good sources of supply for whole skins as well as precut "Zonker strips". And, instead of lead heads you can use pony beads from the craft store to give bulk...and to which you can attach eyes.
Of course, you will have to put away your 3 weight fairy wand and bring out the heavy rod to cast those beasts. I have fished big Zonkers a bit and they are like trying to cast a sparrow with a fly rod. Use an 8 weight for bass size and a 10 for anything larger. And, learn to duck a lot.
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Glow [size 1]flashabou! Now I can see a ton of uses for that if it has much glow to it. Where did you track it down?[/size]
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[  ]Keep in mind T.D. I've been married more than once. I'm used to begging.
I really appreciate the help on the jigs. I know I can get all of the parts from Lori. I'll print the directions and let you know the results. If you get up this way, you're welcome aboard my boat anytime.
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[cool]Most of the online tackle purveyors who sell fly tying supplies have it in their lineup. I buy most of my stuff in that genre from either Janns Netcraft or Barlows. I will post the links below, along with the link to the company that has that super glow powder.
The glow flashabou does hold a "charge" for several minutes after being hit with a good strobe, or after a couple of minutes of sunlight or flashlight. I use it not only for tails and wings, but to wrap the bodies on small ice jigs and bait bugs too...preferably over a good bright white underwrapping.
Both Barlows and Janns also have glow paints, but you can often find them reasonably in a well stocked hobby and craft store.
[url "http://www.jannsnetcraft.com/default.asp?p=0"][font "Times New Roman"][#800080][size 3]http://www.jannsnetcraft.com/default.asp?p=0[/size][/#800080][/font][/url][size 3][font "Times New Roman"] JANNS[/font][/size]
[url "http://barlowstackle.com/"][font "Times New Roman"][#800080][size 3]http://barlowstackle.com/[/size][/#800080][/font][/url][size 3][font "Times New Roman"] BARLOWS[/font][/size]
[url "http://www.extremeglow.com/glowpowder.htm"][font "Times New Roman"][#800080][size 3]http://www.extremeglow.com/glowpowder.htm[/size][/#800080][/font][/url][font "Times New Roman"][size 3] GLOW POWDER[/size][/font]
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Nice looking jigs TD. They should be killer for those big Macs. WH2
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[font "Technical"][#0000a0][size 3]You had to out-do me didn't you Tube Dude[cool], the one I sent over didn't look near that good. Mine are proof that they don't need to look that good to be productive. Mine were made of the 2.5 oz. fish head shaped jig heads that you buy and spray painted either black or white. I will be interested in seeing a variation on colors when you get them. Nice jigs Tube Dude. [/size][/#0000a0][/font]
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[cool]After looking through the links to several of my sources of supply, I checked out the fly tying section of good old Cabelas. Low and be old, there are some barred bunny skins...died in some dandy colors. The half skins sell for $19.95, which is a bit pricy...compared to a $3 whole white skin. But the colors look like they might have a lot of potential. Here is what they say in the online catalog:
Barred Half Rabbit Pelts
Cut your own zonker strips with these bar-dyed half rabbit pelts.
Colors: Tan/Olive, Brown/Olive, Chartreuse/Olive, Brown/Yellow, Rust/Brown, White/Black, Yellow/Black, Light Dun/Dark Dun, Olive/Black, Orange/Black.
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ive got a few (5-8) rabbit skins i dont want . . .send me a pm and ill send you one . ..
sm
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[cool]I never thought I'd get into the fur tradin' business. But, since you offered, I'll swap some flies or jigs for a good pelt...as long as I don't have to squeeze the bunny out of it first. It is almost Easter, ya know.
My "particulars" are on the way in a PM.
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ok youll get the darkest ive got . . .anybody else need a rabbit hide . .
sm
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Now that I've had a chance to look at the list. I have everything but the fur at home. I guess I'll turn this into an easter bunny hunt. I have a few cottontails around the house, and a snowshoe is fairly easy to come across in the South side of the Uintas. I'll have to talk to the brother-in-law taxidermist about the tanning.
One question came up. What is whip finish?
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[cool]That is a term common to fly tyers and rod wrappers. It refers to making the last few turns of thread over a loop of thread or mono, and then running the end of the winding thread through the loop and pulling it back under the windings.
There are whip finishing tools available for fly tyers, but most accomplished tyers learn to just hold the thread loop in their fingers and don't need the tool.
I make and use my own whip finishing tools by making a loop of 4# monofilament leader material about 2" long...on the end of a small stick. I lay the loop across the head as I do the final winding and then stick the clipped winding thread through the mono loop and pull it under the wraps.
Whipping makes a clean finish, and when cemented down will not come undone. That smooth surface is why it is used for rod wrapping. You can avoid any lumpy knots on your lovely new windings by pulling the tag end back under the thread wraps already in place...and then trimming them off flush with a razor blade.
And you probably thought it was something "kinky". Sorry to disappoint you.
By the way, a tanned skin is cheaper than a hunting trip...but not as much fun. Just be sure to bag your bunny after Easter, to avoid ruining the holiday for the kiddies if you blow away the wrong hopper.
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theres a diagram how to whip the ends of a rope to keep it from unraveling in any scout handbook or fieldbook too . . . i believe the technique is the same . . .
sm
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Thanks TubeDude. I've done that to make bobber stops for years and never knew what it was called. I probably will just run over to Big Foot to get some bunny fur. That way I can get tips from Lori and spend more money that I haven't earned yet on fishing while I'm there. I have more fun out at the house chasing coyotes anyway. They're harder to hit and the kids don't mind when I take one of them out. Good Hunti... er Fishing. See you on the water.
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