Pec fins on a sculpin

[Jeremi]

Im going to tye some small sculpins. Size 8. I want to tye rag sculpins. Something easy and fast to tie for drifting through weed channels. The pattern calls for medallion sheeting for the fins. doesnt seem like that would have much durability. I have a few ideas but thought i would see what you guys had. I DONT want to use a ridged feather that would make it swim funny.Fishing the weed channels it would just be dead drift and twitched.

 

[jayL]

Marabou or rabbit strips. I tie in a clump of fuzz and figure 8 with body material to shape.

 

[bam]

Hen back feathers look cool, but palmering rabbit and trimming the top and bottom works well. A hunk of sculpin wool on either side is a 5 second job and looks just as good.

 

[Fishidiot]

I like a section of olive/grizzly hackle trimmed to shape. Some folks like deer hair such as can be seen in the Shenk sculpin.

I've experimented a lot with sculpins and found hackle works well for me partly due to it's permeability - pec fins tied with hackle don't cause as much drag going thru the water. If you look at actual sculpin pectorals, they're very prominent but also translucent and usually marked with barred speckling.

 

[jdaddy]

I agree that medallion sheeting would be a terrible idea. I used it for trico wings and it did not hold up.

 

[Jeremi]

Some great ideas. I was thinking of using some small barred marabou feathers that I have never used. I don't know. I did think about deer hair also. Still undecided

 

[bam]

I've tried marabou, but it doesn't hold it's shape well. It tends to lay back flat rather than out at an angle. Muddler heads are common too, but hold a lot of water.

 

[osprey]

I tried for the same look on stone cat imitations and never did quite get what i was after , synthetics and hackle were the closest i got. A loop of z-lon tied so it would stick out at a right angle was the closest but no cigar.

 

[jayL]

The marabou lays back flat when it's out of the water, but if you jam enough material under it, it'll stick out when submerged. I still prefer rabbit.

I also get those small barred marabou feathers. They have stiff stems, and are good for fins and other streamer applications.

 

[Heritage-Angler]

Cree spade hackle - wrapped, then figure 8'd with thread, body material wrapped to maintain shape...

 

[midnightangler]

I personally always go with deer hair - I like the woolly sculpins and Shenk's sculpin. I don't think marabou will create any kind of pectoral fin sillouette once it gets wet. Deer hair will always give you a nice head / fin shape.

 

[MKern]

Hen or dyed partridge for me.

Although, most of the time I go without.

 

[osprey]

Where is that fly factory located? I'd love to arrange a tour of that place. Is it an assembly line like in the auto industry? Is it mostly automated like the Ford plant?

 

[sandfly]

fun fur and goop thinned

 

[beadhead2]

Stealing Lou's patterns again !!!!!!!!

 

[sandfly]

yep, he's to old to remember any more. Besides I changed the pattern .

 

[LouM]

The only thing you cahnged was the material not the pattern,Thief!

 

[sandfly]

coming from a colored blind bugger tyer...