Would like some feedback

[Foxgap239]

As some of you know, I have had dry fly woes on the Saucon Creek and it bothered me so much that I went out and bought Lloyd Gonzales book called "Fishing Pressured Waters". Anyway, here is my first attempt (actually second attempt, I didn;t want to photo the first one) at one of his dry fly patterns. It is a size 18 BWO which I hope to try on them pesky fish tomorrow.

Be gentle but honest about the tie. I know we can argue about whether it will work or not but I'm more interested in if you'd try it.

Thanks guys.

 

[Maurice]

I'd try it...in a glass of water to see if it falls over. I think it will.

 

[Foxgap239]

Great point Mo. I did and it did not fall over but sunk a little bit. That was without FF but thanks for the idea and feedback. FF test up next.

 

[troutpoop]

Very nice. Let us know if it works. Waterwisp makes flies with the hook up and they work so I think its a matter of balance.

 

[Foxgap239]

Test #2 with FF. I threw it in from about 6 inches away and that bad boy floated well. Slid to the side a little bit to your point MO but not too bad. Next one, I'll tie to make sure I get a better 180 coverage.

 

[blackandgold4ever05]

I'd try it but was also wondering about the book point staying on top. Hope it works for you and looking forward to hearing more about it after using it on the stream. Nice tie!

 

[Foxgap239]

blackandgold4ever05 wrote:
I'd try it but was also wondering about the book point staying on top. Hope it works for you and looking forward to hearing more about it after using it on the stream. Nice tie!

Thanks and I'm wondering the same thing. It worked in a glass of water but it wasn't windy and no current flow in my tying room. Tomorrow (work gods willing) will be the test.

 

[David]

I don't think tails mean that much from a presentation standpoint, but increasingly from about size 20 and up, the tails help with stability and surface tension to keep it afloat.

 

[Foxgap239]

David wrote:
I don't think tails mean that much from a presentation standpoint, but increasingly from about size 20 and up, the tails help with stability and surface tension to keep it afloat.

Agreed and it has 2 micro fibbet tails but my cell phone ain't the best.

 

[David]

Wow...even knowing that, I can't see them...looks good to me,then. Run that through a hatch, and youll be into some fish.

 

[Foxgap239]

David wrote:
Wow...even knowing that, I can't see them...looks good to me,then. Run that through a hatch, and youll be into some fish.

Here's a better pic where I think you can make them out. Although your point about stability is very well made and I may have to go to two each side.

 

[flipnfly]

is it supposed to be a parachute? if so it font have no hackle just looks like a post....or is it comparadun-esque? you may have hookup problems with thie hook point riding up like that IMO BUT OVERALL ITS A NICE SIMPLE LOOKING TIE

 

[FrequentTyer]

It is a nice fly, so don't take my thoughts here as being critical of your tying, I'm just curious about the method. Is that a post, or is a a comparadun type wing? My first thought when I saw it was that the post/wing is awfully close to occluding the hook gap. Could be more of a problem setting the hook if the material is stiff. I'm also a bit concerned about the place of the eye relative to the body and wing. It looks like it would tend to be pulled down eye first by the tippet. I know the same could be said of a standard hackled dry fly, but this just looks more like a seesaw to me, especially in the third picture. I talked to one of the Waterwisp guys a few years ago and he went on quite a bit about how they had their hooks designed to ride properly and keep the gap clear. But they were also selling the hooks, so that might just be marketing hype.
I would probably go with a more substantial tail of moose or hackle fibers to better balance and float the fly.
To answer the question of would I fish it, I bought a dozen of the Waterwisp flys off the guy mentioned above and they are still in the little plastic cup. If I had one in my box I would have probably tried it by now in a moment of desperation.
Would you recommended the book?

 

[littlelehigh]

First off tying on a hook upside down it not easy and that fly looks great! I wouldn't worry if it sits prefectly straight on the water. It's sure to catch fish either way.

A comparadun or spundun would get you into fish as well on the LL.

 

[Foxgap239]

Thanks for the feedback. Your comments were all great and taken as you intended. Thanks again. To answer some questions, it is a compara-style and the wing material is simple dun colored antron.

Yes, I would recommend the book and the author calls for using mono for the tails, so I will have to use something more substanial next time.

 

[dryflyguy]

I can't see a hackle on it. And if there isn't - I would recommend a parachute tied around that post for flotation and stability. Other than that, it looks pretty good IMO.

However: I have tried several styles of upside down hook patterns like that before. And although the fish definitely seemed to like them, I had a hard time hooking them.
Definitely interested to see how you do with it

 

[Foxgap239]

Well, the woes are a thing of the past, at least for this trip. I got 3 really nice fish. All were 11 plus and 1 pushed 13. Two were acrobats and I SO love that. No pics though. I only had 1 rise to the fly in this post but I did hook it and it was fun. I have to make a few modifications to have stronger tails and I need the compara style to come a full 180 but I was happy with the first generation.

Thanks for everyones comments.

 

[nealfish]

Fly tier magazine has a good article in the spring addition on tying tips with a lot of those hook up dries. It also has a great part on extened body flies. Ive only tied dries for about 2 months and i already got it down pretty well.

 

[Foxgap239]

nealfish wrote:
Fly tier magazine has a good article in the spring addition on tying tips with a lot of those hook up dries. It also has a great part on extened body flies. Ive only tied dries for about 2 months and i already got it down pretty well.

Thanks and keep tying. Practice makes perfect.

 

[jayL]

A point about your methods, not the fly.

FF is a dessicant, not a floatant. Adding it to an already dry fly actually has the potential to make things worse. I strongly believe that it ends up waterlogging your fly worse in the end if you apply FF unnecessarily or too often.

It'll get you better flotation at first, but within a few minutes, I'd wager that you'll need to apply it again and again once that stuff gets waterlogged.

FF revives wet flies (and I use it often for that). For CDC, the only real floatant out there is dry magic.