Blog Archives

How to make a simple and inexpensive dubbing brush tool

2/25/2018

This short video outlines how to make a simple dubbing brush and provides a tip on cleaning up epoxy.

Material/Supply List

Popsicle stick or craft stick
Velcro tabs-small circle is best
5 minute epoxy
Nonporous stirring stick
Plastic mixing cup
Mylar sheet
Denatured alcohol or rubbing alcohol
Paper towels

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Deception

2/17/2018

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Recipe

Hook-2/0 O'shaughnessy or any preferred large hook
Thread-6/0 yellow or clear mono
Tail-two yellow saddles, two brown saddles on outside, 3-6 strands of polar flash on outside of brown saddle

Body-fabric paint or diamond braid wrapped forward to 2/3 point of hook

Head-two clumps of tan craft fur on both sides of hook, one clump brown craft fur on top, generous clump of yellow dubbing on hook underside, generous clump of brown dubbing on top of hook

Eyes-6mm gold eyes-fill top and bottom with UV resin or fabric paint-top coat with Sally Hansen hard as nails if desired

Detailing-add barring as desired to dubbing with a sharpie or other waterproof marker

Tying Notes

This fly is fairly simple to tie. You can get as creative as you want with it. It is a type of deceiver pattern and has excellent action under water. The tail feathers move nicely and it is important to have the yellow on the inside of the brown saddles to create pattern depth. If you are fishing deeper water, weight can be added to ensure you are getting down to the fish. When you are tying in the craft fur, make sure that you don't tie down firmly until the tan and brown blend together and surround/veil the body slightly. This will give the appearance of a bigger pattern. When you are finished with the craft fur step, I recommend adding some super glue to the butt ends that you trim off to keep it in place. Let this dry completely before adding the dubbing. The dubbing creates a taper and thick head that enables the fly to move to the sides when stripped and paused. This extra action is what makes this pattern a good choice for predators like northern pike and smallmouth bass.

Fishing Tips

I developed this pattern as a hybrid deceiver pattern. I wanted to have something in my box that looked like a juvenile carp or sucker. The streams I fish in Ohio are loaded with these fish and are an important food source. This fly fishes best when it is tied to be as close as possible to neutral buoyancy. This enables it to kick from side to side and pauses become irresistible to predators in pursuit. Even though you must vary your retrieve as dictated by your fishing conditions, I have found that two to four aggressive strips followed by a pause can create explosive takes. You do need to be ready because the takes can be violent. Make sure to have stout tippet and I would not go below 10 lb. test unless you scale this pattern down. Rip this streamer through fishy cover and be prepared. Good luck!

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The Ice Minnow

2/10/2018

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Recipe

Hook-3XL, 2XH streamer hook-sz. 2 or 4
Thread-white 6/0 or clear mono
Tail-white crinkle hair, white ice fur, blue polar flash, sky blue ice fur
Body-silver tinsel wrapped to cover body then coated with silver glitter nail polish

Collar-white dubbing on bottom, sky blue dubbing on top tied in to create a veil over body

Head-blue nail polish, silver 3 mm eyes, blue glitter nail polish on top in between eyes, silver glitter nail polish on bottom in between eyes, 1-2 coats Sally Hansen Hard as Nails

Material Links

Mustad Streamer Hooks sz 4.
Danville 140 Denier White Thread
Ice Fur
Flashabou
Dubbing - Pearl
Kingfisher Blue

Polish/Head Cement - Sally Hansen Hard as Nails

Tying Notes

This fly is quick and easy to tie. It is better to tie these in groups of three or more to save in dry time with the nail polish. If you want good action out of this minnow, tie the tail one and a half times the length of the hook you are using. The crinkle hair is a super important material in this fly as it keeps the ice fur from fowling. You do not have to use nail polish like I do in this pattern but I find that it gives the fly a flashy and durable profile underwater. The only other thing to keep in mind is the length of the dubbing. When you get to the dubbing step, make sure that you tie in a fairly large clump for both the top and bottom. When you brush it out, you will lose some. Also, when you tie the dubbing in towards the end of the clump, to gain length and veil the body, you also lose some fibers. Make sure you align the fibers as best you can to keep them all the same length. Follow along in the video to see this step and how to achieve the veiled body.

Fishing Tips

I find this fly does best under sunny conditions and in clear water. I use this pattern in the spring into the beginning of summer and smallmouth crush it. I have also lost a few of these to pike as well. It does not produce a big splash when it hits the water, making it the perfect choice for finicky, clear water fish and is always in my fly box when targeting smallmouth bass in small streams. This fly does great on the swing as the ice fur moves like marabou. Give this fly a try under these conditions and do not hesitate to experiment! You never know what you will discover!

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Speed Tying Demos

How to make a simple and inexpensive dubbing brush tool

Deception

The Ice Minnow

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Speed Tying Demos

How to make a simple and inexpensive dubbing brush tool

Deception

The Ice Minnow

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