Recipe
*Fly is tied upside down to create a snag resistant pattern that has a jigging action
Hook - 3XL, 2XH streamer hook-sz. 2 or 4
Thread - clear mono or 210 denier brown or orange
Dumbbell Eyes - 3/16 brass or lead
Lead Wire - 6-8 wraps 0.025 lead wire
Claws - crawfish orange zonker strips each 1/2 length of body - top with 2 black rubber or silicone legs
Rib - clear mono or copper wire
Dubbing Loop - Crawfish orange dubbing blend
Rubber legs - 2 orange rubber or silicone legs on each side of fly tied in at the end of the hook point
Hackle - one brown saddle feather
*Follow this tying progression so that your fly turns out correctly
Dubbing - Get a generous clump of brown dubbing and tie in between the dumbbell eyes and the hook eye covering the top of the fly - make sure it extends to the hook point and you can detail it with a sharpie
Head - coat with either brown fabric paint or brown or orange nail polish
Tying Notes
Once you get the steps down for this fly it can be a quick tie. Make sure to follow the order closely. I prefer a mono rib over wire because it bites into the materials and provides better durability. If you use thin wire, know that it may slip over time and is more easily damaged by fish. The upturned eye on this fly produces a nice jigging action especially when coupled with a sink tip line. When coating the head, use fabric paint if you do not need the flies right away and can wait a couple days for the full dry time. If you need them quickly coat the head with orange or brown nail polish and the head will be fully cured in around twenty minutes. Multiple coats of finger nail polish is best.
Fishing Tips
The fly is best fished on a stout, short leader of at least ten pound test tippet. Depending on water depth I would either use a short sink tip of 5- 10 feet or a full sink fly line for deeper water. This fly can be retrieved many different ways. During the spring a slow hop will take lethargic smallmouth bass but during the heat of summer, a quick darting retrieve will produce aggressive strikes. Experiment and see what retrieve takes fish in your home waters. Crayfish are preyed upon by many fish species and if you fish this regularly you may connect with bass, catfish, carp, freshwater drum, northern pike, and even trout. Give this fly a try! Check out the video below to see this fly in action!
*Fly is tied upside down to create a snag resistant pattern that has a jigging action
Hook - 3XL, 2XH streamer hook-sz. 2 or 4
Thread - clear mono or 210 denier brown or orange
Dumbbell Eyes - 3/16 brass or lead
Lead Wire - 6-8 wraps 0.025 lead wire
Claws - crawfish orange zonker strips each 1/2 length of body - top with 2 black rubber or silicone legs
Rib - clear mono or copper wire
Dubbing Loop - Crawfish orange dubbing blend
Rubber legs - 2 orange rubber or silicone legs on each side of fly tied in at the end of the hook point
Hackle - one brown saddle feather
*Follow this tying progression so that your fly turns out correctly
- Before you fill the dubbing loop, tie in the orange rubber or silicone legs
- Fill dubbing loop, brush out, and wrap up to the dumbbell eyes
- Tie in hackle behind the dumbbell eyes and wrap back towards the claws - Once you reach the back of the fly counterwrap and trap the hackle with the rib - The rib is wrapped forward up to the dumbbell eyes
Dubbing - Get a generous clump of brown dubbing and tie in between the dumbbell eyes and the hook eye covering the top of the fly - make sure it extends to the hook point and you can detail it with a sharpie
Head - coat with either brown fabric paint or brown or orange nail polish
Tying Notes
Once you get the steps down for this fly it can be a quick tie. Make sure to follow the order closely. I prefer a mono rib over wire because it bites into the materials and provides better durability. If you use thin wire, know that it may slip over time and is more easily damaged by fish. The upturned eye on this fly produces a nice jigging action especially when coupled with a sink tip line. When coating the head, use fabric paint if you do not need the flies right away and can wait a couple days for the full dry time. If you need them quickly coat the head with orange or brown nail polish and the head will be fully cured in around twenty minutes. Multiple coats of finger nail polish is best.
Fishing Tips
The fly is best fished on a stout, short leader of at least ten pound test tippet. Depending on water depth I would either use a short sink tip of 5- 10 feet or a full sink fly line for deeper water. This fly can be retrieved many different ways. During the spring a slow hop will take lethargic smallmouth bass but during the heat of summer, a quick darting retrieve will produce aggressive strikes. Experiment and see what retrieve takes fish in your home waters. Crayfish are preyed upon by many fish species and if you fish this regularly you may connect with bass, catfish, carp, freshwater drum, northern pike, and even trout. Give this fly a try! Check out the video below to see this fly in action!
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