The Tying Sessions, EP:32 The Drowning rodent 2.0

I always liked fishing mice/rat flies. I remember when i was much younger, i was fishing with my father, we were on a river and his float fished roach disappeared in a flash. The fight was poor and short as the water temperatures were very low. Sadly after many efforts that fish decided to stay belly up. We decided not to waste it and  took it home. But when we cleaned it at the river, he had in his stomach three full grown rats, and that pike was not big pushing maybe just 3 kgs!
Since that day i cannot have a fly box without at least a couple of rats!

Tried and tested...Many times over

I like to fish them on a floating line, early spring (end February , March, April ) When most anglers wouldn't dream in using a topwater fly at this time of the year, i usually score some good fish on this pattern early in the year. Rats and mice are in full activity at this time, ready to start breeding after their long winter they often cross rivers and loughs simply because its the shorter route. Later in spring you will have the young ones, a little inexperienced and without any fear of what might lie beneath them when they fall in the water.
Later in the year, summer time , i like using these rats for late evening if it's a bright hot day, and if you have a summer like us here in Ireland (rain and not so hot...) you can be deadly fished over big weed beds. Not just margins and lillypads.
I started using deer hair for the top of the tie to give it buoyancy and Congo hair on the belly to make it sink. I caught many good fish with this tie, but i knew i could improve it's action a lot more.
This is the results, the drowning rodent 2.0! I use two types of fibers now, WATER SILK and CONGO HAIR from FLY TYERS DUNGEON .
The water silk is finer it olds and absorbs more water, the Congo hair is a little stiffer and doesn't hold water much. But water still sheds fast with a couple of false cast making this fly a lot easier to cast then it's original deer version.

 I use the water silk for the bottom of the tie(tail and first section) and introduce the Congo hair on the third shank but only on the top of the shank, belly stays in water silk. Finish the head with the foam, give it a good brush and trim.
You could make this fly with a brush instead of stacking like i do, bit stacking gives you advantages that you can't match with a brush...Using two type of fibers is one and the choice in colours that you have at your disposition.

I hope you enjoy the video, and thanks again for your continued support!

 

Chewbacca 2.0

From this angle, you can understand why it's so hard for a pike to resist!

The rebirth of the awesome fly was long due. I tied this fly for the first time 8/10 years ago, it was my pride, the first fly that i fully designed myself.When i started to fly fish and tie my flies for pike, rabbit was on every flies i was tying. You don't need to be a maestro at fly tying to catch pike, and a simple bunny has caught me sooo many fishes.
Chewbacca was an extension to my bunny army, as i got better with my casting i started throwing bigger and heavier flies with ease.So what's better than a bunny? Well two of them!I didn't invent the concept of having two zonkers as a tail, but i wanted a more buoyant fly. So the mix of deer hair and feathers started.At the time i tied this fly with deer hair on the top of the hook and marabou on the bottom.The pikes liked it so much that they were destroyed in no time, so i replaced the marabou for fibres.

The new version is articulated and has dumbbell eyes to give the fly more action during the pauses.
Yes it's a heavy fly , but it's a fly that i usually don't try to cast far and in open waters. I love casting Chewy in rivers with shorter cast close to ambush points. Logs, drains, weed beds and along high banks are all great spots to throw this fly.I faster water i just let it drift along the bank rod tip a little high and just twitching it with sharp wrist pulls. Keeping my eyes on it at all time, from just under the surface until you can barely see it.The takes are just amazing!
As usual feel free to change colours and  sizes, yellow zonkers and a orange head is an other sure bet for me here.

The BigBoned

An other variation of a T-Bone. This one is the only type that i like to fish with a wiggle tail. In previous post i said that i don't like using wiggle tails as they act to much like a break on your fly and stops that side to side action. That said there is many versions of the wiggle tails  (especially if you make your own). The trick is to use a thin wiggle tail like the slim version of the Pachiarni tails.After many designs i like a tail that is slim and not to much curved. A bit like the tails on the new hybrid lures like the Strike Pro Guppie.

The Guppie tail is made to wiggle without holding the lure back

 This allows the fly to keep on its chosen course after each strips.

Compare this with an original wiggle, where you can see how wide they are and the curve is a lot more accentuated, narly like a full circle.

The final tie will give you a large fly that moves a lot of water, but it's a fly that is fairly light to cast.
As usual feel free to experiment with colours and shapes of tails but keep them thin (from what i experienced so far).

The MiniBone

When i started my pike fly fishing journey many moons ago there was practically no help out there for tying flies.YouTube had very little and i had to find my inspiration somewhere else.
Big trout streamers tied in a much bigger version were my first pike flies. (Thank you Mr Galloup)
Sex dungeon , Boogie man and the articulated Butt monkey caught me so many good pikes here but i quickly got bored tying and fishing them, i needed to expand my catalog. So i turn my attention to saltwater flies and musky flies. And one particular fly really caught my attention, the T-bone. At that time bodytubing was non existent in tackle shops and i had to get the help from a few American friends to source that material.

Now you can find some in most good tackle shop or straight from FLYMEN FISHING COMPANY .
For the flytyer  that need  more colours, a wider choice of sizes or if you tie flies in large quantities it's worth having a look at TECHFLEX  , after all bodytubing is a braided sleeving product used for cable protection and management called  FLEXOPET.
Have a look on the Techflex website for a reseller close to you. I get mine from the German or Dutch resellers.

To this day i am still surprised why no more pike anglers tie or use T-Bones. When i look at the flies that are displayed in various social media platforms i rarely see any Bones....Is it because people are afraid in using body tubing? Have no confidence in using it on their flies? Well their loss....
Body tubing makes your fly so much more durable. I found pike teeth on a few occasions stuck in the head of my T-Bone while putting them up to dry after a day on the water...
It gives the fly a tremendous amount of volume and  massive presence in the water by pushing water from the head and the volume created by tubing place inside the fly.
I get a lot of questions in what sizes to use, and i general i use the 1/2 inch -12.7mm Flymen website or the slightly bigger ones 9/16 inch -14.29 Techflex website for the heads of my larger flies and MiniBones . The 1/4 inch-6.35mm Flymen&Techflex  for the body of the flies or smaller flies like perch flies.
And the 1/8 inch-3.18mm also for bodies of smaller flies.
Tips in using body tubing:

• Make sure you cut the correct length, too long had your head will look like a cone and not round. Too short and you will simply struggle (this is usually the main problem people encounter ). 
• I usually cut a length of about 60/70mm for my heads and body parts.
• Don't forget to burn each end to stop the tubing from unraveling itself.
• I like to create a cone before placing it on the hook or shank.

When creating the cone like in the video, make sure both ends meet flush so when you start tying it you will capture both sides securely 
To help the head sit better on your hook or shank, wrap an underlay of shammy leather strip, or a zonker strip ( remove the hairs and only keep the leather ) or a rubber band works too. This will give more surface for the head to sit and catch the glue resulting in a secure head.Nothing more frustrating the a head starting to spin after just a few fish caught.
As i said in the video i don't like using a wiggle tail on my T-Bones as it acts like a break and stops the fly from getting that side to side action they are known for. Hence the name T-bone as pikes love striking this fly after a strip when it presents itself sideways.
Feathers, a rabbit whip tail, wave tails are all good for the tail of a T-Bone.
That said if the fish are active and hit the fly on a fast straight retrieve then you can switch to a wiggle or dragon tail in the hope of triggering a larger fish.

Next video will be about the BigBoned , a larger size T-Bone that i love using. Then next in the pipeline is the MegaloBoned !So stay tuned and if you can go and subscribe to the channel it will help it greatly in growing.
Possibilities are endless with bodytubing, don't be afraid of it! Give it a go, it will take a few tries but once you get it right i can guaranty you that you will always have a T-Bone in your box!

Freestyle tails and where do i get them.

Now, i know i have been teasing many of you guys to where i get my material to craft my own tails.I have got so many people asking me where do i get my stuff. And because i'm a sound guy, i like to help as many fly tyers out there (wink)

Pike/burbot mutant

We all work on a budget, and lets face it, some materials are just crazy money! So nothing wrong to try to source materials by yourself, and frankly i am so surprised to see so many not making the simple effort to search the various retail sites out there. Ebay is one of my strong favorite! So do yourself a favour and browse stuff on it, buy samples, sometimes its a miss and sometimes you find fantastic materials out there at unbeatable prices!

Freestyling is the best! Design , cut, colours! One of a kind!

The material i use for my tails is called Ultrasuede microfibre, or faux suede/shammy. You find it in many thickness, but for optimum resistance and movement , i use the 0.5mm. One large sheet cost around 35€ for a mighty size of 137cm X 91cm!

 If you only tie a few streamers a year this could be too much, but why not sharing with a friend? I tie 100's of predator flies a year, for myself and clients that come for a week at the lodge or for a day guiding, so i have no problem using this much.
But the advantage is not only money, it's the freedom that you have, make the tails the size shape and colours that you want.Ok maybe the finish product might not be as nice as some of the ones sold in fly shop but who cares? Certainly not the fish and that's good enough for me!

The platypus tail.

Golden trout on a forked tail and side fins design.

For the moment i get it from South  Korea, click on this magical link and let your creative-self take over! No stoping you now!
LINK→: 0-5MM-ULTRASUEDE-MICROFIBER
If you read this article and the link doesn't work anymore it simply because the seller is gone or the stuff isn't available, just start a new search, you know how its called now!

Invent, create, explore, possibilities are virtually endless now!

Here's a new video up on Youtube, as usual, please like and subscribe or you will never catch a big fish again...

One thing super important when you create your tails is to have a very good pair of scissors. Same thing here, i used for years scissors "made for flytying" and yes there is many great brand out there and good tools, but again the price can be ridiculous! Most value scissors come from the same factories in India,Pakistan or china, just the branding changes and the prices...I use mostly FISKARS now.They have a great hold, and the blades stay sharp for overland they are certainly not more expensive that a mid range pair of scissors bought from your fly shop..

One design that i used for a long time now, side baitfish is awesome!

The simple and classic wiggle tail, just look how i include an anal fin to most of my designs, this act as a splash of colour, and a mini-keel to balance the streamer.

Keep and eye on the blog for more Tips and tricks about buying materials.

Pike brushes.

Les pike brushes! Si vous n'avez jamais utilisé des brushes pour monter vos streamers, il va falloir vous y mettre! Les brush facilitent  et harmonisent le montage des streamers. Mais elles sont souvent chères et difficile a trouver ce que l'on a besoin. Les combinations de couleurs sont souvent un choix bien personnel.Suivant les coins ou vous pêchez, ou l'humeur de vos brochets dans votre region. Puis il y a la taille des fibres utilisées, la longueur total de la brush  le choix de flash incorporé, et si vous voulez les faire en naturel (nayat hair, finn raccoon ect) ou en synthétique ( et là on a l'embarras du choix!)

Alors j'ai décidé  fabriquer mes brush moi même. Rien de compliqué, du bois, des vis, une perceuse.
Un fil inox de 0.2 mm est parfait pour bien twister le tout. Une bonne brosse pour bien démêler les fibres sans les endommager.

Ces brush vont être utilisées pour mes prochains montages de streamers articulés, les "game-changers" en  xxl.
Une base de funky hair, puis pour le corps (  proche du fil inox), de la funky fibre.Et une bonne mixture de flash, freckel flash, ripple flash, shimmer flash, dubbing flash....Tout est possible! A vous de jouer!
Je suis en attente pour certains matériaux pour completer ces streamers, des qu'ils arrivent au lodge je me remet a l'étau!

Update.

Mon premier fish de 2017! 109cm...Ca commence pas trop mal ;)

Periode "yo-yo"....Il fait doux, il fait froid...Il fait sec les niveaux tombent, il pleut, tout remonte...
Une seule chose ne change pas, la temperature de l'eau ( 4ºc) .
Les poissons se tiennent profond et il sont très léthargiques. Pêche lente et profonde en ce moment donne de bons résultats. Pas encore bien bon pour la mouche...Il faut encore bien patienter.
Alors quand la météo est difficile, je monte des streamers pour la bonne époque.
   Une bonne série de T-Bones!

Prêt pour big mama, tout est a porté de main, pinces, camera, épuisette...ect...

Bien se couvrir est essentiel!

Gear & Flies

Une bonne veste de pêche est un équipement aussi important que de posséder une bonne canne ou un beau moulinet. Et ici en Irlande ce n'est pas du luxe ou du "m'as tu vu" que d'avoir une veste qui tient la route.
Il y a beaucoup de marques disponibles en ce moment et a tous les prix. Le bon choix de veste est directement lié avec les conditions dans lesquelles on* pêche( et son porte feuille) . Ici il est impératif d'en avoir une bonne et qui va nous donner plusieurs années de service. Avec un rythme intensif , 100 a 150 jours  sur l'eau / an pour moi, je préfère assurer et orienter mon choix vers les marques qui ne déçoivent jamais. Ma G3 de chez Simms continue de me garder au sec depuis plus de 6 ans.
Et maintenant avec Noel qui approche, on a toutes les bonnes excuses pour dépenser deux trois euros...Ou plus...
Je suis toujours à la recherche de nouveaux matériaux pour mes streamers, et aussi à la recherche de tout équipement qui peut me rendre la vie plus facile sur l'eau. Et voici que Smith Fly aux U.S viennent de sortir une veste qui a l'air superbe!

5 couches, imperméables et respirantes, et ce qui m'a vraiment attiré c'est les attachements "molle" sur la poitrine. Ces attachements, bien connus dans les armées et tout ceux qui passent du temps en "Outdoors". Je suis fan du système "molle" sur les sacs a dos, mais de les incorporer sur une veste je trouve ca genial! Les possibilités sont infinies pour attacher, pinces,tippets,couteau,boites de mouches...ect...

Et le prix est pas mal non plus, 129$ en ce moment, car elles sont en pre-order. Elles seront prêtes à la fin du mois de janvier 2017. Prix normal après fin janvier: 349$.
Je vais écrire un petit rapport une fois que cette veste arrive au lodge, et un autre post après plusieurs mois de tests.

                                       Voici un lien direct vers SMITH FLY: ICI

Et puis pour bonne mesure voici mes derniers streamers, les Chicken T-Bones!
Tous montés sur des Gamakatsu SL12S en 8/0 et une tige Big game de 40mm en tête.

Flies with Attitude.

Quelques derniers montages...
Je continue bien avec les T-Bones, vite devenus mes preferes dans mes boites..

#flieswithattitude #funkyflytyingproteam #flymenfishingco #wiggletail #bodytubing #articulationnation #flytyingjunkie #flyfishing #flytidy
Posted by Flies With Attitude on Monday, April 11, 2016

Celui ci en sable et or, avec une wiggletail en Large de chez www.fishon.it

Et un coup de nostalgie....Un nouveaux trip sur l'Innoko est en preparation...Je viens de retrouver des heures de videos prisent lors de notre dernier voyage...De quoi faire une autre petite video!

Innoko 2013 from Norbert Renaud on Vimeo.

De retour sur l'étau...

De retour a la normalité, quelques petits travaux de maintenance au lodge avant l'arrivée du premier groupe dans une dizaine de jours...La météo est froide, avec du vent , de la pluie et des averses de neige..Le niveau des eaux est haut, ce qui est normal pour février...Donc je ne risque rien en restant au chaud a monter quelques nouveautés nouveautés et me remplir une nouvelle boite pour ma saison de 2016.

Whip tail T-Bones / Update.

Comme prévue cette semaine fut difficile, haute pression avec une forte tendance nord, nord/est, pas de vent, pas de pluie, les niveaux qui continuent a descendre, bref des conditions pas appréciées par les brocs...Un seul réconfort , c'est que tout le monde a prit  des couleurs et se sont bien reposés....( 98cm pour le plus gros de la semaine).
Enfin aujourd'hui un changement arrive, sud ouest/ ouest, un peu de pluie, pression qui va descendre...Ca devrait reprendre...
Donc je reste derrière mon étau et je prépare de nouveaux streamers pour cette saison (qui approche pour moi). Je me suis plus particulièrement concentré sur les "Bodytubing" de chez Flymen.
Le volume est fantastique, sans compromettre le poids lors du montage, donc je peux monter des streamers bien plus gros. Une taille d'environ 20, 23cm pour un poids de 6 a 7 grammes.
Un de mes matériaux fétiche reste toujours le lapin, le seul inconvénient c'est que celui ci devient lourd une fois mouillé et a tendance a s'enrouler sur l'hameçon: Bunny ball...
Pour remédier a ceci, je monte une "Whip tail" ( queue fouet) j'attache un bout de zonker sur une tige de titane, ça réduit la quantité de lapin, sans enlever sa mobilité et il ny a plus de Bunny balls...
Biensur je reste sur des modèles articulés, toujours pareil, un Sakuma Manta XL 6/0 et une tige de 40mm en tête.
Apres une journée sur l'eau la semaine dernière, je confirme que ça marche très bien, et ce n'est pas trop lourd a lancer ( sur canne de #10 ).
Maintenant je passe sur un autre type de montage, ce coup ci je conserve l'articulation et du bodytubing, mais je monte avec des funky fibres pour encore enlever quelques grammes...Suite au prochain post...

Cherchez l'intrus, une canine cassée dans le bodytubing, ça démontre bien la dureté et longévité des T-bones.

On note bien sur cette photo ou l'hameçon se trouve, en plein milieu, meilleur endroit pour les T-bones, car comme le nom l'indique en anglais, tbone c'est prendre quelque chose de travers..Ces streamers ont une nage genre jerkbait, il se présentent sur le coté pendant les pauses, et très souvent c'est a ce moment que le brochet attaque!