Friday, August 26, 2011

Sculpin Helmets and Dragons


I've been holding back on another new product from Flymen Fishing Company.  Martin Baudin is in the process of releasing the Sculpin Helmet to his line of Fish Skulls.  When he told me of his idea for the product I instantly had patterns swimming in my head.  Sculpins are bottom hugging river and stream dwelling fish that are a favorite of many freshwater gamefish. They are found in a range of earthy tones.  These Helmets were designed to be heavy and wider in profile to the Fish Skulls.  When I got samples into my hands, I couldn't tie fast enough to get the pattern down.  My expectations were met both with the product and the pattern I came up with.  It's one thing to come up with a cool looking pattern, it's another to come up with a cool looking pattern that catches fish.  I took my new pattern "Hagrid's Dragon" out for test swim.  I was fishing the run and fly kind of half heartedly and ready to switch flies, but I said to myself that this was experimental and to ride it out a little longer.  I was swinging the helmet through the middle of the run when the line went tight.  I connected with a fish that put a bend in the 4wt switch that had me more than excited.  I was rewarded / surprised when I landed a fourteen inch fallfish.  Typical fallfish in this area run between 6 and 10 inches.  Though fallfish aren't as exciting as fresh chrome, this is late summer fishing.  I renewed my confidence and kept fishing the run.  Next I was into smallmouth bass!  I fished the rest of the run and landed seven bass and two fallfish (both of which were over 13 inches).  It was safe to say I was hooked or sold, depending on how you look at it on the sculpin helmets.  Here is a sneak peek at the product and the results.  The helmets will be available in small and large sizes and brown or olive colors.





Monday, August 22, 2011

Time to Shank It Up...Shank It, Shank It, Sugaree







First off I've been on vacation for the last week.  This was perfect (aside form the perfect time with my family) because I was having a hard time keeping this one quiet.  The Flymen Fishing Company let me try out a new product before it was available on the market.  It's in line with a waddington shank and articulated fly tying.  Check out http://www.flymenfishingcompany.com/ for details.  I was able to get some time to fool around with these and fish them.  They take a little getting use to, but I like the end result for sure....especially if you like to tie intruders! My biggest dilema was judging the trailer length for the hook, but that one can be chalked up to trial and error.  Now to the fishing.  I took most of the warmwater species on the black and silver shank fly and a few on the hinged dace fly.  The most missed fish came on the black and silver and I relate that directly to the length of the trailer hook. I can't wait to try these on the chrome this fall.  Look for more to come from me with both the shanks and another new product from Flymen Fishing Company very soon!!!

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Alex Cerveniak and http://alexkain.com/


I met Alex a few years back through article submissions to Hatches Magazine.  I learned quickly that Alex is serious about his passion for everytthing fly fishing.  It wasn't until last fall that we actually got to meet face to face at the Fly Tying Symposium in Somerset, NJ....it seemed that we were always at the same places just different times. The more we talked the more I appreciated his efforts and contributions to our beloved sport.  Alex creatted a new web site this year  http://alexkain.com/ that showcases some of his passion.  He has a portion dedicated to things fish eat and their fly imitation.  I sent a couple of flies for Alex to photograph and add to his collection.  These are a couple of patterns that I created and are available through the Beaverkill Angler in Roscoe, NY.  As always Alex's photos showcase his artistic eye.  I'll be adding the patterns to my blog fly catalog soon. 
                                                  Isonychia Soft Hackle Bead Head:
Eastern Green Drake Soft Hackle: