[MrEsox]

did a few Zonkers (modified them to my likeing). I think they turned out very well. They were easy to make except attaching the strip.

[FlyGal]

Nice looking flies....the only one I could give you any pointers on is the green back one. It's fur is running against the head of the fly instead of with it like the rest. You may feel resistance when fishing that fly as you strip it in.

You will find after casting some of the longer tailed ones that it fouls quite a bit. I find if I don't go over the flat part of the shank of the hook as a tail measurement I tend to get very little fouling.

Check out the little flower mode on your camera and you can get your flies in clear focus every time.

[MrEsox]

?????

The hair on the green one actually is nothing but shag carpet. I picked up some artificial hair from Cabelas and they sent me some shag carpet. The stuff I got actually does point back to the tail. It comes up and curves back. I've used it with no probs. Fish like it. The others with the bit longer tails, are tied first and are away from the point that the fur is. I got to use both the real fur and the shag and no prob with it.

[aroostookbasser]

Now what junk yard did I send that old van too???? right full of shag!!!!!!

Nice flies.........zonkers......what a name.

I call my black and white ones "Mohawks"............muskies love 'em!!!

[Joni]

There is a difference in Zonker strips and Cross Cut strips. Cross Cut is better for Zonkers in that the hair points back. Zonker strips do point back but also the side.

My only suggestion is the same one I gave McFly on the Clouser post. Add a collar, either Mallard, or Marabou or even Guinea.

[MrEsox]

Well Joni, I dont like the collar. For pike the colored top (grey, green, and I have some blue also), and flashy/shinny gets them moving. I just have not found a hook long enough with out going too a 8/0, though I still may. The bad thing about the shagg is that it dont hold up worth a *$%@. I had to add glue to it to keep it from falling apart. The Zonker stripps I find much easier to tie with. The green though proved to be a fave nad after adding a coat of fish'n glue to it, held up very well. Since the mylar is somewhat transparent, I add dubbing or wrap a pipe cleaner around to add extra color to it. The pics dont shot it very well (phone cam) but each are a differant color. I find the pipe cleaners add much more color. Needless to say, it is a good pattern and I plan on makeing a few larger ones for later. I though do like to add a but of extra flash and color on the back end under the xs bit of strip. And insted of the collar, I add eyes.

[Joni]

MrEsox, I gotcha now. We dont really have so called BIG Pike here but we do have BIG Tiger Musky. For those critters I use this guy which is about 3" long.
Perch pattern with wool head and synthetic back.

[MrEsox]

Very nice looking fly, I dont havn't seen that kind of fiber up here...kinda like polar fibers (long fuzzy fiber like stuff). I've had a hard time finding any fibers other then some long plastics and thsi stuff called angle hair. The plastic stuff I dont think would work very well for it...but the angle hair may. Mainly the fibers I dont think would lay worth a darn trying the feather look to it. That I do like. I just mainly stay with the fibers I can easily get my hands on. Like I have said before, I got to tranvel 100 miles to get to the shops that have fly stuffs in it and that is limited. I've tryed cabelas but I'd rather see it in person...ended up with a few things that I would have not picked up if I would have seen it in person. Though I got more grey/blue marabou then I know to shake rod at and dont think I'll run out anytime soon . I'll drop a pic of the minnows that I've been making with the hair and fibers I've been finding so you can get a visual on what I'm talking about.