It looks as if my thread posted yesterday didn't survive the server change so I'll try to replicate it.
Shank flies are simple to tie and can yield outstanding results for use as streamers whether you use a traditional single hand rod or cast with a 2 hand rod. What I will show you here is a very simple tie that I call The Magnet, named so because from year to year it is proving to be a fish magnet especially for silver salmon. They also catch a good number of rainbows even when trout are not the target species. Whether it is the colors or the action of the fly they continue to work well.
Shanks can be expensive but I made a buy over 25 years ago of several hundred Mustad 36717 Limerick bend streamer hooks in size 2 and still have them. I simply cut the hook at the bend and clamp the remaining shank into an old D.H. Thompson Model 360 A vise. The vise has an adjustable barrel so it can be set horizontal for shank & tube fly tying.
Here we go.
Take a hook;
A good sturdy cutter is a must, I use my Leatherman to clip the steel.
Clamp the shank firmly into the vise and build a bed of thread on the front 1/3 or 1/4 of the shank near the eye.
Once the thread is secured cut a piece of 65 pound Power Braid long enough to provide a loop behind the finished fly and to extend through the hook eye and back under the shank as shown below.
Keeping the Power Braid on top the shank first wrap back and then forward to secure it. Then hold the ends which are through the hook eye backward and wrap them down tightly as shown below.
For this simple pattern I use string Ice Chenille . Secure it at the back of your thread wraps and wind it forward training the strands backward as you go. Make the turns tight and pack it on there to form a bulky body. This bulk will help hold toe marabou that will be used for hackles to retain a nice fat profile even in the current.
Next strip one side of a purple marabou feather and tie it in by the tip. Wind the quill forward keeping the wraps packed tight against one another. Tie off and trim excess after 4 or 5 turns.
Next I strip a hot pink marabou feather and treat it the same way packing the turns tight against the face of the purple hackles. Once the pink is tied off and trimmed I put a set of eyes on and finish the head.
You're almost there now, all that's left is to trim the excess shank off and attach a hook.
Push the materials forward to expose the back of the body where the cut will be made and get as close as you can to make the cut. Be careful not to clip your Power Braid off OK.........
It will look like this when you are about to make the cut.......
Once the shank is cut this is all you have left.
You can attach any size hook needed to the braid, here I am putting a size 8 Gamakatsu stinger on the braid. Compress the loop to fit it through the eye as seen below.
Once your loop is through just pass it over the bend of the hook and chinch it up to the eye as seen here.
The beauty of this rig is that you can quickly change hooks from barbless to barbed as well as the overall size of hook. I like to stay small when possible because a trout will be killed if it hangs itself on a size 2/0 salmon hook. Small hooks will catch a big fish if you let them get hooked before trying to set the hook. On Tuesday I caught 7 salmon between a 30 pound King down to a 3 pound Pink as well as 5 trout all on a size 8 hook on the same fly.
The basic fly shown can be made with brown and olive or whatever colors you need for your area and target species. I have come to like this style fly even better than tube flies because of the ease of hook changes on them.
Any questions are welcome,
Ard
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