Tag Archives: flat wing streamer

Stuff I Use: the Eagle Claw 253 Hook

The Eagle Claw 253 hook is the traditional choice for tying the flatwings, bucktails, and soft hackles made popular by Ken Abrames. It is a 1x short, O’Shaughnessy style spinnerbait hook with a non-offset point.

Ken didn’t choose that hook by accident. In Striper Moon, he writes of the 254 1x short, a similar hook, “The wire is light and does not cause the hook to sink unnaturally…the shank of this hook is one size short…this does two things: first, it makes the hook lighter and second it makes the point longer in relationship to hook size. I believe this gives me a mechanical advantage when fighting  a fish.” Those same attributes apply to the 253, which is the dominant hook in his book of fly patterns, A Perfect Fish.

“To fashion a fly from tradition is an honorable practice.” — KA. I did my best to honor that practice with the Rock Island, tied here on the Eagle Claw 253, size 3/0.

Rock Island Flatwings

The Eagle Claw brand holds a special place in my heart. It was the snelled hook we used when my father taught me how to fish for trout in the early 1970s. For years now, I’ve been tying most of my striper flies on the Eagle Claw 253. I usually buy them in lots of 100, readily available at any number of online retailers. Most of those 100 are sticky sharp right out of the box; those that aren’t are easily sharpened with a few strokes of a mill file. Eagle Claw makes a version of the 253 called “Lazer Sharp.” Ironically, I’ve found many of the Lazer Sharp hooks to be pencil-eraser dull, and difficult to sharpen. Stick with the regular 253 hook.

The biggest striper (probably between 30-35 pounds) I ever caught on the fly from shore took this Razzle Dazzle flatwing, below, tied on an Eagle Claw 253. At the time of the catch, the fly was at least 3 years old, and seen multiple seasons of use. I had sharpened the hook the night of the outing, as I had done many times before with Eagle Claw 253s, making sure it had enough sticking power to hold a junior cow.

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Most of the Eagle Claw 253s I use are size 1/0 and 3/0, although I will tie some of my larger flatwings on 4/0s. A word of caution: on larger stripers, I’ve had the 1/0s begin to open (I tend to put a lot of pressure on a fish when fighting it) although I have never lost a striper to an opened hook. If I suspect there are bigger fish around, I’ll go with a 3/0 and up. I have never had an issue with those sizes.

My favorite hooks for flatwings, bucktails, and soft hackles, fresh from a 100 count bag, ready for the vise.

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Ray’s Fly Featherwing: A simple, sparse flatwing

Many years ago, I was having trouble with some bass that were feeding on silversides in a Rhode Island breechway. The fish were active, but I couldn’t get them to bite. Ken Abrames recommended that I try the Ray’s Fly Featherwing, a dressed-down flatwing version of Ray’s Fly. I remember him telling me that it was, at the least, another arrow  in the fly box quiver.

That was a long time ago. I remember tying some up, but I don’t know what became of them. I know I caught stripers on them. I think I lost my last one to a bluefish.

Recently, someone on one of the forums asked about a “Ray’s Fly flatwing.” I think the Ray’s Fly Featherwing is the fly he was referencing. I haven’t tied in a couple of weeks, so I went down to the bench this morning and churned out a few. So simple. And sparse. I’d be as inclined to use these for a sand eel as I would a silverside.

All saddles are tied in flat — flatwing style, as they say. Note that the olive saddle is tied in at the head. All you need to do now is add water.

Ray’s Fly Featherwing flatwing

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Hook: Eagle Claw 253 1/0
Thread: White
Tail: 30 strands white bucktail under white saddle under 4 strands pearl flash under yellow saddle
Body: Pearl or silver braid
Wing: Olive saddle
Topping: Peacock herl

Ooh. Ahh. Ohh. (400 Followers Contest Swag.)

Fear not, contest winners, your goodies are on the way! Thank you for your bountiful patience, and of course for your loyal readership.

If you’re new to the site, I have been celebrating each successive century mark of email followers with a giveaway. To win, you have to be signed up as an email subscriber — so there’s your incentive. And we’re now under 75 away from 500…woo-hoo!

Here’s a little something to whet the winner’s appetites.

Gary gets the striper flies. Clockwise from top: Orange Ruthless, Big Eelie, Soft-Hackled Flatwing, September Night, Rhody Flatwing, Herr Blue, Ray’s Fly.

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Kris and Bill went for trout flies. Here are a dozen classic wets and fuzzy nymphs, clockwise from upper right: Soft-hackled bead head Pheasant Tail, Pale Watery wingless, Ginger caddis larva, Brown Hackle, Black Gnat, Hackled March Brown, Drowned Ant, Squirrel and Ginger, Hare’s Ear, Dark Hendrickson, Grizzly and Gray, Partridge and Light Cahill.

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Cape Cod striper mini-report (and a good lesson learned)

Up at the Cape this weekend for a soccer tournament, and after family duties were fulfilled I got the chance to wander out. Saturday night at my secret spot was a bust. The good news was twofold: I now have some intel on how the channel has shifted, and I did not sit on that big driftwood log that turned out to be a seal carcass (always confirm your landing zone before you park your butt).

Last night I met up with some people I know from Stripersonline.com. We fished a spot that was new for me, and I liked it for its moving tide and structure. The action wasn’t anything to get excited about, but most of the group managed to touch a fish. I’m quite sure my second striper will be the smallest one I will catch this year. How he managed to eat a 3/0 hook is a question for marine biologists to ponder.

I hope you had a good holiday weekend, and please be sure to pause a moment and remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice in the service of our great nation.

That’s AM. Very AM.

Getting home from a fishing trip when the birds are just starting to sing is significant.

It can mean the fishing was so good you lost track of time. It can also mean you were stupid enough to leave your home before midnight and stay out long past where good sense should have compelled you to stop.

And sometimes it’s a little of both.

A bleary camera eye stares blankly at the microwave oven clock. 

VeryAM

We’ve been working the striper night shift here at currentseams for the past three weeks. While it’s been a mixed bag, it has been better than last year (pretty much a blank repeated ad nauseum), with only one skunking in the mix and my first keeper of the year. Most of the fishing has been wonderfully meditative greased line presentations with large flatwings. And I’ve had the chance to reconnect with my beloved five-weight.

The best striper of the spring so far, a 30-incher who found my Rock Island flatwing to her liking. I was lucky to catch this fish — she came at the end of the drift on my last cast of the evening, and saved me from the dreaded polecat. Loads of fun, and quickly landed on the five-weight.

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Another fun Saturday at the Compleat Angler

Many thanks to the Compleat Angler in Darien, CT, for once again being such gracious hosts. A comfortable, well-lit setup, and Scott and crew know how to keep a tyer happy (turkey, provolone, lettuce and a little bit of mayo on a hard roll). If you’ve never been to the shop, it is very well-stocked, from rods and reels and lines, to books and tying supplies. Highly recommended.

It goes without saying (but we’ll do it anyway): thanks also to everyone who took the time to come watch and ask questions. You made my day an enjoyable one.

Implements of destruction and the resulting construction. Clockwise from bottom left: Orange Ruthless, Soft-hackled grass shrimp, Ray’s Fly, September Night, Herr Blue, Big Eelie.

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“Bill Peabody’s Flat-Wing Patterns”

A few years ago, Capt. Ray Stachelek gave me a copy of an article Bill Peabody had written in the May-June 1998 issue of Fly Fishing In Salt Waters. I mentioned it here, then mostly forgot about it. A few weeks ago, one of you asked if I could share the piece. With my Compleat Angler flatwing demo tomorrow, this seemed like a good time to do it.

Below is a pdf of “Bill Peabody’s Flat-Wing Patterns.” The quality is as good as I can make it, this being photos of a photocopy. I want to be clear that I did not write this piece. Bill Peabody did.  Enjoy!

Bill Peabody’s Flat-Wing Patterns

My rendition of Bill Peabody’s Flat-Wing Bay Smelt. The fly has not yet been shaped under water.

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Tying Demo: Bucktails, Soft Hackles and Flatwings for Stripers, 2/27/16 in Darien

I will be presenting a tying demo at the Compleat Angler in Darien, CT, Saturday, February 27 from 10am-2pm. Its focus will be Bucktails, Soft Hackles and Flatwings for Striped Bass. This is the traditional New England school of tying, with an emphasis on sparse construction, impressionism, and natural materials. For more information, contact the Compleat Angler.

Hope you can make it!

Bucktails so sparse you can read the paper through them. (You remember newspapers, right?) Actually, this is a game-used hybrid bucktail/soft hackle/flatwing. Good stuff.

Sparse SHFlatwing

Striper Report 5/26/15: Won’t get fooled again

And so we close the books on what was easily the worst spring for fly fishing for stripers from the shore in Connecticut I’ve experienced since 2007.

How bad was it? By this time in an average year, I’ve already passed the century mark in stripers landed. A good year? Tally it in hundreds. I think I caught ten this year over the course of fifteen trips, and only three of those outings produced fish. Legal bass? Hah! I think I managed one striper over 20″. (Last year was lousy for big bass, too, with only one legal fish for me all spring. Granted, it was a thirty pounder, but oh, how far the mighty have fallen.)

Blame it on a long winter and a cold spring. Blame it on lack of bait. Blame it low flows in the rivers. Blame it on crashing striper stocks. Blame it on shifting channels. Blame it on every year is different. Blame it on plain old bad luck. One thing is certain: If I’m going to spend four hours in a river in the middle of the night, I gotta feel like there’s a reasonable chance I might find some fish. Folks, I ain’t feeling it.

So, time for Striper Plan B. I’ll let you know how that goes.

In another year, this might represent the number of stripers I’ve caught so far. Instead, it’s a painful reminder of yet another long, fishless night.IMG_1858

The untriumphant return of the five weight.

I don’t think I used the five weight once last spring. Must remedy that. I knew I’d be unable to sleep after my hockey game, so at 10pm I ventured forth into the sultry darkness with a new Rio Outbound 9 weight floating line on the reel and a Crazy Menhaden flatwing to tempt Miss Piggy. I tend to want to get my money’s worth from a line, so I had forgotten how good a new one feels in the hand. The five weight did not disappoint, and conditions were perfect for casting and mending a large fly in the current. Sadly, no bass, no bait. The Meatballs were out in force, though, proudly displaying their coordinates to the world (and perhaps some low flying aircraft) with their headlamps. I must confess to having a smug sense of satisfaction when they left fishless. As did I after two hours of fighting the good fight.