suggested material sub?

Hey Guys,

hey everyone, sorry i haven't been on in next to an eternity.. family heath issues and such...

i haven't had the time to break out the fly rod yet this year, so i have been doing a lot of spin fishing. That being said, ive been using my french spinners i dressed up awhile ago, and let me tell you, they are killers in the river and small streams!

OK, down to business... i dress the heck out of them.... crystal flash, mallard flank and dry fly hackle on the treble, (the dry fly hackle takes the focus off the thread wraps and helps hide the barbs of the treble.) then, marabou and crystal flash pressed around a ball to hide the joint and blend the transition, and finally some more dry fly hackle pressed between a ball and the barrel to finish, it helps act as a buffer for the spinner blade... the last bit of hackle (the blade buffer) is getting destroyed after about 2-3 hours of heavy use.. I'm assuming its due to the spinner blade and rocks, since I've been fishing very shallow water...

any suggestions on a material that would withstand more abuse then dry fly hackle? and (hopefully) respond close to the same in the water?

any input is good input,

the spooften

oh yeah, here is a picture... the silver blades are getting a lot more response so far...

Attachment 13614

tight lines everyone!

Maybe a synthetic material like EP fibers or KF in a dubbing loop?

Alberto

Nice use of materials. Good looking spinners.
Mike

There's pretty much nothing you can put there that is not going to get beaten up eventually. You have it sandwiched between a moving and non-moving part by the look of the photo, so it is going to be ground up eventually, no matter what it is, I would suspect. Have you tried anchoring the front bead with a thread dam and/or a bit of glue to minimize the grinding action?

How about some organza ribbon. Slice it up the middle and pick out the horizontal fibers. It will leave you with an organza "hackle". tie it in, put a good dollop of Zap a gap on, and wind it around. It will flair like hackle, but hopefully be more durable and add alittle flash as well. I use the same technique for collars on caddis pupa, and it has worked very well.

FWIW: poof85 has a good suggestion. I have done the same in dressing up Mepp's spinners for my wife.
In the past, her test results indicate that yellow and orange feather colors were better.

Alberto: you know i have been meaning to pick up some EP for the last year, and ever time i am at the fly shop it somehow gets forgotten...

Melk: thanks very much, i was bored one Saturday morning, and asked my brother to pick a color... of all the colors in the spectrum, he chose almond... and that's as close as i could get with the materials on hand, thanks again!

Whatfly: the large bead and the barrel are both glued fast, i figure if i am going to spend as much time as i do making these things, take precautions where possible... i would be very disheartened if after 2-3 cast a loose chunk of metal decided to cut my wraps... the blade being drug across the tips rotation after rotation basically sands the tips to short stubs... if stiff deer hair was an option it would at least last a week of hard swinging... on another note regarding the glue, its probably not necessary to do what i an about to say, but i think it seems to help, i try and make sure the materials are evenly distributed to help the spinner wobble less, so lots of glue, and waiting... i am not sure what that would be considered.. aqua dynamics(?) perhaps? i have noticed with less turbulence, the blade pulls upright more. allowing for a slower retrieve and brighter flash... the spinner in the pic is the first one made, the recipe is the same, but the final product is cleaner. unfortunately, i am currently out of that size blades so i can't spin one up quick for an example..

Jay92: i may give the organza ribbon a try, that stuff is pretty tough. i figure if i can get a good month out of one spinner, its an improvement... let alone a whole season... whatfly is correct, there is no magic cure, abrasion is unavoidable at that location of the spinner...

Ray Kunz: last year, they wouldn't touch a silver blade, only brass... but for some reason nickel is the big thing... i use identical materials, less the blade... another interesting tidbit, they will only hit when i use a metal clevise. i have a few plastic ones that allow you to swap the blades at will, and have absolutely no luck what so ever... i wonder what they are targeting specifically on the spinner...

here is a pic of that plastic clevise:
Attachment 13615

as always, all input is welcome and i appreciate the remarks...

i am curious to see if replacing the hackle with crystal flash, or flashabou... most likely loose the motion, but gain elasticity and flash... anyone think it may add too much flash?



again, its great to hear from all of you,
spooften

tight lines!

I would be inclined to use a large softer feather than dry fly hackle something that would give more motion in the water. Marabou in a split thread or dubbing loop might work or pheasant or turkey body feather. Never tried it so I don't really know if it would work or not.

Your bead between the brass body and the clevis should be all you need - shouldn't need that buffer and as whatfly said you're between a moving and non-moving part. Let your bead be your buffer and not the hackle.

I've been making spinners since the early 80's, and I like yours but the bit of hackle you're using could be skipped and I don't think it would hamper your spinner at all not having it.

agree 100% with Fatman... I've been making spinners since the same time and see no need for hackle between the beads/body. They ARE nice looking and different, but if it's problematic, don't do it.

That spinner looks gooood!