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i suppose bead chain eyes would not be a good choice for the eyes since the description of the pattern says it does not have a head down attitude. what besides christmas decoration plastic beads might be a suitable alternative. i am not having much luck finding any of those. would mono eyes work? i have never used them and don't know if they are too heavy?
Mono eyes should work fine. They are not very heavy. "Christmas decoration plastic beads" isn't very specific, and might be hard to find the exact same material that was used in that recipe. I'm in the same situation. I'll probably give the mono eyes a try.
Another thing to consider is...a Texas-Rigged plastic worm commongly uses a conical-shaped "worm sinker"...and so is often fished on/near the bottom. So, heavier eyes, like bead-chain, could still be very effective, it would just give the pattern a different action.
jalama and FishnDave, If you will PM me your shipping addy, I will send your both some gold and some white plastic Christmas plastic beads for the Hard Hackle Worm. John
i sent you a pm. you are a gentleman and a scholar. many thanks!!!!! (i have a friend in maryville,tn and fly fish that area whenever possible, maybe we can hook up some day).
jalama, I got your PM and I just put you a small package together. It will go in the mail tomorrow. If You are down this way let me know and maybe we can hook up. Always nice to meet a fellow FAOLer. Maryville is only about 12 miles from me. John
If you want to add eyes that do not add too much weight to the fly, you can make your own very easily. Take two glass beads the size and color you want and a 1 inch piece of , heavy mono. Hold the mono in a pair of pliers or forcepts. Slip one bead on the mono and light the mono with a match. When the mono has a nice sized gob burning on the end, press the bead and the mono on a flat surface. Do the same with the other bead, leaving just enough room between the beads to tie onto the hook shank.
You can also take those plastic beads already strung and cut two off. Use needle nose pliers to hold the beads by the string attaching them together. Use a match or lighter to light one bead on the outside end where the sring comes out. When the bead is burning and soft, push it onto a flat, smooth surface. Do the same for the other bead. This produces flat "beads" already tied together. You can tie them in like this or you can glue on 3D eyes dependong on the effect you're going for.
Jim Smith
thanks for that most helpful information, and very practical too!
Hello Jalama,
The Christmas decoration plastic beads are tree garland strands. Come in silver, gold, green, red, white. Made by Hirschberg Schultz & Co. They are called Holiday Accents and come in 12 foot rolls of two sizes.
I got them at Michaels craft stores around Christmas time. You can really load up on them at their after holiday sale. You might try going to Michaels or Hobby Lobby and ask them for plastic bead strands. Both stores have huge selections in their bead aisle, so you might want to check there.
Another good source are those bead necklaces you get in New Orleans at Mardi Gras time. Great selection of colors and sizes.
It always amazes me where we fly tyers find our material sometimes!
Cheers,
Richard in Plano, TX (100 degrees today again)
Some craft stores stock strung plastic white and pearl beads in their wedding supplies.
I picked up some at my local A. C. Moore store.
Also, a while back I hosted a Mardi Gras bead fly swap. The hard hackle worm was one of the flies tied.
All of the swap flies may be viewed at:
http://www.edengelman.com/MGBeadSwap...ead%20Swap.htm
Ed