cdpaul,
Agreed. I won't go fishing without some in my boxes! I have tied them in a few different sizes, from #4 long shanked streamer hooks for minnow imitators to #16 nymphs. My most productive SWAPH is tied on a #10 or #12 wet fly hook. For that I use chartruse and a little bit of gray bucktail along with the crystal flash for the wing, chartruse yarn for the body and use red thread (to make a nice red head). It is most productive for bluegills. I fish it in still water, casting it out and retrieving it in short, slow strips. Also works for small smallmouth bass in the river. I'll cast it upstream and strip if back or across stream and swing it.
I love that fly for all the reasons touted by Al Campbell. It's super simple to tie and you can use that style of tying to match so many baits.
Looking foward to warmer weather so I can fish mine,
Tom