PINE SQUIRREL CHEATER - Fly of the Week - September 21, 2009

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PINE SQUIRREL CHEATER

John Scott Rigby brings us another great fly.
"Simple, easy to tie, durable and effective; The Pine Squirrel Cheater."

[JeffHamm]

Hi John,

I really like this pattern. I have a few tied up and ready for when I hit some spots back in New Zealand. I know some places with fiesty browns that would just love these.

- Jeff

[Flap Jack]

Hi
This is a great fly for big Browns. I have had great sucess with it on the Salmon River in New York. I believe this fly would work on Browns any where.
Very nice job with the story and with the tying instructions.
Flap Jack

[JohnScott]

Flap Jack -

Greetings and welcome to the Bulletin Board from Eastern Idaho / Western Montana.

Sounds like you have come up with the same fly, or found a source for it ??

Another BB member, NightAngler1 from Ridgedale MO ties a very similar fly, adding flash, and a couple other guys that I know here in SE Idaho also tie their own version of a pine squirrel zonker streamer.

Some people compare the P.S.C. to John Barr's Slumpbuster, but that fly is way more complicated. Guess it would be hard to sell a strip of zonker for $2.00 a pop ??

Also, this is a great trout fly, not just for browns. And I think some of our friends in the midwest have fished it successfully for bass. If it eats sculpins and / or baitfish, it will eat this fly if presented properly.

John

P.S. Hate to say it, but the last time I looked at Wapsi zonked pine squirrel skins, just a couple weeks ago, the quality was very poor. Out of seven or eight skins I inspected, there was only one really good one, and a couple that were almost passable. Take a good look at the number and length of zonked strips and the thickness and length of the hair before you buy. Wapsi's small packs of zonkers tend to be pretty good quality, but are kind of pricey if you plan to tie many flies.

[TerryB]

Could you please tell us the type and size of hook you use for this fly?

Thanks for sharing this with us! I look forward to trying it out.

[JohnScott]

Could you please tell us the type and size of hook you use for this fly?

Thanks for sharing this with us! I look forward to trying it out.

Terry -

I use a size 6 Dai-Riki 280 2XL hopper hook for this fly. But any streamer hook will do just fine. Using the micro pine squirrel zonker strips, I've tied small streamers on size 12 2XL nymph hooks and had some success with them in a couple smaller streams.

The Wapsi product comes in natural and a number of colors. I prefer the sculpin olive, but have done well with black, and more recently, with brown. I'm guessing the natural might prove really good for some baitfish imitations, but haven't tried it yet.

John

[jimsnarocks]

John, I'm glad the PSC made it to the FOTW.
Since you sent me that first little package of pine squirrel zonker strips and I tyed a few of those following your recipe, I have caught numerous trouts in the Sierras and even a few in the desert waters on it.
I have since found a decent source for squirrel zonkers and have a box of a couple dozen PSCs. Thanks for helping me along.

[Rex S]

John,
I've used this fly since you turned me onto it last year. Still a great fly. Thanks for sharing.
Rex

[JohnScott]

John,
I've used this fly since you turned me onto it last year. Still a great fly. Thanks for sharing.
Rex

Rex -

Hard to believe that it is a year since we ran into each other on the Lower Henry's Fork. I recall that you had a great time with the P.S.C. that day, and fishing behind you just about left me high and dry in the catching department.

Glad to hear that it continues to produce for you.

John