Soft Headed Jigs?

[Uncle Jesse]

I like tying Lightning Bugs, Prince Nymph, Copper Johns, etc. on 1/124th oz. jig heads. The fish seem just as willing to take the fly and they do not seem to hang up as often. Last week after working my customary 3/4 mile section of the Chattahoochee River I notice the head of the fly looked like it had been worked on with a little biddy hammer. I noticed yesterday, before I left it on a log to amuse the trout this week, the same thing had happen. The Hooche is a fairly gently flowing river with several shoals, a small rapids area and the usual assortment of large rocks and fallen timber but apparently that is all it takes to hammer a lead, although plated, jig flat.
jig head 2.JPG.jig head 1.jpg

[DonO1]

Not to be critical, but if you tied the shiny wing case on top, it would flash better to the fish. What are you using for the copper?

[Uncle Jesse]

Constructive criticism is appreciated. The wing case was originally on top. Everything is twisted slightly from it's original position. The copper is fine stranded twisted into a small cable and then wrapped. It gave a little different look, the fish did not seem to mind. It shows an influence from my good friend who grew up in Utah and has fished all over the west and a little in the east, that sometimes something the fish have not seen a thousand of works a little better.

[Steven McGarthwaite]

I tie jig hook fly patterns, but I do not use jig hooks. Instead I use a wet/nymph hook that is either 1XL, or 2XL, from the hook recommended in the pattern. I insert non-lead wire to the rear inside cavity of the metal bead head to center the bead head on the hook shank.

Most down eye hooks are at either a 20 or 40 degree angle from the hook shank. I bend the hook shank (using wire not forged hooks) at a point that leaves the correct space for a a metal bead weight. I do a 45 degree bend, this reverses the center of gravity on the hook, so the hook's spear is rotated to a upward orientation.

The fly pattern moves along the bottom with the hook shank tilted up off of the bottom and the angle of the hook's eye to the surface remains at a 45 degree angle. Two 40/45 degree bends are better at controlling the action of the hook pattern, then one 90 degree bend using a jig hook.