Sorry, not very clear.
Duckster was correct, the lead dumbbell is tied in behind the HOOK eye...
As far as claw size goes, I've found that longer works better for me overall. Not likely to intimidate a smallmouth with a howitzer so I don't worry about it much. Largemouth will suck in and crush an 8 inch live craw with ease and I've caught some nice browns on these too, and they are also more agressive by nature. Maybe an issue with rainbows or other trout.
Buddy
It Just Doesn't Matter....
Tied and Submitted by: John Larson
Pattern Recipe:
Hook: TMC 8089 Size 6
Thread: 6/0 Olive
Weight: Medium Barbell Weight
Feelers: Olive Deer Belly
Legs: Pheasant
Claws: Pheasant Church Feathers
Head: Golden Olive Arizona Simi Seal
Body: 1 Olive & 1 Clear Standard Tubing
Overhand Knot Weaved.
Fan Tail & Thorax: Olive Swiss Straw
Eyes: Burnt Monofilament (15 lbs Test)
Finish: Softex
Treatment Finish for Claws:Liquitex
Pattern History:
12 years ago I fished Big Lake (in the Arizona White Mountains) for the first time. We would camp out there as well, which was a nice base to be able to fish many of the streams and other high mountain lakes in the White Mountains. When you think Arizona, you think hot and Desert. Arizona has the largest stand of Ponderosa Pine in North America, so the Arizona White Mountains with all the High Mountain Streams and Lakes are one of Fly Fishing's best kept secrets (as well as year round fly fishing). I was catching small trout, but the large trophy size trout seemed uninterested in all the offerings from my fly box. On the first evening, I happened to pass a fish cleaning station by one of the boat docks. There was a man cleaning a very large Cutthroat Trout. I figured I would stick around and watch to see the trout's stomach contents. What I saw next was shocking; a whole Lobster Sized Craw Fish intact. I made a comment of disbelief. The man told me that large trout feed on these Lobster sized craw fish whole. The next day I fumbled through my box to find any Craw Fish pattern I might have. I found an Olive, as well as a Red Squirrel Tail Craw. I tried both, but the trout showed no interest in my offering. Upon return home, I went to Dry Creek Outfitters (Orvis in Tucson) on a Saturday. While there I mentioned my frustration at not being able to catch the larger trout in Big Lake to John Kuebler (aka Whitey), a fellow fly tyer that works at the shop.
He mentioned that the Craw Fish in Big Lake had a wierd Olive Gold Color to them and were the size of Lobsters. John
Told me of an idea he was trying to work out by weaving the Crawdad body.
For the next 4 hours, I sat at a vise in the fly shop trying out this idea. What came out was the beginnings of my Craw Fish pattern. I returned home to my own vise to experiment further.
I tied this pattern hook up which made it snag proof, & with a barbell weight. On retrieve, the Crawdad seems to be backing up in defense with it's claws raised. I tied this both in Olive/Gold, and a Brown/ Brick Red. Upon return to Big Lake, I tried this from my float tube. The very first cast and retrieve, a large Cutthroat slammed the Crawfish hard, & the fight was on !!! That evening, I stopped by the General Store at Big Lake, and gave one of my Craw Fish patterns to Bob, who works there and fly fishes whenever he is off work !!!! The next day that I saw him, he asked me if I had any more of these Crawfish patterns. I asked him what happened to the one I gave him, and he told me a large trout slammed it so hard it busted the Leader, I lost the Crawdad & the Trout. A gave him another (though it takes time to tie.
I have continued to have much success with what I now call Whitey's Craw; named after my friend John Kuebler who inspired me with the idea for this pattern. I continue to get great reports, and not just on large trout, but Monster Bass, World Record Size Stripers on the Colorado River in West Arizona, Northern Pike, Musky, Walleye, and Smallmouth Bass. The proof is on the water as I always say, and it has more then proven itself as deadly !!!!!
Comments / Special Instructions:
Step 1. Secure hook in vise and start thread at just above hook curve. Work thread down to hook curve and tie in a medium barbell weight with several figure 8 wraps. Use super Glue top & bottom of Barbell & thread wraps for added strength.
Step 2. Turn hook upside down (with hook point up). Tie in a small bit of Olive Deer Belly For feelers on Barbell weight; some of the hairs will be on both sides of the hook (These are the feelers).
Step 3. Tie in a Olive Pheasant Church Feather on each side of the hook (barbell weight); make a small V cut on each feather (these are the claws), and treat with Liquitex clear Gloss (light coat). Let dry. This will be the Claws of the Craw Fish. Treating the Pheasant Church Feathers with Liquitex is optional.
Step 4. Tie in a burnt Monofilament Eye on each side at fron part of what will be the head.
Step 5. Tie in a strip of Olive Swiss Straw on each side; behind Barbell weight..
Step 6. Dub Gold/Olive Arizona Simi Seal (a little behind the eyes) shapeing
The head of the Crawfish.
Step 7. Prepare pheasant for legs; put a dab of Super Glue on top of head; lay pheasant on top with legs on both sides; bring both strands of Swiss Straw over between both eyes, and over positioned pheasant legs and head. Carefully tie down.
Step 8. Continue Wrapping the remainder of the Swiss Straw Strands on top of shank to hok eye, bring under hook eye & fan it out. Clip to shap of fan tail.
Step 9. Wrap thread back up to beginning of head. Tie in one strand of Olive Standard Tubeing closest to you, then tie in one strand clear Standard Tubeing Away from you (both right behind the head.
Step 10. Build up tapered underbody with thread & Whip Finish.
Step 11. You are now ready to weave the body. Make over hand knot, split over hook shank with dark, and clear on bottom. Tighten knot.
Step 12. Make another overhand knot; split over hook shank with clear on top, and Olive on bottom.
*** you will alternate steps 11 & 12 body weave down to the hook eye with the Olive being on top on the last knot.
Step 13. Start thread tying ogg both remainder of tubeing in front and behind wraps of both strands, and double whip finish (2 X). Add super glue to whip finish knot .
Step 15. Coat Top Thorax (Swiss Straw section & between eyes), the weaved body (top and bottom), and fan tail with Softex.
*** Allow to dry
Share and Enjoy:
Whiteys-Craw (Brown).jpg
Last edited by MR.JML; 03-22-2012 at 04:50 AM.
BTW, The picture you see is tied in a combination Brown/Brick Red. I personally like the Olive/Gold combination when I am Fly Fishing Big Lake (Arizona White Mountains), and you can use any color combination to match the color of Crawfish in the waters that you are fishing. I have found such interesting combinations as a Turquoise Blue/Green and Olive (or Gray).
Cobalt irridescent Blue/Jade combination and even adding Glow-In The Dark.
i wish u could rename a thread, i would change it to post your crayfish patterns, or ideas!
so far ive been able to redesign my pattern into (hopefully, fishing season doesn't start til next Saturday!) a real winner! keep em' commin! lol
and thanks to everyone who has posted so far!
spoof
I have a pattern somewhat like MR.JML's with a woven body, but using supreme hair. Here we go.
How to tie the Indestructible Crawfish
by Bob Boese
HOOK: Mustad 34011 Size 1- 6 ("J" hook) or Mustad 37187 (stinger hook) Size 10-2/0
THREAD: Danville’s Flat Waxed Nylon
EYES: Large Bead Chain
ROSTRUM & TAIL: Super Hair
ANTENNAE: Round Rubber Leg (medium)
LEGS: Silicone skirting material
RATTLE: Worm rattle (3mm-4mm)
BODY: Round Plastic Pony Bead Lacing (available from Michael’s or Hobby Lobby)
1. Making a thread base and mounting eyes: Wrap a tight layer of thread from the middle of the hook shank to 1/3 down the bend of the hook. If clear lacing is used, the thread color will show through the final shrimp (consequently color variations in the fly are virtually unlimited). Tie in the eyes using a figure eight wrap at the point where the thread stops in the hook bend and put on a drop of Super Glue. Loctite Easy Brush super glue is the easiest to apply.
2. Making the rostrum: Lay a small diameter bundle of super hair with even ends across the middle of the eyes and figure eight wrap through eyes, then separate the hair in the middle and figure eight through the hair separating it into the claws. Tie down the excess hair 1/4 inch along hook shank and cut off the remainder. Placing all the materials in steps 3-5 between the eyes is necessary for correct appearance.
3. Making the Antennae: Fold a 4"-6" rubber leg in half, loop around the hook shank and bring down to the eyes then pull through the center of the eyes (and center of the claws) and tie down with figure 8 wrap.
4. Making the Legs: Take two standard silicone strands from a spinner bait skirt (each strand will be about 5" long). Fold twice (making 8 legs) and loop the folded bundle around the hook shank and bring down to the eyes then tie down immediately behind the eyes with a figure eight. Cut the loops open made by folding.
5. Putting on the rattle: Put a layer of superglue along the thread covered top of the hook shank behind the eyes and lay a rattle on the glue with the pointy end toward the hook eye. Wrap many winds of thread over the rattle. This thread will show through the clear lacing, to be added later, as the body color of the shrimp.
6. Tying in the body material: Tie in two long pieces of round stretch plastic Pony Bead Lacing along the hook shank where the rattle meets the shank with the long end going past the head of the crawfish. Have the ends of the lacing nearest the hook eye come just beyond the rattle where they will lay below the end to fill the space between the rattle and the hook shank to make a base to slope a thread wrap toward the eye. Have the long tails of the material hang over the hook bend. Leave 3/8 inch of shank from the rattle to the hook eye open. Wrap over the lacing on the hook shank with thread.
7. Attaching the tail: Take a 1? " long bundle of super hair (using slightly more strands than was used for the rostrum) and tie the hair in, overlapping the point where the plastic lacing was tied in. Wrap with thread until the diameter of the tie in point makes a smooth transition from the shank up to the rattle and trim excess super hair on rattle’s side. The hair plus the ends of the lacing should result in a final shape that tapers slightly and smoothly from the rattle to the hook eye. Note that the super hair extending over the hook eye may be tied in so that it points up or down as the fly rests in the vise. This will actually be opposite of how the tail sits on retrieve. A "down" tail in the vise will encourage the fly to move slightly upward on retrieve, and an "up" tail will do the reverse.
8. Making the body: Starting as close as possible behind the eyes, using an overhand knot weave, tightly weave a plastic lacing several times in front of the rattle to fill in the gap between the rattle and the eyes. Continue to weave the lacing over the rattle (compressing occasionally with thumbnails) to within 1/8 inch of the hook eye. Pull the lacing toward the hook eye and make several thread wraps over the lacing to tie down the ends of the lacing thread, then cut off ends close to the hook eye. Bring the thread under the super hair and wrap thread on the shank to make a lump that causes the tail to angle away from the shank, then whip finish behind the hook eye under the super hair. Spread the super hair in a fan and hold between thumb and forefinger at the hook eye and trim into a tail shape.
Final bite proofing: Put a drop of Super Glue at the beginning of the weave (by the eyes) and all around the thread wrap at the tail. Put a drop of super glue at the bottom of the fanned-out super hair tail (nearest the hook eye) to keep the fan shape on retrieve. If any gaps appear in the weave, put a dot of super glue.
I'll send pics later.
cant wait to see them! i wonder, does the rattletrap really make a difference? i have a few left, thought about placing in a crayfish, but seems like a waist of a rattle, i would think the action in the water would draw alot of attention, but if it does make a difference..... honestly im not 100% sold on rattletraps for flies...
spoof
Gotta say, I like the idea of tying them with one claw...may have to do a couple up that way...
"Trust, but verify" - Russian Proverb, as used by Ronald Reagan
Took these with the phone. Should give you some idea. A couple have antennae, other's don't. The supreme hair will get more compact when wet making claw shapes. I just noticed that these have legs within the woven body. More complicated and not necessary. BTW, don't try for the "perfect" fly. Many times the rougher looking the better.
crawfish.jpgcrawfish2.jpg
DSC_0030.jpg
Okay then here's mine. Porcupine quills for the claws are tied to monofilament . The body is chenile over lead wraps . The shell is tissue coverd in flexament. The eyes ,antennae , legs and whiskers are all monofilament. Tough little fly that you can color the tissue and thread to match the crafish were you fish.
Fred
GREAT Crayfish Fred H...........
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