Hairy Worms à la Gapen

This is my version of an "Old School" Hoosier Favorite of long ago.  Read more about it here.

Materials:

• A 1/8-ounce ball head jig with a #2 sickle hook.
• Gloss black powder paint.
• Deluxe craft fur from bolt - black.
• UTC Ultra Thread (140 denier) - black.
• Tandy Premium Leather Strip - black/very dark brown.

A jig that's quick and fun to tie. :)

More Jigs-N-Leathers

Tied a "hairy curl" and two more craws for the river bass.

Each is tied on a 1/8-ounce ball head (collarless) with a #2 black nickel sickle hook.

Pack-A-Craw

This jig shows a pair of claws styled similarly to those of a popular plastic craw. Combined with craft fur, I hope that it will entice finicky cold water bass.

The jig is a 1/8-ounce ball head (no collar) with a #2 black nickel sickle hook sold by Grandpa Bob's. Its head has a plum brown color formed by a 1:1 mixture of red to matte black Harbor Freight Powder Paint. The craft fur is orange and brown long pile by Darice. Claws are cut from brown-colored Tandy Premium Leather. Everything is held in place by UTC Ultra Thread (140 denier) in rusty brown color.

Red-N-White Leather Swimmer (Second Edition)

This one is my second edition.  Tied on a spike tail leather strip and added some grizzly craft fur behind the weight.  Who knows if it will make a difference?  Regardless, it looks kind of cool to me.

Red-N-White Leather Swimmer

Recently, I've been introduced to tying with weighted EWG-style hooks.  This is my first attempt with a red 3/0 Vicious Vertical Drop Hook weighing 1/8 of an ounce.

Used a Tandy Premium Leather strip for the body and red Ultra Thread (210 denier) to tie. The eyes are a 3/16-inch Spirit River dumbbell in nickel/pearl. Powder painted the weight with white powder from Harbor Freight.

The tail is fluted towards its tip. Hopefully, this will produce a sinusoidal swimming action behind the jig hook. Sinusoidal...I like that word. :D

More to come later on Gamakatsu hooks. ;)

Curly Tails

More for the jig boxes.

These are tied on 1/8-oz. ball head jigs with #2 bronze hooks.  Their leather is quite supple.  I look forward to testing them in the coming weeks.  Will tie a dozen more, then it's off to designing and tying my version of the popular Zoom Brush Hog.

Often Overlooked (Or Snubbed)

So many times I read opinions about jig tying materials on the web where, if a product isn't marketed by a fly or jig tying supplier, the vibe is negative.  If you read these same opinions, do not give in to them without seeing what hobby, craft, and fabric stores offer first.  You just might be surprised.

Here are photos of a couple of feet of craft fur that I purchased at Hancock Fabrics in Carmel, Indiana.  So, where have you found grizzly craft fur either locally (to you) or on the web?

Granted, I haven't field tested either of these and so it remains to be seen if the material is colorfast.  Regardless of the outcome, it's going to be fun doing the tying and testing! :)