Nothing To See Here Folks

Just a quick post today to share another Fire Tiger color combo with you all.  This one is a streamer that I have really enjoyed tying as of late.  It will be making its way across the pond as soon as I can finish a long overdue project.  Anyways, if you would like to read about the materials and the tying of this fly, you can find it here.

Another Vintage Reel For The Collection

It's true, I not only collect vintage fly rods but I am also now collecting vintage reels.  If we can, let's keep that a secret between you and I please.  Melissa doesn't need to know about another thing I am collecting.  I've been keeping a list of reels I would like to add to my collection on my phone in the Notes.  Getting old stinks and this helps aid in my recollection of what I would like.

Recently, I was able to score a Berkley 520 Deluxe Single Action reel.  The Berkley 510 was on my list but this particular one caught my eye.  This reel was made with parts from Japan but assembled in the United States.  I was watching this item for a while on eBay.  It first went on sale at 25% off.  Within a week it was half off and I immediately hit the Buy It Now button.  The reel appeared to have been never used or at the very least lightly used.  It came with the original box and paperwork.  For less than $18 I felt as though I could not pass it up.

Upon receiving it, it certainly lived up to my expectations.  The box is beaten up, which I knew going into the purchase.  The outside of the box contains a price tag that reads Gibson's $5.97.  I, naturally, googled the name and learned that Gibson's was a department chain store company that seemed to be throughout the Midwest during the 60's, 70's and into the 80's.  I believe this reel dates around the late 60's or early 70's.  Disappointingly, I could not locate any year of manufacture or year of copyright on the box.  Inside the box, I found four different pieces of paperwork.  They are as follows: Reel Parts Catalog, Fishing Tips, a Berkley guarantee, and Tying Knots with Trilene. All of these are in really good condition without any torn or missing pages.

The reel looks like it just left the factory.  The decal is bright and clean on the back of the reel proudly showing the Berkley name in the red heart and the model number, 520.  A turn of the reel produced that fantastic click sound we all know and love.  Well, some of us anyways.  It has very little surface wear on it.

I am very pleased with this purchase which isn't what always happens.  While I am a collector of sorts, I also believe in still using these items.  I am hoping to pair this reel with one of my vintage 5wt rods such as a Cortland Pro Crest or Cortland FR-2000 that I use on a regular basis.  I will, as always, be keeping my eye out for more deals like this one.

Fire Tiger Foam Diver

Just a quick post on a foam diver color combo I did.  I'm a big fan of the Fire Tiger color combo.  We have been doing foam divers for an order.  Love them.  Fished them twice this year with spectacular results.  These flies will be available when we eventually make it through our backlog.  Anyways, here is the Fire Tiger Diver color combo:

Hook: Gamakatsu B10S size 2
Thread: Flat waxed nylon
Tail: 20 pound mono loop
Tail: Hareline Dubbin Inc Micro Rabbit in Orange
Tail: Copper Flashabou
Marabou: Hareline Dubbin Inc Hot Orange
Palmer Chenille: Black
Marabou: Hareline Dubbin Inc Chartreuse
Eyes: Hareline 3/16" Oval Pupil 3D eyes Orange/Black Pupil
Finish it off with Loon Outdoors UV Clear Fly Finish flow
Dog hair not included.....golden retriever/yellow lab mix must be purchased separately

Some Streamer Love

I've been doing some streamer tying as of late.  Working on stuff for largemouth.  I have come up with a few color combos that I feel will work quite nicely.  There really isn't much to this fly.  It is tied on a size 6 Mustad R73-9671 hook.  I have run a mono loop of 20 pound test fishing line off the back of the hook.  Next up, I used mirco rabbit strips since it is a size 6.  I did some with and some without Krystal flash.  I then added layers of marabou and Palmer chenille as I made my way up to the eye of the hook.  Last, but not least, I added in a small amount of red Ice Fur for a throat.  After measuring, I added a Fish Skull to the front of the fly.  Tie in a thread dam in front of the Fish Skull and seal it with some Loon Outdoors UV Clear Fly Finish Flow and you are ready for action.  A short water test showed that the materials compress nicely.  I'm excited about these guys and I can't wait to see what people catch with them.  I am hoping the largemouth tear them up but they are also small enough for my local smallies.  Going to be good times!

Bass Fishing in November???

Bass fishing in November?  Who would have ever thought it?  Not I, that's for sure.  Well, I did manage to do some bass fishing just last week.  Here in Maryland it was in the low 70's. Hard to believe that we had such nice weather so late in the season.  I did not want to waste an opportunity so I decided to see if a friend of mine would let me have access to his pond for a few hours.  I have had the chance to fish this pond before with great results.  After a few texts were exchanged, I headed out with my friend Greg.

Upon arrival, Greg and I could see that the pond appeared to be muddy and stained from a distance.  I was worried about fishing it, so I walked down to check it out.  This is the sight that I was met with:

The water was definitely up, muddy and covered with pine needles and leaves.  Needless to say, I was not pleased.  After a quick discussion, Greg and I decided to give it a try.  We figured why not given the warm sun and beautiful weather we were having.  I strung up the Cabela's CGR 7'6" 7/8 and headed down to the pond.  As a side note, I have been using the CGR 7/8 for a while now and I love it.  I have been pairing it with a Waterworks-Lamson Konic II reel spooled with RIO Products Smallmouth 7wt line.  I like to use braided leaders and Scientific Anglers Freshwater tippet in various sizes when I am chasing largemouth.  This is just my setup and what I enjoy using at this point. Anyways, we headed down to the pond and started slinging some bugs.  I chose a size 10 black masked bugger.  I enjoy tying these flies and they seem to be loved by the fish.  For those interested, you can find tying instructions for them here.  

The fishing was slow going with a lot of pine needles and leaves being dragged in with the fly.  In an effort to get a good strip without carrying along debris, I would try and pick out lanes of traffic that I could strip the fly through.  This seemed to work in eliminating some of the debris but not totally. Regardless, after a while the stars aligned and I was able to connect with a fish.  Immediately, I knew it was a good one.  The line went taught and within seconds the fish went airborne.  The fight was on. The largemouth would jump another three times and make several attempts to hide in various submerged logs before I was able to land it.  While not particularly long in length, it made up for it in girth.  It was clearly a fish that was packing on the pounds in an effort to weather the coming winter season.  

Given my initial success, we decided to stay around and fish a while.  Several hours later, I managed to land another small bass.  That was it.  Two fish in three and a half hours.  I guess it could have been worse...I could have been Greg.  He didn't catch a thing all day.  For me though, it was a great time.  I got out of the house, enjoyed some gorgeous weather and the company of a good friend.  I can't ask for more than that.

 

Wright and McGill Sunrise Rod

One thing I really enjoy is discussing vintage fiberglass rods with other glass enthusiasts.  I regularly chat with a small group of people about listings on eBay and Craigslist or just what they have been using.  Its always nice to see what other people are collecting.  So, one of the guys I chat with on a regular basis had been looking for a Cortland rod in a specific length and weight.  I happened to also be looking for a Cortland FR 2000 8 foot 6/7.  As luck would have it, two Cortland rods popped up on eBay in a lot.  One of them was a 7 and 1/2 foot Pro Crest that I already had but the other one I was the Cortland FR 2000 I had been searching for.  While watching the lot, I had an epiphany. Why don't we split the lot?  Sounded like a great idea to me.  However, my friend one-upped me by offering a trade.  I would buy the lot of Cortlands and he would trade me a Wright and McGill Sunrise rod from the 50s with an original tube, sans end cap.  This rod listed for a whooping $14.95 in the 50s and is rated for 5/6 line.  It sounded like a great trade to me so I went ahead and purchased the lot of Cortland rods.  Upon receiving them, I shipped his Cortland out to him and he sent me the Wright and McGill.  I must say that I was pleasantly surprised at the Sunrise once I got it.  At 7 and 1/2 feet this rod is the perfect length for most of the fishing that I do, be it cold or warm water.  The rod is tobacco in color and it has yellow and green wraps.  The tube itself is a little banged up but I am happy to have it since it is an original.  The rod shows minimal wear and the wraps are nice and tight.  My understanding is that it works well with a DT5 or a WF6.  I am really looking forward to fishing this for panfish and smallies in the future.  I am happy to add this guy to collection and I can't wait to put a bend in it.  Many thanks to my friend for coming up with the brilliant idea to trade rods.  Dig it!

So I Went To The Fly Shop Last Week

and I came home with a few things......

All were "needed" items.  Do I have a problem?  I'm not sure.  

I Love Glass This Much

Just a quick post today about my awesome mail day.  I'm sure it won't come as a shock to anyone that I love fiberglass rods.  I made the switch to glass about three years ago.  Love it.  For me its a perfect fit because I enjoy the vintage glass as much if not more than the newer glass rods.  I really do love hunting for these older rods and finding a bargain.  Anyways, I got another box of swag from Cameron over at TFM.  I'm happy to be rocking some of the new click and pawl stickers.  I do love a good click and pawl reel.  It's even better when it's paired with a vintage rod.

Shakespeare Bass Rod

During the 1950s, Shakespeare developed a Wonderod deluxe fly rod that was specifically for bass. This rod was the model 1280B.  It was a two piece, 7'9" rod that weighed in at a little over 5 ounces.  The line weight is a little unclear as some say 7 and others say 9. Clearly a lawn casting would be in order to nail down the correct line weight.  Interestingly enough, they also produced a trout model during the same time frame that weighed an ounce and a half lighter.

As always, while trolling that infamous auction site that might lead to my divorce, I stumbled across one of the bass models.  It did not have the tube or rod bag but it appeared as though it had minimal use.  The date code on the reel seat indicated a 1952 date of manufacture.  The wraps appeared tight and the decal was not only intact but correct for the year of manufacture.  Given the age of the rod and the condition, I hit the Buy It Now button.  Upon receiving the rod, I was even more impressed with it.  I still haven't had a chance to cast it but it is a real beauty.  It is a white rod with spiral markings, red and green wraps, green reel seat with silver hoods.  The cork hasn't been overly soiled or destroyed.  A fascinating little tidbit about this rod is that the reel seat is spring loaded at the end cap.  Pulling it away from the rod allows you to place the reel on the seat.  Took a while to figure that one out.  When I finally did, I felt like a tool. Overall this rod is a fine example of an early 50's Shakespeare Howald Wonderod fiberglass fly rod. I am certainly looking forward to putting a bend in it.

Rainy's DINKS Panfish Diver Bodies

Quite a while ago, we picked up a few packages of the Rainy's DINKS foam diver bodies.  These come in four different colors and, according to the Rainy's site, should be tied on a size 10 Mustad 3366 hook.  For around six dollars you get six bodies to a package.  Working on another special order, we put a few of these together in color combos that are similar to the poppers we sell.

A few pros and cons about these divers.  First up, the cons.  I do not believe they will work on a size 10 Mustad 3366 hook without modification to the underside of the body.  By modification I mean excessive sanding.  I simply do not see how, if you use the recommended hook, you would ensure a proper hook set given the size of the gap between the body itself and the point of the hook.  The below photo should illustrate what I mean.  This diver was tied on a size 8 Mustad 3366 hook.

If you use the size 10 Mustad 3366 hook, the body itself takes up the entire shank of the hook and sits directly over the point of the hook.  The problem remains... making sure a proper hook set can be achieved. You could sand down the underside of the foam body but I don't see why you would want to.  We found that by turning the body around and making it a popper rather than a diver, you open up the gap between the hook point and the body of the hook.  We also switched the hook from a Mustad 3366 to a Gamakatsu B10S stinger hook in sizes 6 and 8.  This hook has a wider gap which will aid in a proper hook set.  Using a larger hook does take away from the whole idea of these being marketed for panfish, though.  Here are two photos showing what the diver looks like on a size 10 Mustad 3366 hook.

Another con, for me and only me, is that there isn't a lot of creativity involved in using these foam diver heads.  We enjoy painting our poppers.  When painting poppers, the sky is the limit in what color combos you can create either through stippling.  These guys currently only come in four different colors which are black, white, yellow and chartreuse.  I would also love to see an olive, orange, blue, red, and cinnamon colored head.  I think that would open up the creativity a bit. 

Pro....these bodies are easy and fast to tie with.  Start to finish, one can make a popper in under five minutes.  A quick and easy fix to filling those gaps in your warm water fly box at the beginning of the season.  The only thing you need to wait for is the glue to dry.  We used marabou for the tails, hackle and round rubber legs.  If you are going to go with a size 8 hook, we would recommend not using the round rubber legs.  There really isn't enough space to add legs if you are using a tail and hackle.  This could be solved by threading the legs through the body but we do not like to do this. As for the eyes, we found that the Montana Fly Company 3mm eyes looked the best on them.  This, of course, is really up to the individual tyer.  Add bigger or smaller eyes depending on your preference.   

Overall, we enjoyed using these and I look forward to fishing them when I can.  If you are looking for a quick, down and dirty popper to make, give these little guys a try.