2007 Fishing Minnesota Fly Swap

The Fly Fishing forum on Fishing Minnesota is hosting a fly swap this spring. There were a dozen participants who entered, so there will be 11 different flies arriving in my mailbox at the beginning of April. There is a pretty eclectic mix of fly fishers on the message board, so the results should be interesting. There will be flies of all types, including flies for trout, warmwater species, and maybe even a saltwater pattern or two. Sounds like fun.
The due date for the flies to be received by the swapmeister is the end of March. I finally got around to tying the dozen flies last night after taking a bit of time figuring out what pattern I wanted to tie. I wanted to pick a fly that reflected the style of fishing that I do, as well as choose something that all swap participants would be able to use. Not everyone uses a 9 weight rod, so I decided on a size 6 streamer, that even someone using a 6 weight should be able to use.

Here’s the recipe:

"Mini-Me Reynolds"
hook: #6 Cabelas Model 40,4X Long Streamer Hook (Mustad equivalent: 9674)eyes: 3/16" brass hourglass eyes, nickel; black paint pen/sharpietail: white rabbit strip, 2"; 4-5 strands pearl krystal flash; 2 strands gold krystal flash.body: red crosscut rabbit, 2”thread: Danville 3/0 pre-waxed monocord white; UNI-thread 4mm thin clear monocement: Loon clear head; Hard as Nails, “diamonds” color




Tie in the white thread and wrap a base along the hook shank to the hook bend and back to the eye. Tie in the hourglass eye about ¼ of the way back form the eye (or about 3 eye lengths) using a figure eight pattern. Whip finish and tie off. Cement the thread wraps around the eye using the Loon clear head; let dry.
Tie in the clear mono thread. Trim about a ¼ inch of hair off from the tip of the white rabbit strip. Tie in the strip about a third of the way up from the hook bend, back to just above the hook bend. Find the middle of the strands krystal flash, and tie in at the base of the tail. Bend the strands back along the other side of the hook shank and wrap. Whip finish. Tie in the crosscut rabbit strip at the base of the tail, again trimming the ¼ inch of hair off from the tip. Make sure the hairs are facing the direction of the hook bend. Wrap the thread forward, towards the eye. Palmer the crosscut strip forward to the eye. Whip finish and tie off. Coat the thread wraps around the eye with the Hard as Nails. Paint in an eye with paint pen. Dry
This fly is a miniature version of Barry Reynold’s pike fly. While originally designed for pike, this fly will also catch bass, panfish, walleye, and big trout. This fly can be fished aggressively, as well as like a traditional streamer. The rabbit will give this fly a lot of movement in the water, and the krystal flash should give off just enough flash as to not spook wary fish. Using a Duncan loop, or other loop knot, to attach to the fly will increase movement and help add realism to the fly.