SPLIT TAIL
.
Tied by
Daniel Seaman
PADDLE TAIL
replacing the glass. Almost any fishy colored
thread can have a Lucent tungsten bead to
match. Two of my favorites include the coffee
and burnt orange, but they all have a place in
the box. Hook selection for this fly can range
from straight to curved, but the hook gap
must be considered before expecting the fly to
perform the way it should. I originally tied this
on the TMC 2488, like I do everything else, but
found that the hook gap could be overrun by
the bead in smaller sizes. Field testing proved a
ton of hook-ups, but I wasn’t pleased with the
amount of fish being unbuttoned during the
struggle. The clear choice from there was the
TMC 2499SPBL. Despite the fact that this hook
is technically barbless, the ‘shovel’ like barb has
a holding property that allows fish and dropper
rigs to remain on the hook. I’ve never had a
problem with either coming undone. Other
than being super sticky as well, this hook has
enough gap to hold super huge fish and has
become my first choice when reaching into the
hook bins. The two downsides to this hook are
the expense and the fact it’s only made down
to a size 18, it seems you pay a premium for all
those features.”
However, when I asked Shea recently about this
fly, he said he has went to another hook that he
is much happier with. Here is what he said.
“The Tiemco JB01 is the new hook of choice for
me, especially with clients. It's got a barb and is
seriously an awesome hook. It changes the frame
of the fly, it's a great shaped hook for Baetis and
midge nymphs and has a gap that's giant and
able to hold on to some really big fish. Umpqua is
currently putting that into motion with the latest
production run, so I'll be expecting samples from
them soon. Other than that, I'm just been playing
around with color combos. Love them all, but the
purple one holds a major presence in my box
these days, and olive and chartreuse with a red
bead kills it!”