Sex Dungeon Recipe?

[Zach Matthews]

Hey guys –

We’re iced in (sort of) here in Georgia, so I’m probably going to have time to tie flies for the first time in forever tomorrow.

[M. Wood]

Charlie’s fly box has a good one- plenty of chances to expand on it.

[keith b]

Funny, but I was doing the same thing Zach…looking for some streamer patterns since I cannot get out of the house today.

[keith b]

http://www.charliesflyboxinc.com/flybox/details.cfm?parentID=151

there are several nice streamers to keep me att eh vise most of the day, in this site.

[Tim Schulz]

Good luck with the flies, guys.  

You know, if you had one of these

and your county had one of these

(http://blog.mlive.com/chronicle/2008/02/plowing28.jpg)

then you’d probably be able to leave your homes. 😉

Cheers!

[keith b]

funny.

[steve yates]

I think Kelly has some very good patterns, but I think his real success stems from the techniques he uses to fish them. I love his Zoo Cougar pattern 😎

[Neal Osborn]

Zach,

I still remember the first time I watched you cast a Sex Dungeon 60 feet across the Hootch 😀

I have been tying articulated patterns a lot lately and plan to do a tutorial on either the Sex Dungeon or the Circus Peanut in the near future.  In the interest of time (of which there is none, aagghh) here a few pointers.

1.  The best tutorial online for the Sex Dungeon is by Charlie Craven http://www.charliesflyboxinc.com/.  His SD pattern is a variation made with rabbit strip and while it is a beautiful pattern, it is a bit heavy to throw on anything less than an 8wt. However, the tutorial is excellent, as usual, and provides a good foundation for the pattern.

2.  I use wire instead of fireline or hard mason mono to make my articulations.  It’s a personal thing; I like it better.  If you use hard mason, go with 20lb or higher based on experience.

3.  Learn the Circus Peanut pattern first!  It is the foundation for the SD.  The only good online tutorial is here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SHdYxFlUX20/.  Make sure to watch part 1 and 2.

4.  MUST SEE!  http://www.theweeklyfly.com/index.php/TheWeeklyFly/2009/08/03/kelly-galloup-s-zoo-cougar-37-59.  This is a superb video by Kelly Gallup online and it lays down the fundamentals for choosing deer hair, trimming the head, and building the body with correct form.  He shows here how to tie the Zoo Cougar, which when combined with the Circus Peanut becomes the Sex Dungeon.

5.  Choose the right hook!  Two choices.  I use TFS 9395 size 4 in front and 6 in back because I prefer straight eye hooks for articulated patterns.  However, TFS 5262 will also work well if you like down eyes.

6.  Get your beads at Michaels.  You want the 6/0 (i.e. large) “E” glass beads in red (or orange) because they have a metal inner ring which prevent breakage and prolongs the life of the fly. Typically three beads are used but lately I have been using only two because it just seems less flashy.

7.  Tie them sparse!  The action comes from the articulation not the materials.  The skinnier they are the better action they have when swung in the current.

8.  Yellow and orange is the killer color scheme on the Hootch for trout.  White is the killer pattern for Stripers.  Green and brown with a flash of orange is good (not killer) for small/large mouth bass in Georgia.

Call me if you have specific questions.

---

A few quick shots from a recent batch of articulated patterns.

Fly Artsy Fartsy

[Tim Angeli]

Neal,

Love the look of that fly box, that’s what I’m talking about!

[keith b]

I have a question for you guys that spin hair into these patterns.

[Tim Schulz]

Keith,

I’ve been using GSP for mine:

It is slippery and it doesn’t stretch, so I don’t know how well it will help you with your problem.  As a rule, I don’t pack the heads too tight on my streamers.

I started using gel-spun polyethylene for one reason:  Kelly Galloup says he does.  Heck, he even uses for it for his dries:

http://www.theweeklyfly.com/index.php/TheWeeklyFly/2009/05/25/kelly-galloup-butch-caddis-12-33

[cole m.]

I use GSP for all of my hair work. Nice fly, Tim.

[steve yates]

Keith,
Yes I use the GSP 100. The number after GSP refers to the number of strands. You can buy 100, 150, and 200 I think. Are you packing the hair or pushing it back towards the previous clump? Get a stout ceramic bobbing for the GSP and either buy or make a hair packing tool. The casing from an old ink pen will do, although on these type of flies I don’t pack the hair too tight. I want it tight enough to push water, but not so tight that it makes the fly want to float.

Nice looking flies Neal and Tim!

[keith b]

Thanks for the input.
I am just pushing the clumps with my fingers.
I tried a dahlberg diver the other night and just felt like the hair was not close enough together when I went to cut it with my razor blade. I felt like the blade was just folding the hair over.

[Tim Schulz]

Keith,

I’ve found that a sharp razor is essential.  I use a Sharpie to mark the blade each time I use it.  When its performance seems ‘sluggish’, and I have a half dozen or more marks, I change to the other side or to a new blade as appropriate.  I always notice the difference after moving to a new blade.

Cheers,
Tim

[Neal Osborn]

Tim, that Sharpie marking trick on the blade is a great idea!

[Mike McKeown]

Paul Fevrier, who ties a freekin mean fly, uses unwaxed, unflavoured dental floss for spinning deer hair… works a charm.

http://www.theflyfisher.co.za/podcasts/1-podcasts/25-paul-fevrier-fishing-from-a-chair

Of all the things I have never done, spinning deer is it.

[jarrad barber]

Keith,

[keith b]

I was using a single sided blade, a spare one I took from a utility knife.
I know it is not the type I have seen in many pictures, but does it really matter as long as it is a razor?

[Eric Weller]

What the other razor blades allow you to do is flex them into the shape you want.

[Author]

Posts