Hank Patterson's Holiday Extravaganza!

Because Hank loves us so much, he did this for us!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!!  

I hope you wake to find your stocking filled with leaders, tippet, Thingamabobbers, TMC hooks, Dr. Slick scissors and much more.  

Thank you all for taking the time to read and look at this blog.  I appreciate it. 

I hope this upcoming year is better than the last.  

Feliz Navidad!

Hoppy Holidays!

Happy Hopper Days from the Holiday Hopper, I mean the Hollywood Hopper!  

Tying Demo, 12/15/12

Juan's Hollywood Hopper

A new hopper pattern for you for you to start tying to be ready in August.  This pattern is a lower riding, more realistic pattern than the Hopper Juan.  While it may look complicated, after trying it a few times, it all comes together.  The hardest part is getting all the materials together.  A recent change has me using a Chernobyl taper cutter to get a more precise body cut, otherwise everything else is the same.
Pull out the foam and Super 77, order some eyes and legs and get started.

Hopper Juan's Gift Guide

Hey fellas.  Christmas is just  a couple of weeks away and Hopper Juan is here to help you out.  Take a look at some gift ideas below and see if any of them are desired and if so, just e-mail this page link to your wife, girlfriend, boyfriend, brother, mother, sister-in-law, rich uncle or Santa Clause and let them know what item you like.  All the items here are less than $100.00.   If you want to see specific items listed here, just shoot me an e-mail (click here) and I will get them listed.  

Simms Windstopper Foldover Mitts.
If you fish in the Winter, why not have the best?
$59.95

Simms Boot Sock/Liner Combo
This will make anyone have happy feet.
$19.95

Montana Fly Company Aluminum Fly Box
Maddox "Snack"
$34.99

MFC Water Bottle
Sylvester's Rainbow Reflection
$24.99

Montana Fly Company Aluminum Fly Box
Sundell's Rainbow Skin
$34.99

MFC iPhone 4 cover
Udesen's Salmonfly
$29.99

Montana Fly Company Aluminum Fly Box
Udesen's "Hopper" Box
$34.99

Nite Ize S-Biners
These are awesome to have on your vest, pack or lanyard!  You can hang lots of crap on them.
Various sizes and colors for less than $5.00

Orvis, Clearwater Large Arbor Reel
$79.00

Morning Star Lanyards
A great alternative to vests and packs.
$31.95

Simms Headwaters Pro Waist Pack
$99.95

Trout Skin Nippers from Orvis
A great "must have item" for the vest, pack or lanyard.
$15.95

Li'l Guppie Multi Tool from Orvis
Why not carry around one of these?
$27.99

C & F Fly Boxes
These are the best boxes to your your flies.  Sizes and prices vary.

C & F 3 in 1 Clipper/Threader
This is one of the finest Nippers I have ever used.  It's great!
$21.95

Sage ONE v. Orvis Helios 2

As most of you may have figured out already, I am a fan of fly rods.  I love to compare and see what others think about different rods.  In all this study and self data collection, I have come to one conclusion:  If you ask 10 guys what they think of a certain rod, you will get 13 answers!

Here is a great comparison of two great rods, the new Orvis Helios 2 and the established Sage One.   I think both are great rods, but I would like to see where the Hardy Zenith would rank in this particular comparison.  I wouldn't be surprised to see it thought of as a better all around rod than either one of them.  I have only spent only 2 minutes with the ONE on the water and zero time with the H2.  I hope to get both the Hardy Zenith and the H2 out together soon to see what I think.  I'll let you know.
Check out the link HERE!

Thanks to Headhunters for taking the time to do this.
EDIT:  The link is gone as Headhunters lost all their data this summer.  

Happy Friday!

Cream of the Crop

Which will be the best?  I have a feeling that neither one will be better than the other.  One may cast better in close, one may have some "extra" kick on the long shots, but both of these rods are at the top of the list.  That list has 3 rods on it and two are in the picture above.  It's going to be fun fishing this winter and summer.

MFC River Camo goodies.

Montana Fly Company has been cranking out new items every year and the new stuff this year is great.  I just ordered some new goodies from their River Camo line up.  If you haven't looked at what they offer, make sure to check out their web site and see what else they have.  Make sure to get those wish list over to mama so maybe you got a chance at getting something under the Christmas tree.   That is, only if you have been a good little fly fishing boy.  

Maddox's "Snack" Aluminium Fly Box

Udesen's Hopper Fly Box

Udesen's Hopper Fly Box Waterbottle

Tungsten Carbide Nippers-"Snack"

This box is awesome!  

And this one is too!  

Just like the fly box, this one is one of my favorite  series.

The Lucent Prince Nymph

The Lucent Prince Nymph is another family member of the great Prince Nymph family.  By replacing the body material with MFC Micro Lucent Chenille, you can create many different colors to match the bugs you require.  MFC Lucent Chenille is a micro sized chenille perfect for tying caddis larva and even using it as a replacement for standard peacock herl.  The purple is a great looking color and makes a great looking purple Prince Nymph.  Give it a try and see what you think.

Hook:  MTC or TMC 1 XL hook #14-18

Thread:  MFC 8/0 or 6/0

Bead:  #14=7/64" #16 & #18=3/32"

Weight:  0.15 lead or lead free wire

Tails:  Brown goose biots, forked

Body:  MFC Micro Lucent Chenille, Color of choice

Thorax:  Ice Dub or similar

Hackle:  Brown Hen neck

Wings:  White goose biots, forked

The Sparkle Braid Prince

The Prince Nymph is one of my all time favorites.  I love the traditional bead head pattern, but over the years, there have been may variations of the standard Prince.  It's not that the fish have seen it too many times, it's just as fly tiers, we can't leave shit alone!  Today's post is going to be one that I tie.  I call it the Sparkle Braid Prince.  I use the UTC Sparkle Braid to create the body and I can change it to different colors as needed.  Some of the fun with these patterns are that we can tie different colors to see if they work and usually they work just great.  Don't be afraid to tie some different colors for those fish who have seen it al.

Hook:  MTC or TMC 1 XL hook #14-18
Thread:  MFC 8/0 or 6/0
Bead:  #14=7/64" #16 & #18=3/32"
Weight:  0.15 lead or lead free wire
Tails:  Brown goose biots, forked
Body:  UTC Sparkle Braid, Color of choice, Midge size
Thorax:  Ice Dub or similar
Hackle:  Brown Hen neck
Wings:  White goose biots, forked

The Sparkle Braid Prince

Here is a video tutorial :