Rabbit-Tail

[Eddie Hernandez]

Hi All-I was just messing around in my workshop and came up with using Rabbit Zonkers in place of Bucktail to tie up this lure, I also attempted to tie up some fluke teasers..
I'm new to tying so any advice and info im all ears!!

best,

eddie

[happyhooker]

Lookin' good.

Frank

[Dominick]

If I were a fish I would attack those.    Dominick

[oldmanjoe]

O you poor soul , you just got sucker into the picking up of bird feathers , tinsel ,wrapping paper, candy wrappers, doll hair, nail polish and all sorts of color threads  .
Rod wrapping and jig , teasers  ,fly tying  .     Welcome to the 'keep you fingers and mind   busy  aspect of fishing ..    joe

[gstours]

Looks good.  Some times after finishing a jig run water 🚿 over them and you will see the jig change into a different life .  They get more realistic.   Less puffy?  A mouse 🐁 tail?   Have fun.   Thanks 🙏

[Eddie Hernandez]

Joe-you are 100% correct, I spent my lunch hour yesterday  at a local feather store!!! They other day i almost stopped to pick up road Kill for the tail!!!! Im all over the place learning to tie, rod wrap, fly tying, very addicting I really enjoy it, if I had to pick a favorite it would have to be working on reels! love bringing them back to life and top performance. Currently working on two TR-200 reels and 1 abu garcia Kalex 50.  complete disassemble and I have them soaking in vinegar/water solution.

best

eddie

[steelfish]

..... if I had to pick a favorite it would have to be working on reels! love bringing them back to life and top performance.  eddie

welcome to the dark side of the hobby, now you will have less time on the water and more time on the reel/rod shop fixing rods.
I really enjoy fixing reels for what you say, but I surely enjoy more RESTORING old rods when they have any sentimental value for the owner.
its really nice to bring back to life old rods that the owners were saving because they belong to their fathers or close relative or rods they bought on their youth and are against throw them away, they bring it to me and without been myself a professional rod builder I take the guides out, sand them, paint them and put new guides and name/logos/etc for them, its really nice to see their faces when you gave them the rod completelly restored and ready to be fished again in honor to his father, etc,etc.

its nice when a person want his rod restored just to have it customized with favorite colors, name, etc but its even better when the rod have any sentimental value and the owner have the chance to use it again for longer time.


Back in the topic, those flies look nice, they just need to be on the water to catch a fish

[jurelometer]

Looks good Eddie.

One problem I have found on rabbit tail flies is that they tend to foul around the hook bend, especially as they get longer.  Jigs also foul with casting.   If you are just drop jigging or trolling,  then fouling is not so much a problem if you are careful starting the drop.

For making casting flies and jigs with rabbit strips,  The rule of thumb is than once the rabbit strip gets longer than the hook, you need an anti-fouling strategy.   Adding glue or similar to stiffen the hide near the hook works for fouling but makes it less durable.   What works best for me:

medium length strips:  Before tying on the rabbit strip,  tie a loop of stiff mono on the shank of the hook with the loop extending back a little bit longer than the gape is wide. 

Long strips:  Before tying on the rabbit strip,  tie a single strand of VERY stiff mono (I use mason 50 lb) on the shank of the hook.  now punch a tiny hole in the strip at least one hook length back  (exact distance depends on the length of the strip).  Push the end of the mono through the hole in the strip, and use a lighter or similar to melt the end of the mono into a round knob that won't slide through the hole.  Make sure to leave a little extra length. Wet rabbit strip can stretch pretty far if a fish grabs the end of it.  I wasted a whole batch of pike bunny flies learning this lesson:)

Jigs only:    A short  skirt of stiff hair over the rabbit can work if it is stiff enough, and if there is enough of it.  Like the hair jigs with the soft plastic tails.   This usually won't work with flies as it requires too much material.

One more note -   Compared to fixed hook jigs, an articulated hook design often ends up with less wiggle action when using a soft tail  ( soft plastics or natural materials such as rabbit hide).    Also there is a sweet spot for length where you get the most wiggle.  A very long tail often ends up tracking straighter.   If using a very heavy head and a short light puffy tail,  the articulated setup can be more wiggly than a fixed hook (Fluke jigs?)

It all depends on what you want in the design.   The articulated jig helps move the hook further back, and the longer strips gives you more of an eel like profile,  which can be more important than a bit of extra wiggle.  There is an very successful USA east coast soft plastic lure called a Ron-Z that has an articulated jig head and an extra long eel-like body.   
I bought a couple just to check them out.   Not very wiggly.   But  lures that are that well loved are usually effective.

-J

[jurelometer]

Looks good.  Some times after finishing a jig run water 🚿 over them and you will see the jig change into a different life .  They get more realistic.   Less puffy?  A mouse 🐁 tail?   Have fun.   Thanks 🙏

Hi Gary,

My experience has been that unless the material is very soft and you are pulling the fly/jig very fast,  the profile underwater when fishing will be pretty close to the same as dry in the air.  Better to dunk the whole thing in water and pull it at the speed you plan to fish it to get an idea if it looks the way you want.  The wet slicked back "air test" can fool you.

[Eddie Hernandez]

Looks good Eddie.

One problem I have found on rabbit tail flies is that they tend to foul around the hook bend, especially as they get longer.  Jigs also foul with casting.   If you are just drop jigging or trolling,  then fouling is not so much a problem if you are careful starting the drop.

For making casting flies and jigs with rabbit strips,  The rule of thumb is than once the rabbit strip gets longer than the hook, you need an anti-fouling strategy.   Adding glue or similar to stiffen the hide near the hook works for fouling but makes it less durable.   What works best for me:

medium length strips:  Before tying on the rabbit strip,  tie a loop of stiff mono on the shank of the hook with the loop extending back a little bit longer than the gape is wide. 

Long strips:  Before tying on the rabbit strip,  tie a single strand of VERY stiff mono (I use mason 50 lb) on the shank of the hook.  now punch a tiny hole in the strip at least one hook length back  (exact distance depends on the length of the strip).  Push the end of the mono through the hole in the strip, and use a lighter or similar to melt the end of the mono into a round knob that won't slide through the hole.  Make sure to leave a little extra length. Wet rabbit strip can stretch pretty far if a fish grabs the end of it.  I wasted a whole batch of pike bunny flies learning this lesson:)

Jigs only:    A short  skirt of stiff hair over the rabbit can work if it is stiff enough, and if there is enough of it.  Like the hair jigs with the soft plastic tails.   This usually won't work with flies as it requires too much material.

One more note -   Compared to fixed hook jigs, an articulated hook design often ends up with less wiggle action when using a soft tail  ( soft plastics or natural materials such as rabbit hide).    Also there is a sweet spot for length where you get the most wiggle.  A very long tail often ends up tracking straighter.   If using a very heavy head and a short light puffy tail,  the articulated setup can be more wiggly than a fixed hook (Fluke jigs?)

It all depends on what you want in the design.   The articulated jig helps move the hook further back, and the longer strips gives you more of an eel like profile,  which can be more important than a bit of extra wiggle.  There is an very successful USA east coast soft plastic lure called a Ron-Z that has an articulated jig head and an extra long eel-like body.   
I bought a couple just to check them out.   Not very wiggly.   But  lures that are that well loved are usually effective.

-J

Jurelometer ,   

thanks for all the great advice!!!!! Made this jig for fluking, the hook is attached with a split ring to give it some movement.

[Eddie Hernandez]

..... if I had to pick a favorite it would have to be working on reels! love bringing them back to life and top performance.  eddie

welcome to the dark side of the hobby, now you will have less time on the water and more time on the reel/rod shop fixing rods.
I really enjoy fixing reels for what you say, but I surely enjoy more RESTORING old rods when they have any sentimental value for the owner.
its really nice to bring back to life old rods that the owners were saving because they belong to their fathers or close relative or rods they bought on their youth and are against throw them away, they bring it to me and without been myself a professional rod builder I take the guides out, sand them, paint them and put new guides and name/logos/etc for them, its really nice to see their faces when you gave them the rod completelly restored and ready to be fished again in honor to his father, etc,etc.

its nice when a person want his rod restored just to have it customized with favorite colors, name, etc but its even better when the rod have any sentimental value and the owner have the chance to use it again for longer time.


Back in the topic, those flies look nice, they just need to be on the water to catch a fish
[/quote

Im sure its very gratifying work restoring those special rods!!!! I have been practicing on my rod wrapping and watching youtube videos im almost done with my baitcasting rod project looking forward to wrapping some thread on it!!!! and posting the pics up.

[jurelometer]

Looks good Eddie.

One problem I have found on rabbit tail flies is that they tend to foul around the hook bend, especially as they get longer.  Jigs also foul with casting.   If you are just drop jigging or trolling,  then fouling is not so much a problem if you are careful starting the drop.

For making casting flies and jigs with rabbit strips,  The rule of thumb is than once the rabbit strip gets longer than the hook, you need an anti-fouling strategy.   Adding glue or similar to stiffen the hide near the hook works for fouling but makes it less durable.   What works best for me:

medium length strips:  Before tying on the rabbit strip,  tie a loop of stiff mono on the shank of the hook with the loop extending back a little bit longer than the gape is wide. 

Long strips:  Before tying on the rabbit strip,  tie a single strand of VERY stiff mono (I use mason 50 lb) on the shank of the hook.  now punch a tiny hole in the strip at least one hook length back  (exact distance depends on the length of the strip).  Push the end of the mono through the hole in the strip, and use a lighter or similar to melt the end of the mono into a round knob that won't slide through the hole.  Make sure to leave a little extra length. Wet rabbit strip can stretch pretty far if a fish grabs the end of it.  I wasted a whole batch of pike bunny flies learning this lesson:)

Jigs only:    A short  skirt of stiff hair over the rabbit can work if it is stiff enough, and if there is enough of it.  Like the hair jigs with the soft plastic tails.   This usually won't work with flies as it requires too much material.

One more note -   Compared to fixed hook jigs, an articulated hook design often ends up with less wiggle action when using a soft tail  ( soft plastics or natural materials such as rabbit hide).    Also there is a sweet spot for length where you get the most wiggle.  A very long tail often ends up tracking straighter.   If using a very heavy head and a short light puffy tail,  the articulated setup can be more wiggly than a fixed hook (Fluke jigs?)

It all depends on what you want in the design.   The articulated jig helps move the hook further back, and the longer strips gives you more of an eel like profile,  which can be more important than a bit of extra wiggle.  There is an very successful USA east coast soft plastic lure called a Ron-Z that has an articulated jig head and an extra long eel-like body.   
I bought a couple just to check them out.   Not very wiggly.   But  lures that are that well loved are usually effective.

-J

Jurelometer ,   

thanks for all the great advice!!!!! Made this jig for fluking, the hook is attached with a split ring to give it some movement.

Ahh,  I just looked up fluking.   Drop fishing, so fouling is not as big a worry.   One trick:  the rabbit strip holds scent well.   rub in some fresh squid, commercial scent, or whatever is supposed to work for fluke.  Most flatfish species are notorious for coming after a lure tail first with lots of short strikes,  so You might want to keep an eye on the length.

Just to be clear,  a longer tail with an articulated jig head (hook attached with split ring) will probably have less wiggle. 

1.  The longer the tail,  the straighter it tracks,   sort of like dragging a length of rope through the water.

2. With a fixed hook jig head, whenever the head moves a little side to side, it  creates a whiplash effect on the tail.  Once the head can move separate from the hook, you lose the whiplash effect.   Sounds like you don't have a choice on an articulated setup since the point of the fluke setup is to keep the lure just off the bottom, and you need a small lure relative to the size of the head.   

If you want to experiment with something different to get extra wiggle, you might consider a 3-12" leader off the fluke head and stick a wiggle enabler like a pulse disk right in front of your rabbit fly.  http://brineflyinnovations.com/  depending on how heavy the hook is and the speed of the current,  you might need to mess a bit with disk size, materials, snelling the fly to stiff mono,  etc. to keep the fly from spinning.   

If regulations  allow,  you can even do a double rig with a standard setup and a trailer wiggler and see which get the bites.   

[Eddie Hernandez]

Extremely informative!!! Thank you!! This the type of feedback I'm looking for!!!