Re: [VFB] IOFF flies...Gary's Steelies

[Garry V. Wiles]

At 06:19 AM 10/28/2005, you wrote:

KIndly let me know more about the variations of sucker spawn and what yarns you use to tie it. Joyce

Joyce,

        The basic Sucker Spawn (SS) as I was taught, was on a 3906 hook with a body of angora yarn with matching thread.  The idea behind it was to untwist or unwind the three strands that made the yarn.  Take these three strands and make the loops that make the sucker spawn.  Simple variations start with adding a beadhead of some sort, I like a shiny brass one, and it can help getting the fly down.  Tails can be made of krystal flash, marabou, or yarn.  The guide that my club had in earlier this year, told me that by adding a red tail to his SS's, he's increased his hookups.
        OK, back to the main body.  Like I said earlier, it's the angora yarn that high-school chickies used to wrap around their boyfriends bulky rings to make them fit their little fingers.  Now this stuff is 'expensive' per skein at your craft store, usually $8-$10/skein and you don't get a big skein either.  To make them even easier on the budget, I've taken to finding 3 strand baby yarn at the craft store as well, for less than a buck, you get a lot more yarn and a lot more colors.  The white baby yarn is probably my favorite of the baby yarns.  Using the same technique, but switching to sparkle braid, you're able to turn that SS into a Crystal Meth.  Other body substitutions are Micro-Glo Bug yarn -- use three strands like you would with angora.  A local shop also uses about a half to 1/3 strand of regular glo-bug yarn, theirs look neat, but I haven't tried them like that yet.
        When you tie up a SS and are 1/2 way through, add a piece of red yarn and you have a blood dot.  You could also use a marker and make your dot and still get a similar effect.   Mix two colors and they'll call that 'scrambled eggs' .  I've also seen one with two strands of angora/yarn and one strand of sparkle braid, I don't know what that one was called.  I've seen another where estaz is palmered through the loops as well for a sparkle spawn.  I think that would be cool especially if you used different colors.  I'lve also seen an 'uber spawn' tied where you took a strand of Micro-glo bug yarn and wrapped a large body first in an orange-ish type color and used a white or cream colored yarn for the loops.  It's supposed to give that yolk in white look, or so the theory was anyway.  Alot of the totally white SS's I tie usually have an off-colored thread, again, for that yolk in white look, the essence of life I guess.  I'll use red or orange. 
        With all that said, color selection is last.  Feel free to mix these up as you like, and there will be some that seem to go better together than not, but here are my colors: cream/creme, white, hot/baby pink, chartreuse, orange.  Those are the 'man' colors - some of these are listed as 'oregon cheese' in the fly fishing catalogues, so go from there.  Joanne Fabrics doesn't have 'oregon cheese' but has several different shades of orange to choose from.  Happy Hunting!!!

        Any questions?

-->Garry