Deer Hair Sculptures
E-mail megbjgg@gmail.com
I have been asked to document the dimensions of the weed guard and tailing loop for the Mustad C52S size 2/0 and Tiemco 8089 size 2 hooks. The 20 lb Hard Mason weed guard is 4 7/8 inches and the tailing loop is 2 inches. Please note where the weed guard is tied in on the hook. The Fuzzy Mouse and Fuzzy Perch Slider below utilize the weed guard shown.
I have been working on a tool set made with deer and reindeer antlers They include a half hitch tool, a bodkin, and a double weed guard tool.
K&K FLYFISHERS ON A SATURDAY MORNING.
"THE EYES HAVE IT." The bugs in the pictures below are examples of what you can do after vewing both videos. They show different eyes tied in different sections of the bugs. In the two pictures on the left, the first bug on the left, has one set of eyes, the next two have two sets of eyes, the last two have multiple eyes in a row using two different techniques. Also the rabbit strips on 4 of the 5 bugs have been trimmed to imitate frog legs. Note the frog feet. The picture on the right are one of a kind experiments.
Examples of recently mounted flies that were, or will be, auctioned for various groups such as PHWFF.
The Popper below is entitled "BLINK" in memory of Jerimiah Denton. Vietnam POW Hanoi Hilton. Passed away 3/28/14.
- …. .- -. -.- -.-- … ..- !!! (THANK YOU).
He blinked the word TORTURE in morse code in a controlled interview with his north Vietnamese captors so the U S military would know the hostages were being tortured. That is the reason for BLINK! He put his life at risk for his fellow prisoners.
FLY TYING SCHEDULE 2020.
Some venues are canceled due to Covid 19 concerns
Doing a demonstration for PHWFF in KC 3/10/2020
Sow Bug Mountain Home, Arkansas Thursday Friday and Saturday 3/26, 3/27, 3/28 2020.
Tri Lakes in Clinton, Missouri S
Branson, Missouri. Missouri Trout Fishers to be determined.
I may be doing a special class at this one!
I will be working with PHWFF and Wounded Warriors in 2019.
I will continue to update as the year progresses.
This is my "Frog leg" weed guard tied on a Mustad C52S size 2/0 or Tiemco 8089 size 2 hook. It is not as easy to tie as the tailing loop, but the legs stay separated and they do look like Frog Legs when the bug is fished. They really do work! See " THE EYES HAVE IT " bugs above!
I had a need to stabilize my Wapsi Fly Tyers Z-Ment on the tying table so I could use it like head cement. The best bases are the antler and the hard plastic hook box. You can even make one from the packaging bubble.
HEART OF A VETERAN is displayed in a 4 inch dome and auctioned at PHWFF events.
CFR CLOWN FISH is displayed in a 4 inch dome and was auctioned at the IFFF in Bend, Oregon. It has added verbiage. "WE ARE NOT CLOWNING AROUND WE WANT A CURE!"
“Mike’s Heart of a Veteran”
Now you know why it is true
A Veteran does bleed Red White and Blue.
For Sacrifices they have made
They only ask one thing from thee,
“Remember me, Remember me”
Mike George
LET ME TAKE YOU TO THE NEXT LEVEL WITH YOUR DEER HAIR TYING BY SHOWING YOU HOW TO ADD LINES, DOTS, SPOTS, AND EYES.
TO ORDER "THE NEXT LEVEL" VIDEO USE THIS BUTTON. IT IS RECOMMENDED THAT YOU VIEW THE FIRST VIDEO BEFORE VIEWING "THE NEXT LEVEL" AS TECHNIQUES DEMONSTRATED IN DETAIL WILL NOT BE REVISITED IN THIS VIDEO.
The song "Dante’s Prayer" was written to describe Dante’s Journey through the 9 circles of Hell in “Dante’s Inferno”. After his journey Dante is pleading with God to: “Please Remember me, Please Remember Me.”
I believe all veterans have experienced their own journey through Dante's 9 circles of Hell and in my verse they are asking their God to: “Please Remember Me, Remember Me."
CAPTAIN WHITE
Captain White is a United States Air Force F105 Pilot who flew missions out of Tahkli RTAFB. He went down November 24, 1969 in Laos flying support missions for a "secret war". He is still listed as MIA. He is among the nearly 600 Americans who disappeared in Laos. "Captain White" is tied in his name to honor those still Missing in Action from the Vietnam War.
I was asked to tie my version of the water color image
below by David Ruimveld.
You will see my version on the cork stopper in the foreground.
I modified the fly and tied it in Red White and Blue
and named it "Captain White"
CAPTAIN WHITE
Mike's Improved Shrimp, the 2009 MUSTAD SCANDINAVIAN OPEN gold medal winner, is now on display at the HISTORY OF FISHING MUSEUM 225 N Wildwood Dr. Branson, Missouri 65616 (417) 239-3474 .
HISTORY OF FISHING MUSEUM .ORG
Half Bass
Clown Fish Gone Bad
Black Crappie
Mike's Sting Ray
A BLAST FROM THE PAST, FILE DATED 2007
THIS PHOTO GOT MORE ATTENTION THAN MOST OF MY OTHER FACEBOOK POSTS LAST YEAR. MUST BE THE NEW PENCIL POPPER DESIGN?????
MUDDLER MINNOW
TIED ON A CATFISH BAIT HOOK. IT HAD TO BE STRAIGHTENED.
BOUTONNIERS FOR MY NIECE'S WEDDING. TIED 12 OF THEM. THIS WAS A FUN DIVERSION
EXAMPLES OF MOUNTED FLIES THAT ARE FOR SALE
To see other patriotic flies please see below and also go to Doug Oatman"s Page
DEERHAIR QUALITIES FOR STACKING OR SPINNING
Deer hair is not “hollow”; it has tiny air cells that gives the bulk or body to each hair. When spinning or stacking the hair with the appropriate thread you are essentially collapsing the air cells when you tighten the thread or pull it down to the hook shaft. This causes bulky hair shaft to stand up on each side of the thread. The more air cells (or bulk) to each individual hair the more it collapses from the thread and causes the rest of the hair shaft to stand up. The more air cells in each hair the more bulk you have with which to build the fly.
What I look for is hair that has bulk or body to each individual hair. Typically the tips of the hair have no body or bulk and the hair closest to the skin has the most body or bulk. Consequently I look for long hair that has bulk (lots of air cells) and short tips (no air cells). Typically I have found the best hair comes from the rump of the deer. It is longest and has the most body or bulk to each hair. Sometimes the very end of the strip will still have the white rump hair. This hair typically also has the most “underfur”. The underfur protects the animal from moisture in the form of rain or snow, and traps air to add to warmth. It has to be combed out or removed as it is harder than the hair shaft and dulls the razor blade faster. It also makes it more difficult to use a hair stacker or tip evener. It is always best to remove the underfur. I use a “dog shiner” brush some people use a comb.
Some tiers prefer “belly hair”. It protects the belly of the deer when the animal is lying down. It does not need the underfur to help fend off rain or snow. It is thicker than body hair and does have bulk to insulate the body form the ground when sleeping, without the pesky
underfur. These qualities make it desirable to a lot of tyers. The drawback is typically it is shorter and can have lots of curved areas that form around the leg areas. The other advantage of Belly hair is “if you want to dye bright you must dye white.”
Black hair can have its own unique problem in that it sometimes must be died dark red or brown before it is dyed black this leaves salt residue in the hair that can make it seem slick or in some cases brittle. Dark Raspberry was also died twice and typically it is slick.
My opinion only but I think global warming, and extended hunting seasons, have an effect on the quality of deer hair.
