Hooks for Large Poppers

[Jack_Lives_Here]

Want to tie some big poppers for throwing around at queenies and trevs when I hit Hinchinbrook in Sept. Visited a few tackle shops yesterday and only managed to confuse myself.
Is it best to use long shank hooks for these flies ???? and brands and types preferred.

[Scott_Mitchell]

Jack:I have been making up a heap for my trip to the Rowlies in September . I have gone away from building them on the actual hook - rather making the bodies up out of high density foam (Like thongs ) and drilling a whole threw the middle which allows me to then just thread them onto the shock leader.

I then use Trey Combs SL12 s Gamakatsu hooks in 4/0 and 6/0 with just some flash whipped on them , to be tied or crimped onto the end behind the body.

This allows me to use large popper bodies , whilst still maintaining a good strong hook with splenty of gape - for better hook penetration and hooking

Great system and easy to make 8)

Regards Scotto

[Jack_Lives_Here]

Hey top idea Scott. Saves me buying extra hooks. I've been making up some big gold bomber flies on some of those pattern hooks for the barra and jacks.

[Maxg]

Beats me why people want to tie up huge poppers for queenies, they don't grow that big and will take anything flopping around on the surface, the faster the better. Get some Flexo, believe me Flexo is best, its light soft and beats the hell out of anything else. Next best is Gurglers.
I'm dammed if I know why one just cannot get Flexo in tackle shops, the props must be nuts, or bloody dills Max.

[Scott_Mitchell]

Max:The fly pictured is actualy using Eze Body and is coated with softex/Soft dip. Eze body is simular to the product your talking about - but only comes in a Large size - which is alright up to say 2/0.

For larger flies we have Flex-cord which will actually expand to 1 1/2" inches and cover the outside of hard body poppers - making mylar poppers easy to make.You could use this Flex-cord to do the same job in making larger diametre poppers and coat them again in soft dip or softex.

This style does work rather well - although I still preffer to have an exposed hook trailing

Regards Scotto

[Jack_Lives_Here]

Where do I get "Flexo from Max?? Don't agree with you comment on them not growing big. Any fish of 10kg +, regular around Hinchinbrook and the Islands, is going to give you a work out ANY gear, whether it be fly or spin.

[Maxg]

Scott the fly in the pic IS NOT EZ BODY BRAID, It is Flexo by TechFlex, and the pic comes from a Softex ad featuring Flexo. So in that regard, bite your bum mate. I think the difference in poppers, one style over the other is merely a percieved thing, and how do you figure out which is best. I fished with poppers for 50 days, started with 70 of the hard bodied things, for queenfish off the Carnarvon jetty, ended up with 5 Swfroa records and lost 66 poppers to queenfish and trevvors. I have a pretty fair idea how poppers work and the best are soft bodied, hands down, and they are better with a long shank hook. Today its Flexo or gurglers, all else is not work playing with.. Max

[Maxg]

Jack, TechFlex Aust in sydney. They have a web site. On queenfish, you can catch the biggest that was ever spawned on a 10 weight and 12lb tippet, they are exotic but clean, just run and jump, I got one 16.5lb on 6lb and that was on old time 12# gear, so they aren't disasters. And the very first queenfish I hooked, I lost, but it was at least 18lb and took a small 1/0 feather fly 1 inch long. So you do not need huge poppers, but if you use hard bodied things the water surge on the strike can roll the popper and the fish grabs it between the teeth. You miss the hookup. Max

[Maxg]

I think I should say this. Flexo is a mylar electrical braid, designed to cover cable bundles, but works in the fishing application. It comes in 0.5 and 0.25 inch diameters in silver and gold, can be expanded to quite a large diameter, is used by people like Bill Pate for billy poppers, I actually had three of those thingsYou get it in 3 meter lengths and 4 lengths, large and small gold/silver costs about 90 buks retail.
Its about 15 buks a 3 metre length.
Cheap doncha think. Max

[Jack_Lives_Here]

Max,
Can we please stick to the orignal question. I appreciate the information you have supplied, but this has gone off track. If you wish to discuss body types etc. please start your own thread.

[Steve_Ooi]

I tried a few different style poppers #like flex tube with softex, balsa poppers and the hard density foam ones. I find the foam poppers to be the easiest to make. With either buying popper bodies or making my own out of thongs, a sharp tube and the drill press.
With bodies I,ve found it easier #to buy longer shank hooks such as popper style hooks like the Mustad CK74S , that’s unless you are going to use a separate popper head like Scott and then shorter hooks such as the Gamakatsu SL’s are great.
Like Scott, most poppers I make these day are based around Bob Popovics #famous pattern “Bob’s Banger”, just a cylindrical #piece of foam with reflective mylar tape placed around it , and stick on eyes. You can tie the whole thing on a long shank hook or a a tube or just have separate heads, and in most cases for the tail I just tie a couple of hackles, some flash and sometimes a marabou collar.
As Max has said speed is important, and hopefully this year I hope to tryout some reverse popper bodied styled sliders, these are meant to just slide across or just underneath the water thus making it a bit easier to retrieve at higher speeds..
Queenfish and Saratoga #would have to be two fish that are just made to be caught on fly


Poony

[Jack_Lives_Here]

Thanks Poony. Weather permitting, I'm looking forward to having my arms stretched by some of the bruisers that frequesnt the bombies around the islands at Hinchinbrook in September.
I tied some up as Scott suggested, on 4/0 SL12s last night. They look the goods and no time to whack together.

[Scott_Mitchell]

Glad the popper design worked for you - I am sure you'll be happy with the strike conversion rates as well.

Let us know how you go .

Regards Scotto

[Jack_Lives_Here]

I'm gunna give them a whirl on the Murray Cod in the New England area also
Big bulky flies seem to work with them. Have to wait for some warmer weather though. I reckon you'd have to break the ice first at the moment.

[Maxg]

As I pointed out up there, if you use a solid body, hard foam or otherwise the hook up rates will decrease due to surge. It is a fact, and the only cure is to use very soft crushable bodies,
Mind you the slide on body works but it can slide up the shock leader and when being carted around by the hooked fish can draw hits from other fish.
A while back I saw a system that was just a disc placed on the eye of the hook. You could create a slider by tying a reverse gurgler, Get on Dans board and chat with Lee Haskins.
Then of course there is the pen popper, which is the body of a Bic pen covered with flexo and bunched up at the head. The thing is a sort of tube fly. Very thin very nice. Must see if I can find a pic of it in my box. Max