Fly Spoons, 2.0,
Too Much Time in the Basement

by Alan Luecke
Overland Park, KS

Between Chris bringing in the Rodio-Craft .5g Blinde Flanker spoons and all the other cool Japanese gear and me with an abundance of pandemic leisure I got back into spoon making. These use the same system I came up with a few years back, but this time I used the Rodio-Craft profile and the small 00 split rings. The 00's are the same size as on the factory spoons and just look right. However, handling and installing them is its own special joy.

The two in the center are Rodio-craft Blinde Flankers. Those in the outer circle are home-made.

In addition to the bright brass and stainless steel I used last time I wanted to experiment with paint. My targets were the Vega Nightmare and the Rodio-Craft Impact. My first batch was done with spray cans and then dipped in varnish. I want to try an airbrush in the future.

Tools of the trade: hammer, shears, split ring pliers, wood block, file

The basic technique is to trace the shape on hobby shop craft metal strips, cut them out with shears, clean up with a file and drill the holes (1/16th"). The curve is then pounded in using a tack hammer and a wood block with a hollow gouged into it. The shape of the hollow doesn't need to be precise or exact.

Home made spoon on a scale. Just under 1/2 gram.

I've been having a debate with myself about hook size. Missed hits on a single hook spoon are frustrating and I wondered if a smaller #12 hook, being closer to the spoon, would be more effective than the factory #8. The #8, on the other hand, is swinging its point in a bigger arc. I caught fish with both so who knows.

I have not spent a lot of time on the water with these spoons, but recently they came through on slow days when nothing else in the fly box got a second look. The Rodio-Craft Impact (from TenkaraBum) was especially effective and was my motivation to start painting the spoons.

Rainbow trout in the net, home-made spoon in its mouth

On a recent trip to Roaring River Trout Park in southwest Missouri I was showing the spoons to some friends from our local fly fishing club (I'm the token Tenkara user). I then caught a fish on the first cast and quickly two more. While pride may be a sin, there's nothing wrong with stopping to enjoy the moment.

Click here to add your own comments

Be sure to include your name, location and which page your comments are for.

At least for now, that link goes to the TenBum Store.

TenkaraBum Home > Your Tenkara Stories vol.2 > Fly Spoons, 2.0, Too Much Time in the Basement

“The bitterness of poor quality remains long after the sweetness of low price is forgotten” - Benjamin Franklin

"Be sure in casting, that your fly fall first into the water, for if the line fall first, it scares or frightens the fish..." -
Col. Robert Venables 1662

As age slows my pace, I will become more like the heron.

We've all had situations where seriously chewed up flies kept catching fish after fish after fish. It is no sin to tie flies that come off the vise looking seriously chewed up.

Warning:

The hooks are sharp.
The coffee's hot.
The fish are slippery when wet.

Beware of the Dogma

Seriously, all the hooks sold on TenkaraBum.com, whether packaged as loose hooks or incorporated into flies, are sharp - or as Daiichi says on their hook packages, Dangerously Sharp. Some have barbs, which make removal from skin, eyes or clothing difficult. Wear eye protection. Wear a broad-brimmed hat. If you fish with or around children, bend down all hook barbs and make sure the children wear eye protection and broad-brimmed hats. Be aware of your back cast so no one gets hooked.

Also, all the rods sold on TenkaraBum.com will conduct electricity. Do not, under any circumstances, fish during a thunder storm. Consider any fishing rod to be a lightning rod! Fishing rods can and do get hit by lightning!