Please Help!!

[skiptomylu]

Don't leave any stems in your marabou! As others have said just double wrap you chenille. I double wrap any jig 1/8 or larger and single 1/16 and less.

Skip

[Miller]

Don't leave any stems in your marabou! As others have said just double wrap you chenille. I double wrap any jig 1/8 or larger and single 1/16 and less.

Skip

Thanks for the tip! And for the stems, are you saying any stem? or just the large ones

[PBUG2009]

leave NO STEMS...little or big

[Nightprowler]

Make sure you do not trim off the ends of the marabou. You are trying to make it look as natural as possible, unlike a lot of store bought jigs. Try to place the feathers so the tips of the marabou end about 1/2" to 1-1/2" (depends of jig size) past the end of your hook bend. Hope this helps.

[Miller]

thanks for all the help guys!

One problem I am having now is that sometimes the thread will slip. When I tie I start off by wrapping the jig with a starter layer of thread, down to the where it is even with the point of the hook. Sometimes when I am wrapping the marabou or chenille it starts twisting around the hook shaft. I wrap the thread tight, and it doesn't happen every time either. Plus, the thread I got from Bass Pro is not waxed, is this the problem? It seems spread apart when tying and is quite maddening

[snake River]

Miller take a look at night prowler pink jig you need to post some a your jigs so we can tell what is going on and then we will definitely help you out there is some terminology used that you may not understand but you will get used to it in the future keep practicing and you will catch on pretty fast. I did not learn how to tie jigs overnight. I started out when I was very young I am probably one of the oldest jig tires on here is I started out in the early 60s . It took me about one year to get on to basics by just messing around. I did not have any videos to watch or anything else. I was taught by myself as you probably know, there were no computers around when I was a kid, except for which you would call beast computers been of course we did not have all the fancy jig heads that you have today remembering back to when herders catalog we order molds from them also jig heads but they were not like anything that you would think of what you definitely postal me your jigs in the guys will help you out for sure.

[pondhopper]

When you wrap you chenille lay it half over on to the previous wrap. That is to say look at the chenille find the string that run through the middle as you wrap half of the fuzz will lay upon the previous wrap. this means the center strings of the wrap will almost be touching one another. Gives a fatter body. The amount of feather used can roughly be determined like this I/4 0z. jig about the dia. of a bic ink pin when pinched and cut. reduce the amount by 25% each time you go down a jig size. This will get you in the ball park . With practice you will be able to refine it more.

[skiptomylu]

I make mine a bit longer than most as I feel a crappie has that big old mouth so they can eat that pretty easy.

Yes no stems at all. I save the tips for other smaller jigs of flies to tie later if I get the chance. I use all I can, but the tips are very short at some point so I just cut the stem when I am don and keep the tips on the little stem left and stuff them into a zip lock.

You don't want to over do or under do how much marabou to use, but know the fish will thin them too, LOL!

Also as mentioned never trip the end sticking back and only the end your tying in should be trimmed. You want it looking natural and not like someone's flat top hair cut.

So just tear the barbules off and stack them until you get enough to tie the jig. Remember no wind at all or they will blow all over and make it impossible to handle. Also if static electricity is a problem like it is in the winter just get your wife to same the little sheets she uses in the dryer for that and even thought they have been used they still work for this. Home the feather stem and all and close that little sheet around it and pull it through and it will settle it down for you.

Skip

[Gansett]

Miller, I've just started jig tying also, and am having some problems too. Especially the maribou twisting around the hook shank. A friend of mine showed me what he does. He has a bottle of super-glue that comes with a small brush built into the glue's top. After laying down the first winding of thread he brushes on a tiny amount of glue. Then he gathers up whatever maribou he wants and lays it on top of the hook as usual. By this time the glue is still tacky and the maribou sticks. No more roll. I'm going to do that until I get better at tying and hopefully not have to use the glue.

[skiptomylu]

No need for the super glue! Just hold it in place until you have enough tight wraps to hold it. I don't use any glue until I am done and then not super glue. I make my own for that and it's 1/2 Clear Gloss Lacquer and 1/2 Thinner (I use MEK) and it will soak in through the chenille and you can't even feel it's there.

Also make sure you have a good thread base to work off of. At least from the head to the barb and maybe a bit more.

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