Author Archives: KBarton10

Heat Fusible, SingleBarbed braves the fiery inferno of feminine scorn for Science

Domestic bliss shattered by my failure to iron shirts, but as it was for  Science, it’s a worthy martyrdom.

Angelina fibers are available in a heat fusible flavor,  insert a pinch of fibers into a paper napkin, pass an iron over them a couple times and the of fibers fuse flatly to each other, yielding a “Tyvek” style mesh cloth.

A thin “Tyvek” style mesh clothThis fabric is only as strong as the volume of fibers used and the degree of their overlap. Additional experimentation is required to find the best pattern to melt; parallel fibers, cross-hatched, further testing is needed to  determine what proves strongest.

One look at the result and about 75 different uses pop into your head, so allocate some time to fiddle.

Mayfly wings was the first thing I saw – the opalescent hue looks just like a shiny spinner wing. I trimmed a set for a #18 hook and managed to secure it without too much trouble. They are light and flexible wings – they will bend in flight rather than remain rigid and “helicopter” the tippet.

Nice wing effect, but too fragile yet

The photo shows what happened after I gave it a good yank. The direction of the original fibers when fused will have to be tinkered with so they don’t tear out. A #18 hook doesn’t give much area to tie down, the wing frayed badly when abused.

The intact wing shows the effect of the fabric trimmed to a shape, I folded the material and cut both wings at the same time, leaving a narrow adjoining section to tie to the hook. That was my mistake, as the narrow “neck” between the wings did not have many fibers secured. When pulled, the wing slowly fragmented into oblivion. Visually it’s a nice wing effect, but durability requires us to test further.

My next attempt was to roll up some fabric into a cigar shape then trim to the proper length once attached – exactly as a polypropylene yarn spinner is tied. I figured more fibers would be secured in the small tie down area and the wing should hold together much better.

This flavor will see action immediately, tough and durable

The result is depicted above, after I mauled them badly trying to pull them apart. The fibers separated a little bit but that was the only evidence of damage. Like all good flies the more it’s eaten – the better it looks.

The above pattern is what we used on Fall River and Hat Creek for the Trico spinner falls, when the solid black flavor didn’t yield any fish we switched to this variant – it went by many names, mostly we called it a “female Trico.”

Now I just call it “too damn small for me to see” – along with every other fly smaller than an #8.. I will debut these this weekend on the foam line just for the fun of it – assuming I get out of the Doghouse by then.

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Fly Tying begats legal spousal abuse

I am a dead manThere are times when I think fishermen are the only folks allowed to abuse their spouse systematically without fear of legal action.

This morning I approached my gal while she was finishing up the ironing of her work outfit. I gestured at the iron, “Is that hot?” She got that dreamy emotional look, the one that men recognize instinctively –  massive emotional points scored and your doghouse days are over.

Flustered and off balance, her voice rising in disbelief, “Yes, you need to iron your shirt?”

I produce a napkin wrapped object and quickly give it a couple of passes with the iron, “Naw, I just wanted to fuse some of these fibers to see whether they make spinner wings.”

I left her sobbing and broken, my crime was getting her hopes up and I am going to pay large tonight.

Salvation Army beats a hasty retreat, Giorgio Armani saves our Beloved sport

You thought I made this stuff up? Giorgio Armani introduces his latest line of couture fashion featuring a “fishing” theme. It may be dark when you roll out of that greasy sleeping bag, but that’s no excuse not to look your best.

Remember, some folks follow fashion, and some set fashion, and it behooves you to consider your spouse’s wardrobe before you go tossing them old waders in the trash.

Models wore fine mesh nets over their hair and the fishing theme was extended to shawls and shoulder shrugs in a lattice worn with slim silk evening gowns.

Gill nets are now haute couture, not the indiscriminate killers we once thought, but must be worn aggressively, paired fetchingly with a couple days growth of stubble, or last weeks underwear.

Please don’t confuse last year’s ensemble with this year; the hot colors are Sand, not Dirt, Rock Grey instead of Dingy, and Marine Blue. Any true dry fly fashionista knows the difference between Sand and Dirt, let’s not go there…

You’ll be thrilled to know those bulky Hydration packs are out, but form flattering clutch purses are back. If fishing sucks, rather than bemoan poor timing, assist your fellow anglers by dispensing fashion tips in the parking lot. Make sure that is a “blueline” parking area, us brownliners will take a dim view of both you and your ensemble.

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Restocking the fly box, I ignore good taste and play havoc with traditional patterns

I mentioned in an earlier post of finding a new material with great promise for fly tying, while fish and local water clarity are uncooperative, I’m restocking my fly box and absorbing some NFL action.

The two materials I am testing are Angelina and Crystalina fibers, both available from the garment industry as fiber, film, and cloth. Crystalina appears to be called “Ice Dubbing” – a refractive coarse material suitable for larger flies. It’s the Angelina fibers that have really caught my interest however.

Finer than Crystalina and suitable for all ranges of hook size, I am blending it with natural furs using a coffee grinder, then retying many of the patterns I use substituting the Angelina blend instead of the normal mixture.

The 49er’s lost, but I gained another dozen flies to fish

The results are stunning as even traditional patterns get a dramatic face lift. More importantly, it adds a full range of color spectrum due to the opalescent sheen.

Coffee grinder blending requires that all fur added be no more than an inch in length, any longer and the fibers will wrap around the center spindle and bind the motor, quickly burning it out.

I needed to replenish some Gold Ribbed Hare’s Ear’s and mixed a blend of Red Fox squirrel guard hairs, muskrat fur (because I had a ton of it on the skin) and 20% Angelina.

The raw Angelina is about 4-6 inches in length, so I trimmed it into the grinder along with muskrat shaven off the hide with scissors. You have to wad the material down into the blades to get it to mix well, but it only takes seconds to make a batch.

It’s personal preference, I would rather use blends of fur rather than a uniform dyed color. Bugs are an uneven coloration especially when tumbling in the water column, so I prefer having multiple colors and textures in fur for nymphs. Dry flies are not so much an issue as the fish can’t inspect much more than the portion visible to them.

80% Muskrat and 20% Angelina fiber

The opalescence of the Angelina fiber really adds quite a few colors without dominating the result. Mixing much more than 20% of the fibers will have start to overwhelm the original dressing, I was just looking to give a little sparkle and solidify my proof of concept.

I like to use a base complement of nymph colors and sizes when fishing. Black, Olive, Gray, Pheasant Brown, and something mostly peacock. Those 5 colors should seduce something in any stream, and should cover most species of freshwater fish.

I have to order additional colors to make all those blends, in the meantime I am focusing on the natural mother of pearl fiber to see how it looks when added to traditional flies.                                                      

Angelina imbued Hare’s Ear

The photo is inadequate to capture the colors, but it hints at the effect. A stellar replacement for seal fur as the sparkle of “Angie” makes seal look dull in comparison.

Us bachelors lack ironing skills, fusing the fibers with an iron is next, if soft enough it should make dramatic spinner wings. I’ll be abusing the flies to see how the material stands up to use and whether the refraction qualities grow dull with sunlight. Hungry small fish won’t be much of a test, but it’s close by.

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Rain is good, Effluent levels peak, and I watch football instead

I was hoping for a little break in the steady deluge of chocolate water coming down the river. We’ve had our first two rain showers of the year, I figured some of that may have diluted the viscous thick brown snake coming out of the farm fields. Nope.

I attempted a foray each of the last three days and have little to show for it.

Cloudy morning on the Little Stinking

The temperatures have dropped into the low 70’s and it’s pleasant wandering around, but there isn’t much activity. The Trico spinner fall is active each morning, we have some new midge action, but only little fish seem to be eating, and there don’t appear to be many of those either.

The Pikeminnow vanished, smallmouth and bluegill have taken their place. Carp can occasionally be seen when they break the surface, but they are lying inert mostly, the “coffee” water is likely the culprit.

This morning the first gaggles of snow geese flew by noisily, and I stumbled on four deer grazing on undergrowth. The main event was seeing my first bobcat, cats are always wily, and it was stalking the grassy area near the river as I crested a rise behind it.

Trico spinners load up a spider web

I managed to interest some bluegill and small bass in Angelina nymphs I had constructed – hungry fish aren’t always the best experiment but the foul water limits my playing field.

I decided to call it early so I could tie some more flies and watch a little football, hastened by two dimwits downstream that decided to unload 50 rounds in quick succession. They couldn’t see me but at the rate they were firing, they weren’t aiming much.

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A small step for California, and a large pissed off fishing lobby, but it’s something

beachangler I don’t get to post good news often, usually it’s some dire tale of oceans swept clean of fish, or someone’s prediction of when all fish will be dead…

California designated 29 marine sanctuaries today, located between Santa Barbara and San Mateo counties (the southern half of the state).

…will include  13 reserves where fishing will be prohibited and 15 conservation areas where some commercial and recreational fishing will be allowed.

State regulators will create additional preserves in subsequent years, the next set will include areas in San Mateo county to Mendocino county. These preserve areas start 3 miles offshore, so bank fisherman will largely be unaffected.

All told, 200 square miles of ocean are off now off limits. Wardens will be patrolling the new areas to ensure compliance.

Scientists say California’s marine protected areas represent a new approach to saving the world’s oceans from overfishing, and hope other states and countries follow suit.

This is an entire ecosystem placed off limits, rather than the traditional approach of protecting a single species. Scientists will be monitoring the wildlife contained in these preserves to confirm the validity of this approach.

It’s something positive, and there has been damn little of that lately.

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Fish are safe, but I am hell on dog catching

My numerous adventures on the Little Stinking netted me an invite to  the ranks of the landed gentry, but since I am a member of the working press of Brownlining, I have to use the servants entrance.

As Singlebarbed Dogwalking Services are the stuff of local legend, I get to care for Little Meathead and Big Meathead this week. This is heady stuff, as any dog reference is worth ten times the blog traffic that fishermen generate.

“Little Meathead” is a 60 mph hurricane, he eats, craps, and chases tennis balls in a single breath. “Big Meathead” is an old gal, she can burst up to 6 mph – but has to sleep afterward.

I’ve got 12 acres of walnut orchard bounded by a steep drop into the creek, and while I’m focused on Little Meathead killing everything, Big Meathead perches precariously on the bank. I see the peril, and start to form the “No” with my mouth – too late, Big Meathead is gripped by the Dark Matter surrounding the Little Stinking, and goes arse over teakettle down the bank and into the creek.

Little Meat thinks that ride is for him and does likewise. So I’m topside and dry, and they’re looking at me wondering why I don’t join them. 

I try my best “Nice Doggy, C’mere” – and it fails horribly. Big Meathead knows that she can’t make the climb back up, and I know I’m going to have to slide down the bank, grab her and carry her back up.

Did I mention I’m in my work clothes?

I make it to the water’s edge, and repeat the “Nice Doggy” bit, Big Meat wants no part of being carried, and remains in the center of the effluent with Little Meat swimming around in circles.

Briefly I consider my options… I could say, “Jeez, I dunno what happened to them, I showed up and they were gone.” Or I could go wading – in my work clothes.

I’m the Pied Piper of Idjit Dogs, and a casual onlooker would’ve seen me swearing, wading up the creek with two canines swimming behind me. Naturally the first suitable flat spot offered numerous handfuls of Poison Oak, just to make the occasion  memorable..

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I say, "Run What You Brung" and let Darwin sort them out

Wow, we need a new wardrobe Thirty three seconds of flight for $155,000 is cheap. That’s just enough flight to violate the landowner’s airspace, and not enough time to allow a Stinger to get tone lock…

That gives us fisherman 15 seconds from car door to “below the high water mark” on whichever exclusive “Donny Beaver” stream we want to fish. We’re allowing for a return trip, only zealots like Tom Chandler may contemplate a power dive into the clubhouse.

JetPack International is about to debut the latest in rocketry to us ultra-consumers, we can expect to see the traffic patterns in LA lessen considerably as all them debutantes and heiress’s spiral lazily through the clouds.

Them gals couldn’t drive anyway…

Rocket belts ala James Bond, 33 seconds of 70MPH flight, and by year’s end it will be 19 minutes, complements of the T73 – powered by your choice of eco-friendly fuels, kerosene or propane. Eco-friendly is a bit of a reach, but the legions of  Hollywood spin artists will find some way to put lipstick on that pig.

Me? I am all for it, run what you brung and let Darwin sort ’em out.