November Trout Fly of the Month

Lefty’s Deceiver

(With some Orange Parsons for the Holiday Seaon!)

In the late 1950’s, Lefty Kreh and his regular fishing companion Tom Cofield, both outdoor writers, were fishing in the Chesapeake Bay for stripped bass when conversation relating to this pattern first sparked. The fish that fed voraciouslyon alewives in the bay each season inspired Kreh and Cofield to create a fly pattern from scratch. The outcome of their musins eventually became the most influential pattern the sport has ever known. Almost immediately upon conception the Lefty’s Deceiver, as the fly became know, began blazing a trail for the fledgling sport of fly fishing.

The Lefty’s Deceiver owes its success, at least in large part, to its remarkable versatility.  Nothing about the Lefty’s Deceiver demonstrates this point better than the fact that it can be dressed in virtually any color combination imaginable.  The Lefty’s Deceiver has been tied in dozens of color combinations, each selected to meet the specific requirements of anglers across the globe.  It can also be tied long or short in length, tied to appear full or sparse.  The Lefty’s Deceiver can be tied as an imitator, imitating fish such as herring, alewives, and mullet.  Alternately, it can be tied as an attractor.  The repertoire of the Lefty’s Deceiver is nearly without limit and has earned its classic status.

Featured Fly: Lefty’s Deceiver

Created by: Lefty Kreh

Materials:

· Hook: 1/0-5/0

· Thread: Black

· Tail: Black saddle hackles and strands of Crystal Flash

· Hackle: Black bucktail, green peacock sword feathers

· Eyes: Large eyes painted white with black pupil

· Head: black

November Saltwater Lure of the Month

 Swim’n Image

The Swim’n Image is a wildly effective and compelling lure created by the legendary lure maker Heddon.  Stories about this lure both on and off the water immediately captured the imagination of the FE staff.  Evidently, we were not the only ones caught up in the excitement.  The Swim’n Image created a sensation when introduced in the 1990’s.  Anglers are still clamoring over this lifelike lure.  Apparently, Heddon has come as close to engineering the perfect bait as any lure maker in the market.  The Swim’n Image casts a country mile, it’s fitted with a rattle chamber, and it boasts a finish so real that we wouldn’t e surprised if the Swim’n Image started flopping around on its own, to say nothing about how it performs on the water.

This is the most polished lure we’ve ever featured as a monthly selection.  Heddon left nothing to chance when engineering the Swim’n Image.  The result?  The lure’s finish is among the best the industry has ever seen.  Heddon told us that they went to unparalleled lengths to perfect the process of applying such lifelike and hyper-reflective details to the lure’s surface.  The achieve these incredible effects, Heddon used in-house color specialists and graphics scientishs to push the envelope of the lure design.  Heddon added super-sharp Excalibur hooks that have a patented counter-rotating design.  Top it all off with true versatility on the water, and you have a classic in your tackle box.  Like the Swim’n Image?  For more luremaking goodness, check out the Swim’n Image’s stable mate, the Spit’n Image.

Featured lure: Swim’n Image

Date Created: C. 1990’s

Manufacturer: Heddon/ Excalibur

Technique:

Whether you’re fishing the Swim’n Image or the Spit’n Image, consider changing your retrieve style from time to time.  You might also find changing the speed at which you retrieve your lure advantageous.  The manufacturer suggests a stop-and-go retrieve, a slow-cranking retrieve, or a fast, “burning” retrieve as three specific methods you can use to generate “smashing strikes”!

November Freshwater Lure of the Month

Rebel Crawfish

Tim Gowing is a name Fishing Enthusiast subscribers might be familiar with.  He’s responsible for several of the lures we’ve selected over the past few years.  Gowing designed this month’s influential selection for Rebel early in the company’s history.  Considered a master lure maker, Gowing has been designing lures longer than some of the FE staff have been fishing.  By his own estimation, Gowing says he’s been designing lures for over 30 years.  That’s plenty of time to cook up a mess of killer classics.  In fact, if one were to crack open an angler’s tackle box at random, it’s highly likely that Gowing’s name will be behind more lures than any other individual designer.  That’s quite an accomplishment.

Though Rebel is wholly owned by EBSCO Industries, the Rebel Crawfish remains one of their best selling lures.  The company claims that it’s still one of the best selling lures of all time.  Perhaps Rebel Crawfish sales numbers do top huge selling classics such as Rapala’s Original minnow, the Johnson Silver Minnow, or the Mepps Aglia.  Regardless, it’s true that anglers consider the Rebel Crawfish to be without peer.  It’s the go-to bait for an alarming number of amateurs and professionals alike.  Anglers have a diehard loyalty towards this lure that is truly unique.  We can’t recall a lure that even comes close to the level of devotion that the Rebel Crawfish generates.  Except, maybe, another Jim Gowing designed lure.

Featured lure: Rebel Crawfish

Designer: Jim Gowing

Manufacturer: Rebel (an Ebsco Industries company)

Technique:

Rebel recommends that your style of retrieve closely imitates the behavior of a live crawfish.  “Cast around structure, muddy banks or rocky shore lines.  Use a slow, deliberate stop-and-go retrieve.  This will attract every nearby fish… whatever the species, large or small.  Get it digging the bottom along a rock ledge or around structure… then, be ready!!”

Bayou Boogie vs. Rebel Crawfish

BAYOU BOOGIE      vs                       REBEL CRAWFISH

Which of these great lures should be the November Freshwater Lure of the Month? Vote on the right!