Intruder style recipes.

[newsteelyman]

I have been thinking about tying up some of these flies and have noticed after doing some research that this is more of a style of fly than a specific pattern as everyone seems to tie theirs differently. I was wondering how some of the members here tie theirs up as I have seen some pretty nice flies on this site. Does everyone use rea or are there other "cheaper" options out there. I have planned using cotter pins for the body and stringer type hook off of 50lb fireline.
Thanx in advance for any help guys.
Brian

[phearless]

Use real hooks for the body.
The "eyes" on a cotter pin were not meant to have tippet tied to them.

Ostrich makes a great Rhea substitute. Look for plumes with good tips and stems that aren't too heavy.
Hareline has been putting out some nice feathers that fit the bill.

Check the gallery and have a look at some of the cool creations in there.
Have fun with it.

[newsteelyman]

Hey Fred, nice avatar.(LOL). I just tied up one with the cotter pin (3/16x1") and I see what you mean about the loop. May work with a loop knot but still pretty large, think I will stick to a mustad 36890 cut off. Some of the flies in the gallery look pretty bulky, is it just because of the materials used and they are still easy to cast. I want to try these flies 'cause 3 or 4" bunny leeches can be painfull to cast.
thanx again,
Brian

[bc_speys]

Hi Brian,
I too have misgivings about using a cotter pin. I tie my Intruders on Mustad 94720s. The damn things are like 8x long and just perfect for what I need. I got lucky and had a couple of boxes given to me a few years ago. I never used them until I saw Ed Wards intruder in Dec Hogans " A Passion For Steelhead", then the light bulb went on!
As far as materials go, your imagination is the only limit. If you keep in mind a few things like color, profile and movement, you'll do just fine.
Show me the rule book!

Cliff.

[phearless]

That is the thing about intruders.
Bulk to get thier attention and make them all irate enough to eat it.
This is why we use body hackles to keep the finer flowing elements from collapsing around the body.
This is also what the spun collars of polar or bucktail etc are for.

[swiftwater]

I used to use hooks for the shanks but now i tend to use spinner shafts
more often.
I will take some pictures and then describe its better than trying to describe without the visuals:doh:

cheers
oliver