The Gummy Minnow
http://www.riverandreef.com/articlelive/articles/69/1/The-Gummy-Minnow/Page1.html
Steven Dally
By Steven Dally
Published on 02/11/2004
There may be plenty of debate over whether Blane Chocklett’s Gummy Minnow is a fly or not. But there is little doubt that the Gummy Minnow is one of the hottest selling patterns around. Even at $5 a pop, these soft silicon baitfish are flying out of fly shops everywhere where baitfish are eaten by bigger fish.
There may be plenty of debate over whether Blane Chocklett’s Gummy Minnow is a fly or not. But there is little doubt that the Gummy Minnow is one of the hottest selling patterns around. Even at $5 a pop, these soft silicon baitfish are flying out of fly shops everywhere where baitfish are eaten by bigger fish.
And yes my experience of these flies is that they work. My mate Todd and I had an extremely productive morning on largemouth bass busting bait on a wintery Arkansas morning in January. We managed something over 20 odd fish between us, after our usual topwater patterns failed, and had a ball. Funnily enough the other four boats of Tightlines Fly Fisher club members nearby were struggling, with patterns you thought would have had to work, Clousers, Crease flies etc. Perhaps we were just holding our mouths the right way, or was it the Gummy Minnow?
Actually it was a good thing we and the GM managed to turn the morning around. Todd and I had been sweating, since we were filming a segment for a local outdoors program, and up until we found these feeding fish, we had only one bass boated for the camera.
So, what is it? Well the Gummy Minnow is crafted, assembled or tied, with Sili Skin, a soft silicon feel material, adhesive backed on one side and developed for a fly to answer the soft plastics used by plug chuckers. Umpqua is selling both Gummy Minows and Sili Skin.
Simply you wrap a lead underbody for weight, then build up a baitfish shape with successively longer lengths of the Sili Skin. For the Gummy Minnow the progression involves 3 layers, first silver, then a darker back color. Add eyes, then a clear top layer and trim to shape.
In the water they are remarkable realistic with a slow fluttering sink, and plenty of flash off the silver underbelly. You can work them slow or fast. After my test I would say they have to be a monte for most baitfish feeders, liked striped or largemouth bass, roosters, jacks, and certainly for the whitebait eating sea-run trout in my Tasmanian home waters.
Particularly they would have an application where the target species is feeding on smallish translucent baitfish. But I don’t think I would be tossing them at the razor gang, like mackeral, wahoo or bluefish (tailor)
Of course whether you choose to judge this pattern a fly, or to tie it on your leader, is up to you. But certainly if you are looking for an edge to catch fish the Gummy Minnow might be for you.
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There may be plenty of debate over whether Blane Chocklett’s Gummy Minnow is a fly or not. But there is little doubt that the Gummy Minnow is one of the hottest selling patterns around. Even at $5 a pop, these soft silicon baitfish are flying out of fly shops everywhere where baitfish are eaten by bigger fish.
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There may be plenty of debate over whether Blane Chocklett’s Gummy Minnow is a fly or not. But there is little doubt that the Gummy Minnow is one of the hottest selling patterns around. Even at $5 a pop, these soft silicon baitfish are flying out of fly shops everywhere where baitfish are eaten by bigger fish.
And yes my experience of these flies is that they work. My mate Todd and I had an extremely productive morning on largemouth bass busting bait on a wintery Arkansas morning in January. We managed something over 20 odd fish between us, after our usual topwater patterns failed, and had a ball. Funnily enough the other four boats of Tightlines Fly Fisher club members nearby were struggling, with patterns you thought would have had to work, Clousers, Crease flies etc. Perhaps we were just holding our mouths the right way, or was it the Gummy Minnow?
Actually it was a good thing we and the GM managed to turn the morning around. Todd and I had been sweating, since we were filming a segment for a local outdoors program, and up until we found these feeding fish, we had only one bass boated for the camera.
So, what is it? Well the Gummy Minnow is crafted, assembled or tied, with Sili Skin, a soft silicon feel material, adhesive backed on one side and developed for a fly to answer the soft plastics used by plug chuckers. Umpqua is selling both Gummy Minows and Sili Skin.
Simply you wrap a lead underbody for weight, then build up a baitfish shape with successively longer lengths of the Sili Skin. For the Gummy Minnow the progression involves 3 layers, first silver, then a darker back color. Add eyes, then a clear top layer and trim to shape.
In the water they are remarkable realistic with a slow fluttering sink, and plenty of flash off the silver underbelly. You can work them slow or fast. After my test I would say they have to be a monte for most baitfish feeders, liked striped or largemouth bass, roosters, jacks, and certainly for the whitebait eating sea-run trout in my Tasmanian home waters.
Particularly they would have an application where the target species is feeding on smallish translucent baitfish. But I don’t think I would be tossing them at the razor gang, like mackeral, wahoo or bluefish (tailor)
Of course whether you choose to judge this pattern a fly, or to tie it on your leader, is up to you. But certainly if you are looking for an edge to catch fish the Gummy Minnow might be for you.