Brian ties up some mean pike/muskie tube flies! Check out the materials list below. Brian says, “They are super lightweight, cast really easy, and have tons of movement in the water. They are about 11″ long and about 2.5” in diameter. tied on heritage angling 3mm Euro Tubing with a Misfit Predator Disc under the material to help make a large profile.

Brian is the owner of Lunds Fly Shop in River Falls, Wisconsin.

Visit misfitfly.com to see some of the misfit materials mentioned below.

http://www.lundsflyshop.com

Materials are:

-Misfit Wampa Hair
-Microlon/Holo-Flash Blends
-Misfit Hot Hackles
-Snow Runner (aka Polar Pony & Arctic Runner)
-Rainy’s Craft Fur (the entire head)

Matt Grajewski

Could you explain how you got started fly fishing and fly tying?

As a kid, my Dad would break out a fly rod and popper later in the evening to fish for bass. I still remember those evenings in the canoe, watching the popper and hoping a bass would eat it. That was the first fly fishing memory for my brothers and I, and probably why we have always gravitated toward making a fish chase down a fly.

My older brother, Eric, asked for a fly tying kit when we were young. I remember tying flies and ice fishing jigs. That’s where it all started. Little did we know back then what it would grow into.

Some time ago you partnered with Nick Granato to form Fly Obsession. Could you explain what Fly Obsession is and how that all got started?

Nick and I have always had a similar brain when it comes to tying and fishing. After a number of conversations, we decided to join forces. The goal was to write about the things we talked about. It’s not a “Top 10 nymphs for trout” or “How to rig an indicator” type of fly fishing content. Not that there is anything wrong with that. It just wasn’t the things we liked to do and talk about. So we talk about the things we love and hope one or two people dig it.
Visit at this link: flyobsession.com

Do you have any mentors that you look up to?

It may be cliche, but it really is my family. I learned more from my Dad than I will ever realize. I learned many lessons about life through our time in the outdoors. My parents both made a lot of sacrifices so that we could enjoy the outdoors. My Mom always fished and hunted hard, even when things didn’t go her way. Eric fishes harder than anyone I know and never gives up. My younger brother, Mark, is always willing to try something new. All of those experiences taught me a lot about fish, and life.

A few years ago there was a short film about you and your brothers called The Brothers Brown created by Third Year Fly Fisher. What do you remember most about that experience?

It was a lot of fun working on that film, and sharing all of the stories and memories with RT. A lot of which was off camera. The thing I’ll probably remember most was Eric’s bottom of the ninth fish. He had lost a couple of big fish during the filming, and we all really wanted him to land one of those for the film. We decided to stay and fish one more day and do a short float. We didn’t have anyone to row another boat so we all piled into one. It was crowded, but we made it work. Eric lost a giant early in the day. It was just bad luck. You can hear the silence on the film when that fish comes off. Finally, at the last good section of the float, he hooks a good fish. After a few tense moments, the fish makes it into the net. We have definitely caught a lot of trout bigger, but that is a fish I’ll never forget. You can see the excitement in the film after we land that fish.
Visit at this link: Third Year Fly Fisher

Do you still have a special place in your heart for the Au Sable River?

Absolutely, and always will. My love of trout fishing was born in the UP, but it was solidified on the big waters of the Au Sable. My parents bought that cabin in 1985, and we spent a lot of time on that water since. I am now passing my affection for that river onto my kids. It is really cool to watch them experience the river. Probably much like it was for my parents to share it with my siblings and I.

What species of fish do you like to fish for most often?

These days, that’s an easy one. Muskie. Particularly, lake muskies. I have fished for a lot of different freshwater species, and I enjoy all of them. But, there is nothing like muskie for me. I love tying big flies. I love the game of locating them each time out. I love how they eat a fly with bad intentions. Mostly, I love that they do whatever the hell they want. I respect that.

In your opinion, what makes a good muskie fly?

There are a couple vital elements a muskie fly needs, in my opinion. It must have triggering movement. I don’t want a fly that comes straight back to the boat. I want a fly that glides to the side, or drops down. It also can’t be hard to cast. Muskie fly fishing isn’t as physically demanding as it’s made out to be. Big streamer trout fishing is definitely harder on you. But, if you are casting a fly that is unnecessarily difficult to cast AND retrieve, you will wear yourself out. The biggest mistake I see with big flies is they have too much material. They become harder to cast, harder to retrieve, and harder to manipulate. I try not to make it harder on myself than I need to.

Do you have some tips you could give to tiers out there who want to begin tying streamers for muskie?

Achieve the profile you want, with the least amount of materials. There are a lot of great natural and synthetic materials available today. Materials that hold a good profile, but also shed water easily. Many of these do not have to be packed tightly on a hook to hold a profile. Blane Chocklett’s T-bone is a great example of that.

How is tying a fly for muskie different from tying a fly for big brown trout?

With big brown streamers, every material is in play. With muskie flies, I mostly stay away from materials that retain water or collapse easily. Otherwise, the basis is the same. Achieve the desired profile, without extra material. Your arm will thank you later.

What are your go-to streamers for muskie?

Yard Sale is my favorite and has produced more fish for me than any other fly. Jumpin’ Jack Flash is creeping up quickly, and I’ll always have some classic bucktail flies in my box. Tough to beat the beauty and productivity of a big bucktail fly for muskie.

Yard Sale

What thread do you primarily use on your muskie flies?

GSP in 210 and 280. I go through a lot of it.

Is there a species that you haven’t caught, that you would like to attempt to catch one day?

I’ve always wanted to fish for Stripers, especially on the upper east coast. I hope to make that happen one day.

Do you tie commercially or sell your flies in some way?

I wouldn’t say I tie commercially, but I do small custom orders of big trout streamers and muskie flies. I cannot tie two flies that look the same. It’s just not in my nature. There are guys like Eli Berant, Rich Strolis, and Mike Schmidt that are your dudes if you want volume. Those guys can tie custom orders as good as anyone, but they also turn out flies in numbers with the best of them.

What are some of your favorite fly patterns to tie?

The Devil Dancer is my favorite pattern to tie. I love the classic bucktail and hackle flies, and it’s my spin on those that incorporates two modern materials. So they have some of the classic look, with the flash and creativity of modern flies. A good mix of both. Jumpin’ Jack Flash and Nut Butters are up there as well.

Devil Dancer

How many patterns have you designed yourself?

Not really sure as it’s tough to really lay claim on a design these days. So much of today’s modern streamer tying is a mix of other patterns. Especially with how many are posted on the internet. Back in the day, you saw a fly in a shop, or a new material that inspired you. Nowadays, there is inspiration everywhere and a shit ton of great tyers out there. For the creative fly tyer, I’m not sure there has been a better time to be alive.

Do you have any new patterns you are working on at the moment?

Always. My brain never stops. I recently got out of bed at 1 am to tie a fly that was in my head. I like the way it swims and some fish have shown some interest, but it needs more time in the water and fish feedback for me to be sold on it. You can’t beat fish feedback when testing a new idea.

new fly idea from Matt

Could you describe some of your main rigs you use when you go fishing, including rod, reel, and line?

Rods are pretty simple. 10 and 11 weights are my go-to rods. I get asked about which brand/model of rods a lot. My answer is they all catch fish. Find one that fits your stroke and price range, and that’s the rod you want. There is no one best rod.

As far as lines, I’ve used a lot and probably liked the Scientific Anglers Wet Tip Express the best. I think the line is the most important piece of the rig. Haven’t tried the Sonar yet. I also like the Airflo Sniper. My preference is a sink tip in the 25′-27′ range with a floating running line. I don’t like the coating in the intermediate running lines. They are not great in cold weather, and tougher to handle because they are usually smaller in diameter. That is a particularly tough on the those cold November and December days in Michigan.

Reels are even easier than rods. Anything that holds line. If you can get your hands on one that picks up line easily, that can help, but not necessary. A lot of fish are never put on the reel. The drag doesn’t matter.

Is there anything at all you would like to add?

There is a lot of division amongst fly anglers these days. It would be cool to see less of that. So many people fighting for internet fame, and/or bashing others. There used to be more of a camaraderie amongst fly anglers, and I would like to see that regardless of technique. I saw a shop recently selling decals bashing spin fishing. That stuff bums me out. Lets unite instead of fighting and make sure we continue to get the youth involved in the sport. That’s my two cents.

Thanks Matt!

Jumpin’ Jack Flash

Nut Butters

Devil Dancer

Yard Sale

Be sure to listen as Ulf ties in this video. He provides some very helpful information. Enjoy!

Material listing for tying the Gandalf fly:
Hook: Partridge attitude streamer 4/0
Body back: Olive bucktail and olive Nayat
Hackle feathers: olive grizzly
Body: Green baitfish emulator flash
Body front: Olive bucktail and brown Craft fur
Flash: Hedron predator flash Firetiger
Eyes: Fly dressing UV eyes 11 mm

Music used in this video:
Desmeon – Hellcat

Another great fly tying video brought to us by Fly Shop of the Bighorns.
In this Episode, Chris Schneider ties the “Optimus Swine”, a fly developed by Eli Berant of Michigan. Chris and Peter would like to give a shout out to Eli Berant of Great Lakes Fly for allowing us the opportunity to tie his innovative pattern, “Optimus Swine”. Chris prefers this fly for targeting Muskie.

In this fly tying video, Gunnar ties the Flash Tail variation of his Big Booty Deceiver, which is an articulated streamer designed for Pike, Musky, and a multitude of large predator species.

by Gunnar Brammer

I didn’t really grow up fishing. I didn’t start out at the age of 3, or tie my first fly when I was 5. Honestly, I didn’t even know fly fishing existed until I was in high school. I feel like fly fishing has a rather high level of nostalgia. It is an activity passed down from grandfathers and fathers to sons and daughters. And although I love my Dad, he doesn’t love fly fishing… he loves golf!

Canadian Walleye

That is right, I grew up golfing. I wasn’t exposed to fishing until the age of 15, when my father and I traveled up to northern Ontario for walleyes. It was a trip born out of business relations, but was quickly turned into an annual holiday between great friends, and eventually family.

Although I picked up walleye fishing rather quickly, my Pike game struggled. Stories from my father and his fishing buddy Herm Thomas haunted me during our late night euchre games; 40 inch giants, rolling over lily pads desperately trying to chase down there frog imitations. As an immature and rather impressionable young angler, I quickly put two and two together. In order to catch pike, I needed to learn the art of fly fishing.

After arriving home from another pikeless trip, I was desperate to pick up a fly rod. My dad, being a responsible guy, had me start from the very beginning even though he knew my intentions for the sport lied elsewhere. Yep…. a 9ft. 5 wt. with a floating line, and a 5x tapered leader. This however was my foot in the door to a much bigger passion than I had realized. I spent that summer chasing rock bass and sunfish with copper johns, and trying to untie about 100 knots from my tippet.

At some point in this timeline, my little world of rock bass and sunfish was flipped on its head. We were on a long trip returning home from somewhere when my dad placed Kelly Galloup’s Modern Streamers for Trophy Trout in my hands. Now, I’m not one to read very often, nor read a lot in one sitting. But, that book simply captivated me. I read it in one sitting, never taking my eyes from the pages. In the travel time that remained after I finished the book, I started sketching streamers on napkins and trying to come up with names. I immediate adopted all of Kelly’s ideologies with regards to predator fly fishing and fly design and was inspired to take fly fishing to a new level.

Fly Sketch

Within weeks I had a 6wt rigged up with a 200 grain full sinking line with a piece of meat attached to it. My dad and I would float the various sections of the upper Manistee banging the banks. And although we put the effort in, our skills were very subpar. The usual results were no fish in the boat, and half a dozen streamers left hanging from the trees. Although failure is frustrating, it is also a powerful tool to learn from, and every time we went, we got a little closer to success.

That winter I received my first vice, and enough materials to tie two of the greatest trout catchers of all time, the wooly bugger, and KG’s Zoo Cougar. Long story short, I was horrible at tying flies. I struggled along that first year in frustration trying to teach myself from a book. It was not until my senior year of high school that I took my first fly tying class. It was held at The Northern Angler in TC, MI, and taught by Mr. Alex Lafkas. The class quickly filled in the gaps that I simply could not absorb from a book and re-fueled my motivation behind the vise.

Superior Laker

Though my knowledge of fly tying was steadily growing, my skills with a fly rod where left to collect dust. Frustrated I would spend most of my time spin fishing. Chasing lake trout and splake, and casting spoons or slip sinkers with spawn bags to salmon. I took many more trips to Canada chasing walleyes, and spent multiple spring breaks hunting grouper, snapper, and barracuda in the Gulf of Mexico. I was growing as an angler, but I wanted to start growing as a fly fisherman. I slowly started integrating fly fishing back into my regular adventures. Targeting bass and carp on Lake Michigan flats, as well as getting into a hand full of pike on our last trip up north.

first Cutty, Snake River

And this is where things got a bit interesting. It was during my 4th year at Michigan Tech, and I had a potential internship lined up back in TC, when I saw Galloup’s Slide Inn post an opening for a shop guy. My eyes literally lit up with the little heart shaped emoji smiley face. I applied to work for Kelly Galloup… and although I was horribly unqualified, and knew basically nothing, he hired me.

Montana

At this point, I was basically a nervous wreck. Desperately I tried to absorb as much information as I could before I arrived, needless to say, I now own almost every Kelly Galloup DVD My time spent at Kelly’s Slide Inn was life changing. I fished 6-7 days a week, learned the bugs of the Madison River and how to fish them. It was my job to know, and I took it more seriously than anything I had tried before. I taught myself to nymph, and high stick, and use an indicator. I’d fish dries every night and watch caddis and mayflies swarm over the river as the sun set. I’d stay up till midnight tying streamers and variations of streamers, and fish them until the lead eyes were mush and the hook as dull as cobble. I learned something from every person and guide that walked into that shop, any piece of information was worth obtaining, and I put all of it to use.

My wife, plus Kelly Galloup on the oars.

It was during this time that fly tying started to consume me. For my entire stay at Kelly’s, I only fished my own ties. I learned to tie the dries and nymphs and as many variations of existing streamers as I could think of. Sometimes my stubbornness would lead me to a fishless night, while other times I would return back to the trailer beaming with pride. But like most things, my time there came to an end. I headed back to Michigan Tech to finish my degree. (I ended up switching majors from Mechanical Engineering to Wildlife Ecology, hence why sometimes I get a little nerdy when talking about streamer design and such)

Madison River Brown

That winter I tied as often as possible. YouTube quickly became an invaluable learning tool. I’d watch tying video for hours, often times in different languages. I’d stay up till 1 or 2 a.m. tying flies even though my 8 a.m. class was quickly approaching. I learned a handful of pike flies from Niklaus Bauer, Daniel Holm, and Norbert Renaud. I tried and tried again to master deer hair with the help of Pat Cohen’s DVD series. I’d watch and re-watch Streamers on Steroids and try to digest every word that came out of Kelly’s mouth. Basically, it was the only thing on my mind. I doodled almost every hour of every class, various fly designs, and when and where to use them and what for….ect… even now as I’m writing this ideas are popping in and out of my head.

ice fishing pike

As summer approached, I was faced with a tough decision. Head back out to Kelly’s, or find an internship that could lead to a career. Taking a few deep breaths and a bitter pill of reality, I thought it best to choose a career option. I ended up in Northern Wisconsin as a Field Technician for a research Scientist. Work was fun and I enjoyed every second of it, but there was always fishing after work…which I enjoyed quite a bit more. I chased northern pike, smallies, and musky, and quickly realized how much I loved my local predators. This was the reason why I started fly fishing in the first place after all. I tied and fished every spare moment I could find.

Duluth, MN

This past fall I relocated to Duluth, MN with my beautiful wife who landed her dream job as a Civil Engineer. My internship was seasonal, and had come to an end at this point. One night, my wife came home from work and simply stated “So, have you started selling flies yet?” It had semi-jokingly been talked about that last year at Tech, and throughout the summer. We were comfortable on her salary, and having my wife’s support, I quickly dived into what has become Brammer’s Custom Flies.

Now here I am. I tie flies full time, and have met some awesome people doing it. I have never felt so encouraged by my family, friends, and even random strangers who see my stuff on the internet. I guess when you think about tying flies all day for 3 years straight you might as well do something about it eh? If there is a place for me in this crazy world of fly fishing, I’d like nothing more than to be a part of it.

I design streamers, I fish for anything that wants to eat them, and I want to share everything I know with anyone who wants to listen.

-Gunnar Brammer

Morena (Golden Dorado Fly)
Can be use or fishing golden dorado, siluro, taímen, tucunare, tigerfish, big mouth bass, musky, pike, nile perch…

Hook: Rise 11019 #3/0 to 5/0
Thread: UNI 3/0 o UTC 140
eyes: lead eyes o dumbell eyes with 3D epoxy eyes.
Tail: red bucktail, 2 black schlappen feathers and 2 black genetic saddles feathers, “very long” and webby.
body: black craft fur, cross cut.
Paint: silver o white permanent marker.

This model is ideal for fly fishing for Dorado and is a very simple design to build.
The Golden Dorado is a formidably strong and voracious fish that gives us one of the most spectacular sports fishing in the world, either fly or conventional equipment.
Among the important foods for this large predator that nothing in the huge rivers of South America are called “Morena” among which the “Morena pintada” (Gymnotus carapo) is mimicked with this model.

Here are the final Flies Around the Net for 2016. It has been a year of good vibes and good times for FrankenFly. I want to thank all of you for coming and visiting the website. I’m glad all of you are finding it interesting enough to come back to the site to get even more into fly fishing! I love this sport and I’m glad all of you do too! Here’s to an even better 2017!

Thank you!
-Paul

Norbert at his best, cranking out a big pike fly! I think Norbert always has a lot of ingenuity in his flies. Pay attention to some of his work on this one and enjoy!

Tony Sandrone

I’ve been following Tony and NightMare Musky Flies (on Instagram mainly), for quite awhile now, and I’ve been very impressed with the quality of flies Tony is tying and putting out there. He has several types of modern musky flies that look killer and are catching big fish! Flies like Kraken, Beast Changer, Darkhorse, Dingle Barry, and Zero Gravity.  Below Tony tells us a little more about himself and how NightMare Musky Flies got started. You can follow NightMare Musky Flies on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nightmaremuskyflies/ or on Instagram @nightmaremuskyflies

-Paul

From Tony Sandrone:
“I have been an avid fisherman since I was a child. I grew up in Southern Wisconsin, moved to central Wisconsin in 1998 and was introduced to fly fishing by a buddy in 2007. It was all over from there! I started fishing for panfish, but quickly progressed into targeting larger fish with a fly rod. After moving to Eagle River in 2010, I found myself working at local fishing shops and guiding. Once I realized I could not purchase a predator fly locally to fit my needs, my mission began. Which led to the start of Nightmare Musky Flies.

Being immersed in the world of conventional fishing gear has played a pivotal role in my fly tying style. Conventional lures such as the Bulldog, Mag 10 Bucktails, and the Bucher Shallow Raider all play a role in my design process. My flies are heavily influenced by tyers such as Blane Chocklett, Niklaus Bauer, and Brian Wise to name a few. My main focus is on large articulated flies. There’s nothing quite like seeing a fly the size of a muppet getting inhaled boatside by a crocodile!

Being fortunate enough to work with great companies such as; Flymen Fishing Co, Superfly, Partridge Hooks, Hareline, and Wiggle Tails, allows me to produce the quality flies that I do. With the advancement of fly tying materials and the caliber of tyers today, I’m excited to see what the future holds.”

Eric Grajewski caught this beast on a Peanut Butter Kraken

Paul Monaghan ties up a Black Back Wiggletail. Enjoy!

Generous amounts of bucktail, flash and Nayat (Snow Runner) create an awesome baitfish profile. Add a wiggletail to tempt those big Pike and Muskie..

Material List:

Hook/Rig: Sakuma Manta 546 6/0, Knot2Kinky Titanium 55lb, shrinktube, crimp, bead (optional) and Holo gold Jumbo Slim wiggletail and Mustad Fastac clip.

Thread 100d GSP white
Bucktail in white and medium dunn
Nayat (Snow Runner) in grey and black
Red wool roving
Black wool roving mixed with black angelina fibre
White Deer Creek Mega Lazer dub ( or use white wool roving mixed with silver angelina fibre)
Metz Natural grizzly saddle
Hedron Magnum Flashabou in Moonlight
Hedron standard Flashabou in silver and black
Hedron Mirage in pink
Holofusion in opal
Jerkbaitmania 12mm eyes

From Ahrex:
“Tied by Morten Valeur. A large streamer for pike and musky. Tied on a light hook (Ahrex PR351 Light Predator Barbless) and with Fish Mask and Dragon Eyes from Flymen Fishing Company. Easy to cast but very much alive under water.”

Daniel Holm ties his Molten Core tube fly.

From Fly Fish the Mitt:
“This musky fly has been very effective for me. I started tying it this last summer for pike and musky with good success. I’ve tied it in a few different variations of colors but this one seems to be the goto for the rivers we fish. Credit to Eli of Great Lakes Fly (www.greatlakesfly.com). I started tying it after I got some Foosa’s from Eli. It’s sort of the same idea as the Foosa but not as complex…probably not tied as well either. It’s a simple pattern to tie that doesn’t take too long and has been pretty effective.”

This is Brad Bohen tying his Buford. A pike and muskie fly that Brad designed. This appeared in an issue of Southern Culture on the Fly emagazine. This has become a very popular fly in the pike and muskie world.
However, I noticed that I had not posted about the Buford on FrankenFly before, so I definitely wanted to do that.
-Paul J. Beel

NOTE: This is Brad Bohen’s Buford tied by Paul Monaghan. As Paul states in the video, he ties it a little bit sparser than Brad. Also, you will notice that Paul uses a shank on his in the back. Brad just ties his on a single large hook as stated in the above video.
-Paul J. Beel

From Paul Monogham:
“Don’t ignore this fly, as it’s a true pike catcher on my rivers. Inspired by it’s creator ‘Brad Bohen’ and awesome variants by the likes of David (Sully) O’Sullivan, Tony Sandrone (Nightmare Musky Flies) and many more. I’ve tied this variant sparse to aid casting and speed up the tying (20mins). For muskies add more bucktail.”