How to Tie Foam Popping Bugs
Warm summer afternoons are made for flyfishing on small ponds with foam poppers. Panfish such as bream, crappie and blue gill are abundant in many farm and community drainage ponds. A foam popper resembles a variety of food on which panfish feed. Foam poppers are widely available for purchase from bait and tackle and sporting goods stores. However, foam poppers are also tied at home by many anglers to create custom and unique designs.
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Things You'll Need
- Fly tying vise
- Size 15 fly hook
- Fly tying thread
- 1/4-inch wide closed cell foam
- Scissors
- Yarn
- Rubber leg material
Instructions
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1
Place a size 15 fly hook in the jaws of a fly tying vise. Position the hook with the shank on top and the point on the bottom.
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2
Wrap the shank of the hook with fly tying thread. Begin forming the wraps just below the eye of the hook and wrap down to the bend of the hook.
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3
Place a 2-inch strip of 1/4-inch wide closed cell foam on the shank of the hook. Position the foam with one end even with the base of the hook eye. Wrap thread around the foam and hook shank from the bend up to the hook eye.
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4
Fold the foam forward over the shank and over the hook eye. Wrap thread around the foam from below the hook eye to the middle of the shank.
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5
Fold the foam back down onto the shank. Wrap the thread around the foam in the middle of the shank 6 to 8 turns. Cut the excess foam extending from the wraps at the mid point of the shank with scissors.
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6
Hold a 2-inch long piece of brightly colored yard along the shank of the hook. Wrap the thread around the yarn, foam and hook shank several times then trim the ends of the yarn to within 1/4 inch of the wrap to serve as a strike indicator.
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7
Place two lengths of rubber leg material across the body of the foam popper. Secure the legs with wraps of thread at the same point that the yarn indicator was attached. Tie the thread off and trim the legs with scissors to the desired length.
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