Belly Scratcher Sculpin 2.0
Cheech - December, 2015
Several years ago I went on a sculpin rampage because of the number of sculpins that we have in our local rivers. There were some that came off the vise that were good, some that came off the vise that really sucked, but there were a few like El Sculpito, the Mohawk Sculpin, and the Belly Scratcher Sculpin that needed a bit of extra attention and development. The Belly Scratcher in particular was such a pain that I kind of stopped tying it for a while due to the tedious forming of the fins. I had talked to Jonathan Kiley who makes awesome latex fly parts and told him that he should develop some sculpin fins out of latex to make my pattern easier to tie. The prototypes came, and not only did he nail that shape of the fins, he included a tail with each set of fins. The tail added so much movement in the water that I decided to change the way the body was constructed. Instead of rabbit, I built the body out of a 20mm shank and some AZ diamond dub. I also noticed that the head of the fly would not keep its shape very well if I relied just on the trim job that I would give it, so I reinforced the bottom of the head with UV resin. Anyway, the initial tests have been very impressive with this new pattern and we will be releasing a larger version as well. Let us know how this bug fishes for you!
~ Cheech
- Shank: Articulated Fish Spines - 20mm Shanks (24 pack)
- Hook: Fulling Mill 36040 Streamer Stripper - 1
- Thread: Danville Flat Waxed Nylon Thread - 140 Denier - Black
- Thread: Veevus GSP - Black - 200 Denier
- Connection: Senyo Intruder Trailer Hook Wire - Black - Regular
- Tail/Fins: Kiley's Fish Finz - Mottled Olive - Medium
- Back Body: Arizona Diamond Dub - Bronze Peacock
- Front Body: Arizona Mega Simi Seal - Dark Olive
- Front Body: Palmer Chenille - Olive - Medium
- Weighting: Plummeting Tungsten Beads - Gold - 3/16" (4.6mm)
- Weighting: Plummeting Tungsten Beads - Gold - 5/32" (3.8mm)
- Head: Bruiser Blend Junior Dubbing - Brown Olive
- Tools Used: Loon Fluorescing UV Clear Fly Finish, Loon UV Clear Fly Finish - Thick (1/2 oz), Fly Tyer's Z-Ment, Chartpak Fly Tying Markers - Black, Chartpak Fly Tying Markers - Celery (Olive), Chartpak Fly Tying Markers - Delta Brown (Dark Brown), SF Fugly Packer - Original,
