This Quick pattern uses few very common materials and moves very energetically when quickly stripped then allowed to float back to the surface. It is very good for many ambush predators near cover. It will take Baby Tarpon and Snook in the Mangroves as well as Redfish and Sea Trout in similar inshore situations. Bass, Pike, Crappie and Bowfin love it when they are near shore or in shallow water near cover.
- Hook: Short shank hook #2 to 2/0 straighten any offset
- Thread: Fire Orange 210 Denier like FlyMaster+
- Tail: Generous Marabou, 4 times hook length or more
- Tail Flash: Flashabou, 2 to 4 strands folded to each side
- Head: 2 strips 3mm foam tied back and trimmed in front
- Mangrove Colors: White, Tan, Chartreuse
- Freshwater: Same & Black, Purple-(Pink, Purple, or Black head)
This Tarpon ether took a Foam Diver (Tan or White) or he took a White Popping Wedge because that was all I used for the whole week.
Here are the materials needed. For the foam head-diving plates, use a knife and straight edge to cut a strip of 3mm foam slightly wider than the hook gap. For #4 or #6 smaller Crappie or Trout versions use 2mm foam and 140 denier thread.
It will take a lot of tight wraps with the thick thread to crush down the foam tight enough so it can not be twisted out of position.
It is hard to put too much Marabou in. Excess Flash (rarely happens) but can be cut out.
Wider Foam pushes more water, makes more diving action and pops it back to the surface quickly.
I use a knife to bevel the ends of the strip on the underside of the diving plates for a life like look and to make it more streamlined so it dives and darts quicker.
To get the first turns of thread tight, keep tight tension as you go around, avoid sawing motions of pulling tighter wraps you have already laid down. At first use the left hand to tightly pinch the foam tight at-behind where you are wrapping thread. Actively use aggressive pinching to help the thread crush down the foam.
Above we see the many more tight turns of thread needed, spread out over a tie down band band nearly as wide as the foam thickness. As you wrap the additional turns needed, keep the tension fairly tight and even as you go around. Use the left hand to pinch the foam behind the tie in point and slightly stretch the foam back. This makes the foam easier to crush with the thread, and it makes space for each additional wrap to fall right next to and behind the preceding wraps.
The excess forward foam was trimmed about 1/2 a mm too close. Now position the thread closer to the eye than shown above.
We see the foam is wrapped down right behind the bulge of the hook eye. Now we will stretch the foam plate back to work in the additional wraps needed. This will move it back a bit closer to where it should be near the end of the back foam plate.
Whip Finish in front of the foam and trim excess foam from the front and off the bottom.
One more fish.
