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Crappie Day Saver Step-by-Step:
While testing the Mini Leech Jig posted earlier in December, I stumbled across a population of black crappie. Though none were particularly large, they had me once again thinking about restocking my springtime sacalait box.
Scouring the web, I stumbled across a number of prospective patterns including the basis for the pattern shown below. Fairly light and consisting of materials that imparted a decent amount of flash and movement, the fly produced an excellent tapered profile when wet. Tied in the right proportions, it very closely matches the profile of the “baby shad” style soft plastics favored by spin anglers.
While the original was tied on the style of small jig popular among Fluff Butt tyers locally, I wanted something a little lighter for the shallow swamps near to home. The pattern below is just that. Riding hook point up, it is light enough to cast with my 3-wt and fishes well in the 6″ to 15″ deep waters of my local swamp.
| Materials: | ||
|---|---|---|
 60-degree Jig Hook (#12) |  140 Denier (White) |  3D Adhesive Eyes (3/16″; Chartreuse) |
 Rabbit fur from Zonker (White) |  Ice Dub (Pearl) |  Senyo Laser Dub (White) |
 UV Resin |  Lead-free Wire (0.020) |
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Crappie Day Saver Step-by-Step Tying Instructions:
(Mobile Viewers: Click images to enlarge)
Tips and Tricks
- Weight & Depth – As noted above, the fly, as shown, is intended to be se fished shallow. If probing the depths is your intent, consider swapping out the lead-free wraps for a tungsten bead. No point in fishing a fly that can’t get down to the fish.
Proof of Concept
The post-Christmas weather has been surprisingly favorable here in south Louisiana, and this morning was no exception. Heading out early, I was greeted by sunny skies and temperatures approaching 80 F as I arrived at my roadside pull off. Admittedly not ideal, as sunny skies and clear water often lead to spooked fish, I began prospecting the shallow swamp with the white Crappie Day Saver shown above.
Though slow at first, fishing quickly picked up as bluegill, warmouth and black crappie all fell for the imitation in short order. While none were of bragging size, it proved a good first run for the new fly. With any luck, it will truly prove its worth as the larger crappie move in as the weather (if the weather?) finally cools.
Happy New Year!
-Chris
Species Caught on the Crappie Day Saver Fly to Date:
- Warmouth
- Bluegill
- Black Crappie
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Saw this on Instagram and was gonna ask about the fly. Looks like you read my mind! Thanks!
Happy to help. Hoping I can put it to use Saturday morning and get a jump start on the 2022 Mixed Bag.
Nice looking fly! I will try to tie some.
Thanks, Chuck! Hope it works for you as well.