Paddle Tail Trout Fishing Lure

Garth Coghill of Rotorua is the creator of this excellent modern trout fishing lure, or streamer fly. It is so realistic in appearance that at first glance it looks like a small hard-bodied trout fishing lure. To the touch it is soft yet firm. In fact it feels much like a smelt fish that it is tied to imitate.

It is made in a similar way to a clipped deer hair muddler pattern. Instead of being tied from deer hair acrylic craft fur is used instead. By tying in alternate colours of fur it is possible to build up an amazingly lifelike grizzle hackle barred effect. This trout fly really is a brilliant creation and great trout taker to boot!

In Derek Quilliam’s excellent book The Complete Guide to New Zealand Trout Lures he talks about the hooks used to tie the Paddle Tail being modified with a 15 degree bend upwards one third of the way along the hook shank from the eye. I have a number of Paddle Tails that were sent to me some years ago and note that the hooks do not have this modification.

A dubbing loop of some 150mm is made with the Kevlar thread towards the tail. Use a Y shaped dubbing whirl to hold the fur in the dubbing loop. Cut a thin strip of acrylic fur about 8mm wide by 100mm long. Trap the fur in the loop by spinning the dubbing whirl. Then cut of the synthetic backing. Wind the tightly trapped fur towards the head laying each turn flat against the previous one. Secure just behind the head and tie off. Glue with a drop of Super Glue. Finally trim to shape with a pair of very sharp scissors. I find it easier to manage the Super Glue if you get a dozen or so lures to the same production stage and then glue them all at once.

Fish as you would any lure with a stop/start stripping action.

Hook: 4-8 Mustad 3666, or Black Magic B4 Lure Hook .

Thread: Kevlar.

Tail: Two or four matched hackles tied in back to back. Colours to suit.

Body: Acrylic craft fur dubbed. Colour to match tail.

Eyes: Either tie in linked bead eyes with a figure eight knot at the head; or add small doll’s eyes with Super Glue after trimming body.