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Bill Babler
Bill Babler

Turner Jones micro jigs

First question, first.  Yes he made several jigs and prototypes.  He made Bill Beck and I some float and fly jigs also and they were unreal for early season Bass.  Merlin Olsen was a fly fisherman and was fishing the Green River, either early 80's or late 70's.  His guide used the "New fly/jig and of course they ripped them."  Merlin immediately wrote Mr. Jones and asked if he was in need or would like a spokes person for his Micro's.  Merlin said he would be that person free of any obligation other than Mr. Jones giving him all the Micro Jigs he needed to keep catching trout.  Deal was done and a match was made.

Prior to and after Turner's passing his Grand Daughter who lives pretty much off the grid made them for Phil and a few other of their better clients.  She  ran out of materials and there was some problem with stolen molds and other equipment from Turner's estate.  Kind of a tangled web, to say the very least.

At one time Turner took a partner, a young woman who he thought was going to help him.  She immediately stole lots of written information and molds and sold them to Lucky Strike and that's how they started making the product.  Thru much legal battling Mr. Jones got this stopped as he related to me. The jigs Lucky Strike made were similar but trash, there is a bonding process that adheres the  miniscule single strand of Hen Hackle under a colored collar of shrink wrap that holds this together.  There is no tie thread or no marabou as Turner said it makes the jig way to heavy and not realistic.  Both thread and marabou add bulk and this fly is extremely streamline and zero bulk.

After he molded and painted the head and added the eyes he then added the shrink wrap and hackle body and then clear coated the head and the attaching wrap.  Multiple steps that he said had to be exercised correctly to make the fly as life like as possible.  He said it is either a newly hatched sculpin or a small minnow imitation.  He also made Sculpin jigs that the head was an identical match for a very small sculpin.

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We ended up this morning with 62 fish for 3 clients on this jig.  The fish here are extremely fat and healthy with lots of fish in the 13 to 17 inch range.

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3 hours ago, duckydoty said:

The 10X (Dinky Doty) jig round 2 has received a few modifications. Being that prototype #1 was 1/10,000 of an ounce under weight, I had to add more mass.  Added a few hundred wraps of thread to try and build the body up some more and a couple of daps of permanent marker for the eyes.  That’s hard to do with a 10 cup coffe buzz going! Couldn’t get that sucker to hold still.

Maybe these guys will catch a fish under these desperate times of the dwindling supply of the Turner, indestructible, must have, can’t catch a fish with out, nothing comes even close, 256 (which is a lie), half micro jig.70EB4D8C-B1E2-4CBF-83D7-B40BF20659EE.jpeg

            Those look really nice Duane. My money in a bet will be on your tie. Can we have a fish off? :). 

BilletHead

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4 hours ago, duckydoty said:

The 10X (Dinky Doty) jig round 2 has received a few modifications. Being that prototype #1 was 1/10,000 of an ounce under weight, I had to add more mass.  Added a few hundred wraps of thread to try and build the body up some more and a couple of daps of permanent marker for the eyes.  That’s hard to do with a 10 cup coffe buzz going! Couldn’t get that sucker to hold still.

Maybe these guys will catch a fish under these desperate times of the dwindling supply of the Turner, indestructible, must have, can’t catch a fish with out, nothing comes even close, 256 (which is a lie), half micro jig.70EB4D8C-B1E2-4CBF-83D7-B40BF20659EE.jpeg

Duane they look great. I am certain that these would flat out get torn up by lots of different species in any Ozark creek. I would throw them with or without a float using 2# line. From hornyhead chub and longear sunfish to 14+ inch LMB and SMB. Let me know what the cost and COD for a couple dozen 😀.

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You can catch trout on anything from a marsh mellow to a hot dog.  You can also catch them on most any fly or jig that has or will ever be invented that looks like some kind of a bug or aquatic insect.  What ever you have confidence.in usually is the best deal.  Duane's jig looks fantastic, and cannot wait to try them, I'm sure they are fish catchers.

I tied some on TJ  heads and sent both Duane and Phil a picture a few weeks back.  They were tied with a lot heaver bulk similar to a wooley.  They worked on breeze and water movement, current or breeze, and worked well.  Not so much on the flat water conditions we have had recently.

That doesn't change the fact that the 1/2 micro really, really catches fish on very poor water conditions, when others fly's may struggle somewhat.  Especially now with so much moss laying  on the bottom in the restricted zone.  We used to put a scud on or near the bottom, but it catches up and gets slimey pretty quick right now.

 With flat water and boat traffic out the wazoo today I could not get them to bite either a crawler or a power worm once the SUN hit the water and the onslaught of traffic hit. They did bite the 1/2 micro olive head, olive body fished on 6X enough for my guys to catch 20 or so on it, in the catch and keep zone, as they were looking for dinner.

I'm sure they would have done just as well with something else, but going back to confidence level in what your doing, I fished the 1/2 micro.

I know I am very fortunate and get to go a lot I have taken thousands of people over the years, spending again thousands and thousands of hours on Taneycomo.  It may not be worth a heck as a fly, and my intentions was never to besmirch anyone's creation.  The only way to describe it is extremely sparse, with no bulk and very little tail  but the TJ has taken care of me and my clients on Taneycomo for over 26 yrs. and probably close to 10 thousand clients.

I'll bow out of this now as it seems I have insulted people that I really respect and had no intention of causing a stir.

Good Luck

 

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1 hour ago, Bill Babler said:

You can catch trout on anything from a marsh mellow to a hot dog.  You can also catch them on most any fly or jig that has or will ever be invented that looks like some kind of a bug or aquatic insect.  What ever you have confidence.in usually is the best deal.  Duane's jig looks fantastic, and cannot wait to try them, I'm sure they are fish catchers.

I tied some on TJ  heads and sent both Duane and Phil a picture a few weeks back.  They were tied with a lot heaver bulk similar to a wooley.  They worked on breeze and water movement, current or breeze, and worked well.  Not so much on the flat water conditions we have had recently.

That doesn't change the fact that the 1/2 micro really, really catches fish on very poor water conditions, when others fly's may struggle somewhat.  Especially now with so much moss laying  on the bottom in the restricted zone.  We used to put a scud on or near the bottom, but it catches up and gets slimey pretty quick right now.

 With flat water and boat traffic out the wazoo today I could not get them to bite either a crawler or a power worm once the SUN hit the water and the onslaught of traffic hit. They did bite the 1/2 micro olive head, olive body fished on 6X enough for my guys to catch 20 or so on it, in the catch and keep zone, as they were looking for dinner.

I'm sure they would have done just as well with something else, but going back to confidence level in what your doing, I fished the 1/2 micro.

I know I am very fortunate and get to go a lot I have taken thousands of people over the years, spending again thousands and thousands of hours on Taneycomo.  It may not be worth a heck as a fly, and my intentions was never to besmirch anyone's creation.  The only way to describe it is extremely sparse, with no bulk and very little tail  but the TJ has taken care of me and my clients on Taneycomo for over 26 yrs. and probably close to 10 thousand clients.

I'll bow out of this now as it seems I have insulted people that I really respect and had no intention of causing a stir.

Good Luck

 

                   I don't think you have stirred anything up Bill but a great discussion and some history I did not know anything about. As a matter of a fact we found one of the turner jigs in the brush at Bennett a year or so ago. I am trying to find it. This discussion has also brought out many questions on how to replicate or try to replicate this hot jig. Who knows what will become of this thread and the jigs it is already producing. Debate is healthy and sharpens the swords as we rattle them together!  I can see me sitting down at the vice soon for my spin on this jig. Everyone can bash me then :),

  BilletHead

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58 minutes ago, Bill Babler said:

I tied some on TJ  heads

Do you have more of those heads? I think I'm going to end up digging out my vise and giving these a shot.

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