The Stinger

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The stinger necessitates itself when presenting flies in a swung fashion. The swing presentation is characterized by a side and then tailing away fly profile. This presentation elicits a lot of follows that result in investigative grabs and complex eats as a result of the sheer volume of fish that see the fly. Because of this, the hook is most effective when it is positioned at the rear of the fly. Traditionally, the only way to position the hook point at the rear was a long-shanked hook. Long-shanked hooks are notorious for premature releases due to the leverage the shank provides to the fish. Luckily, for the modern angler, there are two different ways to achieve this position without the use of a long-shank or a tube. In addition, we can have the hook in a ridged or free swinging conformation - depending on the rigging style.

Both free swinging and ridge hook positions have their merit.

The ridged hook position is achieved with wire. The main benefit to this style of rigging is the hook is always oriented to - well - hook things! No matter what happens to the fly (bad cast and it fouls on itself, etc.), the hook will always be exposed and poised to “kill.” The “sacrifice” an angler makes when using this style of bug is there is no camouflage for the hook and wire, something a trout could see and potentially refuse.

By utilizing a braid material and Jerry French’s twisted hitch, we can affix the hook to hide. If you don’t want to hitch your braid to the tail material, the hook can always be tied the traditional way to the hide. This camouflages the hook and braid and also provides a softer, more lifelike substrate for the fish to grab. The downside to this rig is it has a tendency to foul, and a fouled bug is not an effective one.

Here is a video from Waters West in Port Angeles on how to rig the twisted hitch: In my eyes, no rigging is superior, by integrating both styles into your box you will always have a fly that fits the situation.