Blob

[flytec]

Hi,
I'm curious: who invented the blob? and what is the original dressing?

flytec

[Chunky]

I believe this was answered in previous threads...here's a thread to get you started

Blob Quiz

C

[Rob Edmunds]

I'm sure that many will lay claim to having invented the Blob, however the origins of the fly regarding English anglers are as follows:

1997- In a match on Rutland in autumn of 1997 local angler Paul Wild was beaten 8 – 1 by an unknown Scottish Angler on a unknown fly.
However Paul was given an example on the fly by the angler, it was just a Black Ball of Fritz on a wide gape hook - Dave Doherty "Curly" nicknamed it the Blob.

Curly then added a small black marabou tail and the black blob as we know it was born…

However......

Lee Henfrey was the first to create an Orange Blob style fly called “Tango” in the late 1980’s, although he never released it to anyone except anglers in the ACA team. (Graham Pearson, Rob Sosby, Ron Gent, Julian Hubbard, Clive Loveland )

Martin Introna created the “Captain Scarlet” a Coral Blob pattern with a orange hackle..in the Autumn of 1998 that we Rutland Kingfishers used to win the House of Hardy International Final on Rutland.

It was a result of winning this match, that others took notice of the blob and it became a mainstream pattern in 1999.

Regarding 2 Tone Blobs..... we the ACA team began experementing with colours almost immediately and in the season of 2000 we were using a 2 tone Orange and Fluro Yellow Blob -We affectionatly nicknamed it the Tequila Blob(after the cocktail) and it still is our best pattern.......although the Black with Holo Red version (dennis the menece) also takes some beating

[oakham orange]

I can remember using a fly called a "Sleech" when I was younger in the early 90's. I was simply, fritz wound onto a hook with a marabou tail.

One of the best versions was using olive fritz with an orange marabou.

Id say a better question would be, when did "FRITZ" appear on the market as id say the blob as we know it know was simply a progression of the early trout lures tied using fritz.

Nothing new in fly tying Although there are plenty of nearly new innovations

[A. Fluker]

The Sleech

As pictured in Steve Parton's the "Fly School Notes"

Steve says devised by somebody in Northern Ireland!

Quoting from the notes - I am sure he won't mind.

It would be the late eighties I suppose that Peter Veniard rang me to tell me he had got some weird chenille full of Lurex bits from Italy and what should he do with it. So I bought some and told customers in teh trade and sold a bit of it. The first main taker was a Northern Irish tyer called Dave Girvan, and it was he who found out how to dye it and developed it. The Sleech, arguably the most successful small water Ulster lure of all time came from or out of his early dyed cactus chenille patterns.

Steve goes on with the development of the chenille!

[fishon2]

I cant remember when fritz came out, but years ago about 1980 when i fished the derwent res we used black wool with a gold tinsel running through it you could get it with silver tinsel as well, we rapped it around a long shank hook pity lose and it took loads of fish gold was always best, we then started tying a wing in with bear tail and they were good as well, and a few months ago wile in my loft i found a camera film case and in it was one of the gold flies a few black n peacocks and some other things, i was telling my mate about them and he put it on and had a fish or 2 on it so they still work, i suppose it was a kind of blob, how materials have changed, you can still buy that wool.

[skinny]

Originally Posted by Loopy

The Sleech

As pictured in Steve Parton's the "Fly School Notes"

Steve says devised by somebody in Northern Ireland!

Quoting from the notes - I am sure he won't mind.

It would be the late eighties I suppose that Peter Veniard rang me to tell me he had got some weird chenille full of Lurex bits from Italy and what should he do with it. So I bought some and told customers in teh trade and sold a bit of it. The first main taker was a Northern Irish tyer called Dave Girvan, and it was he who found out how to dye it and developed it. The Sleech, arguably the most successful small water Ulster lure of all time came from or out of his early dyed cactus chenille patterns.

Steve goes on with the development of the chenille!

Was talkin to a Campbell baird today about this, Campbell was able to tell me the history, Dave Girvin from Belfast was the first person to dye and use fritz in tyin flies, ime told it was first called spectra sleech, Dave gave it to Ken Waterworth from Carrickfergus, he tied in a long marabou tail and a spectra sleech body and a set of chain eyes, that's where the sleech name came from. Campbell thinks this was about 1985-1990. He says he still has some of the original stuff and that when Dave gave up dyin materials, Campbell bought his dyin stuff of him and that's what cb uses today for his colours. He also sayed that Dave was the guy who dyed the colour goldie for him in 1987 and he still uses in today .

hope this helps. skinny

[oakham orange]

Ken Waterworth Now that was one great Rainbow angler. I used to know Ken well.

A resident at Northern Ireland's Straid fishery and a master at fishing lures and nymphs. Surprised he never had a got at Loughstyle on the big Loughs

Still see him about Carrickfergus from time to time but not sure if he still fishes as much.