I fish all my giant flies tied on MAGNUM Waddington shanks in the hangback style.

I bend the rear loop "down-eye" and the front loop "up-eye" and the thing effectively fishes like a tube fly. I tie a 1.5 -2.0 inch Perfection Loop into a 2 ft length of 40# Max UG. Loop a Sickle Octopus/Big River Bait single hook on there and thread the free end of the leader backward thru each "eye" of the fly. The hangback is achieved in a very simple manner. The bulky knot of the Perfection Loop hangs up in the rear "eye" to keep it from pulling all the way thru to the hook.

The 40# makes a great cushion to guard against bite offs from toothy bucks. Also gives me something meaty to grab when it comes time to de-hook.

I tie in a short piece of 15# Max UG between my bite tippet and the end of my T14... pre-planned fail zone for when I snag up so as not to lose the entire Skagit head and tip when I try to break it off.
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"Let every angler who loves to fish think what it would mean to him to find the fish were gone." (Zane Grey)

"If you don't kill them, they will spawn." (Carcassman)


The Keen Eye MD
Long Live the Kings!