A little while back I agreed to do a step by step for Christmas. So, here it is, just in time. Bassmaster also agreed to do one on needles. I’m sure that will be
so rather than compete with him, I’ll do one that will hopefully complement what he does. Here, I’ll show how to turn an ordinary needle into a “hypnotic needle”. I apologize up front for any poor photos
I only have two hands. It is also hard to get a good shot of this thing that will show the “hypnotic” effects. Anyway….
We’ll start with a needle that has already been turned, hook and eye holes drilled, primed, and painted. I’ve already added weight in the belly and have a hole drilled in the tail for a tail weight too. On this example, the tail hole is 5/16 inch and I’ll use a ¼ inch diameter slug. Note that only a very basic paint scheme is needed. In this example, I’ve done one with silver pearl belly and a pearl purple back/eyes. Also, note that the diameter of the needle right now is 0.73 inches and I have drilled out a slightly larger than usual hole for the nose grommet. The reasons for this will become clear shortly. The “hypnotic” part of the needle comes from a section of flex cord (available at many fly tying shops) that is wrapped around the needle. Here, I’m using a 3/8 inch diameter piece that is pearl color. Note that this diameter is less than that of the needle. This stuff stretches pretty well. The 3/8 inch can be forced over a plug with a diameter of 0.8 inches. Do them a little less than this to make it easier on yourself. The stuff I found at the local fly shop had a black thread down each side. A couple of careful snips with the scissors, a little pulling on the thread, and it was removed.
Here is the needle and the flex cord at the start:
Threaded Mode