Description The WIGGLE TAIL ARTICULATED SHANK is an innovative fly tying item, created by the Flymen Fishing Company of Charlotte, North Carolina, USA designed to simplify the tying of articulated trout flies. For many years fly tiers have been tying these types of flies by cutting off the bend of a hook in order to get a shank upon which to tie and attached the tail to another hook. The Wiggle-Tail Shank is simply a ready-to-tie shank that eliminates the need (and cost) of “sacrificing a hook” and is also flexible enough to be used for a wide range of fly sizes. The Wiggle-Tail Shank has a wire diameter roughly the equivalent of a #18 hook, but a length of 20mm which is roughly equivalent to a #6 hook. The unhardened steel shank can easily be cut using a small pair of side-cutters to match the size of fly you want to tie . Because of the thin wire diameter, you will always have a thin, elegant tail section of your fly, even for the smallest of flies. For example, you may want to tie a large, articulated stonefly using a #6 hook and the 20mm shank length may be the perfect size for a nice long body. Then you want to tie a size # 16 articulated emerger, so you then simply tie the tail the correct size (maybe 8mm long) and then cut-off the excess shank you don’t need. The tail of your emerger has the right proportion and taper because it is tied on the shank (now only 8mm long) which is still the equivalent diameter of a #18 hook. This simple product eliminates the need to sacrifice a hook to get a shank! A single product flexible enough for flies in the #6 to #18 hook size range. The long shank is easily trimmed to the tail length needed to match the size of fly being tied. By design the shank can be bent if a curved tail is desired on the fly. Wire diameter thin enough to tie articulated flies as small as #18 and even light enough for dry flies. 20 Shanks per pack
