Rio's King Kinky Muddler

I stumbled onto my own Muddler variation by accident. I was tying a synthetic baitfish in the style of New Jersey's Steve Farrar, with blended Kinky Fiber high-tied on the top and bottom of the hook shank. I had been a little sloppy in inadvertently distributing much of the hair to the sides of the shank, and then got a little overly aggressive in trimming the fly. The Muddler Minnow, of course, needs no "improvement," but there are benefits to creating a "spun" head with synthetic hair. Unlike hollow deer hair, synthetic hairs like Kinky Fiber (variously sold as Slinky Fiber or Synthetic Yak Hair) are solid and non-buoyant, so you can create a fly that sinks without adding weight. And unlike opaque deer hair, Kinky Fiber is translucent. The colors typically sold as "white" or "off white" visually wash out in the water, effectively mimicking the see-through characteristic of so many prey species.

A mixture of different colors of Kinky Fiber blends beautifully to create all kinds of highly imitative hues, and also mixes well with fine-fibered flash, such as Angel Hair, allowing you to create just the right level of shine in your flies. You just can't get this natural-looking effect from mixing dyed deer hair.

Synthetic hair also provides key mechanical advantages. Because the hair isn't really "spun" perpendicular to the hook shank, but rather layered back on itself at a 45-degree angle, it blends seamlessly with the tail and wing materials to create an uninterrupted baitfish profile.