Zonker
The Zonker uses a strip of natural or dyed rabbit fur to create extraordinary undulating motion in the water. The mylar tubing body provides flash and a baitfish-like profile. Fish it with a strip-pause-strip retrieve in pools, eddies, and along undercut banks. It's especially lethal on large brown trout and lake-run fish. The white/silver version imitates shiners; olive and tan suggest sculpin and creek chubs.
- Type
- streamer (Streamer)
- Hook sizes
- #2–8
- Target species
- trout, bass
- Difficulty
- intermediate
- Best seasons
- spring, summer, fall
Materials
- hook: 3X long streamer hook #2–8
- thread: White or silver 6/0
- body: Pearl mylar tubing slipped over hook shank
- underbody: White chenille to shape body
- wing: Rabbit fur strip (natural, olive, or white), tied at bend and head
- hackle: Red hackle fibers behind head (optional, as throat)
Tying steps
- Mount a size 2–8 3XL hook; cut a piece of pearl mylar tubing, remove the core, and slide over the hook shank.
- Tie the mylar tube down at the bend and at the eye with thread wraps, trimming the excess at the bend.
- Fill the inside of the mylar with white chenille or wool and tie the body off at the 3/4 mark.
- Cut a rabbit fur strip matching the hook length, stretching it slightly and tying it at the bend.
- Bring the rabbit fur strip over the body and tie it down just behind the eye.
- Optionally add a sparse red hackle beard behind the eye as a throat.
- Build a neat head with thread; whip finish and cement.
- Apply two coats of clear head cement to the completed thread head, letting the first coat dry before applying the second for maximum durability.