Materials:
Hook - Daiichi 1120, #18.
Thread - UTC 70, black.
Body - Ultra Wire, small, brown.
Head - SLF dubbing, brown/black.
This is my first flyswap contribution ever. I love giving away flies, and I've traded lots of flies in fishing camps and parking lots, but I've never been in a formal swap like this. I'm looking forward to seeing the rest of the entries.
I chose this pattern based based on the theme "Home Water - Sure Thing". Well, this isn't a fly I use on my current home waters, but it was a sure thing for me on my home trout waters back in Montana. I didn't do a steelhead fly because most folks that will be getting these flies don't live anywhere near steelhead, but do have access to trout or other insect eaters.
I know this is a simple fly that doesn't showcase any specific tying skills or methods, but what it lacks in complexity, it makes up for in efficiency (you can tie a bunch of them fast) and effectiveness (this thing catches fish). It sinks well fro a little fly, and it is impressionistic enouggh that I think fish take it for mayfly, caddis, or midge. There are alot of small brown bugs in most streams. If you like, try adding a little tail of brown antron, pheasant tail, or whatever.
I hope everyone in the swap is able to use it somewhere they fish, and maybe a few others will tie up and fish a few based on this page.
Fish on,
Matt
Step-By-Step:
Follow the pics…
- The materials.
- The naked hook.
- Wrap the front 1/4 of the hook shank with thread.
- Tie in the wire, held on a second bobbin for ease of wrapping later on. Tie the end of the wire in near the eye and wrap it down the whole length of shank, back to the bend.
- Wrap the thread back forward and tie it off at the head with a half hitch or a two turn whip finish, and cut the thread. This leaves only the wire on a bobbin, getting the thread out of the way to make wrapping the wire faster and easier.
- Wrap the body with the wire up to behind the eye.
- Clip off the wire at the hook. The memory in the wire will keep it in place, you do not need to tie it down at this point.
- When I'm tying up a bunch of these all at one time, I like to "stage tie" them. I'll do a whole batch of them up to the point where I cut the wire off, and then go back and finish each on later.
- Now, start the thread again at the head of the fly. Use minimal wraps to bind the end of the wire down and prepare a base for the dubbing.
- Dub on a bit of SLF. This takes very little dubbing.
- Wrap the head with the dubbing, tie off, and clip the thread.
- The finished fly.