gfen
Active member
- Joined
- Apr 8, 2007
- Messages
- 6,639
Look, there was some sort of fancy sulphur swap, but I can't be bothered to try and tie like eleventy billion flies to trade, I can barely be assed to tie a handful for myself (I tied six royal wulffs for the jam, that was the sum total of flies tied in the last few months, I think).
Anyways, sulphurs and all that. Last year I had it all really come together for me and boost my ego to a point where I thought I knew what the hell I was doing. I was wrong, but I still cling to two patterns that worked, one for the top and one for the bottom.
First off, my second favourite dry fly, the Fran Betters' Usual
There's not much to it, really. One material. And if you're super cheap, you can pretty much get away with zero waste.
Bulk of the hair comes from the front, by the toes. I'll flesh out the scrap pile I use for the body with a little bit from the heel side. I've tied alot of flies from this foot, figure its about halfway used up. $3 for like two seasons worth of flies? Hell yeah, its a bargin!
Fran liked orange thread, and I like it too. Its flashy, and looks great under the fur. It'll bleed through, so it'll make your Usual extra sulphurery.
Cut some fur from the toes, hold tips and pull out the short junk from the stem. Tie in as a tail. Repeat for a wing. Put the short junk in a pile, cut a little more from the heel, and blend it in the palm of your hand.
Yeap, just like that. We won't waste any.
Now, the offical Betters way was touch dubbing, but I don't bother. I like loops. They're fun, easy, and bouyant as hell.
So, first you loop and wax it.
Trap hair from your scrap pile inside it.
Spin 'er up and let it get locked in.
Wrap the loop around, tie it off, and you're done. Biggity bam!
The other one I really loved to use last year was the yellow pennell, another fly that like the Usual can be tied in just about any variation of colour. The floss body will take on the hue of the under thread, so you can use that to give it an almost translucent quality. Proper floss body flies were supposed to be tied over white thread, switching to black for the head only. By using hte same fire orange, the whole fly will go orangish under the yellow floss, or in this case, I used olive to give it a more greenish, natural cast.
Silver oval tinsel tag, pheasant tippet tail, yellow silk body, and silver ribbing. Any light colour webby hackle works for a collar. The original reciple called for long, soft #OOPS# (that word was another term for rooster) hackle, but I'm pro-partridge. I also put a little orange dubbing ball in for a thorax to help keep the hackle out and moving.
Start your sulphur fun by tying on a Usual for an indicator, and then drop a Pennell about a foot below. Fish dead drift and into the swing. The Usual will skate along, and the Pennell will lift. When the duns get rockign, clip off the Pennell and fish the Usual through the rest of the night.
Anyways, sulphurs and all that. Last year I had it all really come together for me and boost my ego to a point where I thought I knew what the hell I was doing. I was wrong, but I still cling to two patterns that worked, one for the top and one for the bottom.
First off, my second favourite dry fly, the Fran Betters' Usual
There's not much to it, really. One material. And if you're super cheap, you can pretty much get away with zero waste.
Bulk of the hair comes from the front, by the toes. I'll flesh out the scrap pile I use for the body with a little bit from the heel side. I've tied alot of flies from this foot, figure its about halfway used up. $3 for like two seasons worth of flies? Hell yeah, its a bargin!
Fran liked orange thread, and I like it too. Its flashy, and looks great under the fur. It'll bleed through, so it'll make your Usual extra sulphurery.
Cut some fur from the toes, hold tips and pull out the short junk from the stem. Tie in as a tail. Repeat for a wing. Put the short junk in a pile, cut a little more from the heel, and blend it in the palm of your hand.
Yeap, just like that. We won't waste any.
Now, the offical Betters way was touch dubbing, but I don't bother. I like loops. They're fun, easy, and bouyant as hell.
So, first you loop and wax it.
Trap hair from your scrap pile inside it.
Spin 'er up and let it get locked in.
Wrap the loop around, tie it off, and you're done. Biggity bam!
The other one I really loved to use last year was the yellow pennell, another fly that like the Usual can be tied in just about any variation of colour. The floss body will take on the hue of the under thread, so you can use that to give it an almost translucent quality. Proper floss body flies were supposed to be tied over white thread, switching to black for the head only. By using hte same fire orange, the whole fly will go orangish under the yellow floss, or in this case, I used olive to give it a more greenish, natural cast.
Silver oval tinsel tag, pheasant tippet tail, yellow silk body, and silver ribbing. Any light colour webby hackle works for a collar. The original reciple called for long, soft #OOPS# (that word was another term for rooster) hackle, but I'm pro-partridge. I also put a little orange dubbing ball in for a thorax to help keep the hackle out and moving.
Start your sulphur fun by tying on a Usual for an indicator, and then drop a Pennell about a foot below. Fish dead drift and into the swing. The Usual will skate along, and the Pennell will lift. When the duns get rockign, clip off the Pennell and fish the Usual through the rest of the night.
