so i dipped my toe in the dry fly water tonight

[eunanhendron]

This is the outcome of my first foray to dry flies - Married Quill Wing Parachute Olive Trout Fin (a mouthful, and hopefully literally for some fish!!)
I'm not entirely happy with the result as id like to have a few things back.
1. Bigger parachute hackle (much bigger) and better finished off hackle
2. smaller head
3. slightly wider wings (in terms of wing fibers)
4. dry fly hook rather than wet fly.

That said, not a bad first real effort at dry flies :shades:

Eunan

 

[SBecker]

What are the tails? Like you already said, bigger dry fly hackle. Those wings are pretty nice.

 

[eunanhendron]

Tails are dyed black pheasant tail.

 

[blueheron]

I've not seen a fly with a trout fin wing. Body is a bit robust as are the tails. Will look good in a shadow box, not so much on the water.

 

[eunanhendron]

you're probably right - but I haven't seen many flies with white/orange/pink antron posts either

 

[Volksnurse]

They fly around the old ladies at Walmart who are wearing white/orange/pink.

eunanhendron wrote:
you're probably right - but I haven't seen many flies with white/orange/pink antron posts either

 

[blueheron]

You're moving into the realm of realism with dries. The post is for the fisher and hopefully hidden above body and hackle. Parachute ties are are often inspected thoroughly especially in calmer water. I generally tie Catskill dries and modify them onstream if I need them to float lower, like a parachute. I sometimes use quill wings but in a dun or silvery color .

 

[fishbaithohaha]

To the dark side, go you did....HuUummm

 

[FrequentTyer]

Okay Eunan,now you making me insecure Beautifully tied as always!
A few comments for what they are worth:
The body, as mentioned, is a bit chunky, but not without precedent. The coffin fly, Adams irresistible,and Wulff series are all good examples of similarly sized bodies. The wings are beautiful, but usually tied in in the other orientation when mounted upright and divided if I'm not mistaken (curve to the front, point to the back). Also, I think you may have them spread a bit further than normal. I shoot for about a 45 degree angle between the wings. On the wing/post, I think they are important. The fish without question can see the wing/post. For this reason I tend to leave the post long on parachutes that I fish as duns, and I shorten it on when I think they are keyed in on emergers. So the color may or may not be an issue. Obviously neon parachute posts work, but they are often tied short. A more neutral wing with a single strip of color for visibility might be a better choice.
Having said all that, I wouldn't hesitate to try this fly as is.
Mike.

 

[dryflyguy]

I don't generally tie parachutes with divided wings like that - but it is very interesting looking.
Never tyed a trout finn - but I thought it called for wings made out of gray mallard flank sections.
Would also suggest a little larger hackle for that size fly

 

[odizz17]

Really diggin' those wings!!!!

 

[eunanhendron]

Thanks for all the input guys. I was a one time effort when i tied it.

Still some things to work on obviously - - watch this space.

Eunan

 

[dryflyguy]

That fly would certainly be worth using for sure. I'll bet brookies would hammer it.
I remember seeing some drys with brightly colored wings like that in a certain NC PA fly shop. They were called " senior citizen specials"