Fly of The Week - Week 4 Feb 26 thru March 3 Adult Caddis

Yellowstone River Mother's Day Caddis.
http://montana-riverboats.com/Upload...-of-caddis.jpg

Flat Caddis:
http://montana-riverboats.com/Uploads/Flat-caddis.jpg

October Elk Hair
http://montana-riverboats.com/Uploads/Oct-elk-hair.jpg

Traditional caddis patterns tend to have a down wing (rather than up wing). So far so good. But hackles wound at right angles to the shank miss the flat, low-to-the-water profile of the real bug. I showed this pattern to Gary LaFontaine in Dave Kumlein's Bozeman MT Troutfitters shop (when it was still in the red barn building) back in 1980. Gary said "Call me. I'll help you get that pattern published!"

About once a month for a year after that I'd wake up and say to myself "I have to remember to call Dave and get that guy's phone number."

Korn's Mother's Day Caddis ...

Timing is everything with this western hatch, but if you are lucky enough to hit it... this is a killer pattern.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k2...g/DSCN1035.jpg


Hook: MFC 7022 2x long size 8
Thread: Serafil 200, tan
Rib: tag end of thread
Abdomen: Amber dry fly dubbing with a touch of UV ice dub inserted in a split thread and spun
Palmered hackle: ginger rooster neck, over sized to help float rear of the hook, trim top.
Wing: 2 hen pheasant wing or neck feathers, tied flat
Hackle: ginger rooster saddle

Will the "Real" Pittindrigh please stand.............

If you have the CDC ....









.... I've got the elk.

http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...456_edited.jpg

Had at least forty out back this afternoon. The two very light ones dead center are the two old bulls in the herd.

John

P.S. Sorry, just couldn't resist.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Byron haugh

Will the "Real" Pittindrigh please stand.............

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Who? What? There is no such thing.

Guess I'm a day late, etc. Anyway, I like Ralph Cutter's E/C Caddis.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...2-28-12002.jpg

The EC Caddis is a great pattern. The caddis I make is similar to the EC. I make it quicker to tie by skipping the body.

If you lash the down wing onto the fly tightly, and then wind the parachute, the hackle wraps will force the down wing to angle upwards, so it's no longer entirely a "down wing."

But if you lash the wing clump on loosely (very loosely) and then wind a dozen horizontal thread wraps between body and wing clump, that builds up a bit of a vertical thread post, about which you can now wind the hackle, without forcing the wing to angle upwards. The horizontal wraps tighten things up a bit. A final drop of head cement locks it all together permanently. I like to use CA glue. But you don't have to.

Ralph and I both invented the parachute caddis independently, at about the same time. In the early 1980s. I only mention that because I have been accused to "stealing" his pattern in the past (more than once). I skip the body because it disappears into the shadow of the caddis' tent wing anyway.

Pittendrigh,
I don't do the horizontal wraps, I do use a drop of glue on the butts and parachute, though. I found that wrapping loosely to keep the wing from standing up caused the hackle stem to pop up over the butts on occasion, thus the glue. Am I correct in assuming the thread wraps you use under the wing (post) would also need to be somewhat loose?

My goal is to end up with a wing as parallel to the water as possible. I'm not sure it really matters. But it's like a bug in my ear I can't stand. If it's supposed to be a down wing that's what I want.

I make ONE wrap 360 degrees around the wing WITHOUT going under the shank. Then I wrap one more time, with thread going under the shank. I jiggle the thread until the loose loops pull the wing down almost but not quite tight to the shank. Then I make a half a dozen more loose loops over the whole thing. Then I make a dozen or so TIGHT wraps horizontally between the bottom of the wing and the top of the shank. Now I can wind a horizontal parachute without pushing the wing upward.

Ah. It's important for me not to trim the front ends of the wing until after winding the hackle. That makes the winding much easier. I love this pattern (EC and mine). I've caught a zillion fish on them. I tend to get stuck on my own work, as we all do. So I seldom tie the more popular Troth Elk Hair any more. I tie parachute caddis instead. They float like corks. And catcha da fish too.

I have a suggestion. If the name of the bug is included in the title of the first post it would come up when that insect is plugged into the search engine.