Puterbaugh Style Caddis

[johnstoeckel]

I really like the idea of the a foam caddis -- like the Puterbaugh variant that Hans recently posted in the favorite caddis thread or like the Fluttering Foam Caddis that Scott posted in a thread of it's ownnother thread. Seems like that foam would really float well even after mutliple fish.

I want to give these flies in sizes and colors to match my local caddis hatch a try. But I'm a little unclear about what proportions and colors I should be using. In particular, does the foam imitate the caddis abdomen or the caddis wing? I'm asking as it seems like caddis abdomens are frequently considerably shorter than the wing whereas with these fly patterns the foam seems to be tied in wing length.

[ScottP]

I tie mine with the idea that the foam's for floatation and exact imitation of the body is secondary, although I try to get the color close to what's hatching.

Regards,
Scott