Beard: Small mottled feathers from the top
of a pheasant rump
Wing: Long brown fibers from the bottom
of the pheasant rump.
Tying Steps:
1. Start the thread near the eye and bring it back to the
bend covering the shank along the way.
2. Now is the time to decide if you want to tie it weighted or
not. In the interest of uniformity, I tied all of the swap flies
unweighted. Read on if you're not using any weight; if
you want a sinker, skip to the next paragraph. Choose
any kind of dubbing and dub a smooth underbody that
gets thicker in the midsection and tapers back down
towards the eye. Wrap the thread back over the dubbing
to the bend.
3. If you've already completed the last step, skip this one.
Using lead (or unleaded wire), wrap a section of wire in
the middle of the shank.Tie securely with the thread and
coat with Flexament. Build up the thread next to the wire
on both sides to make a smooth underbody. Bring the
thread back to the bend.
4. Tie in six peacock herls, clip the ends, and wind the
thread almost to the eye. Spin the herls into a rope (I like
to do this three at a time) and wind forward to the thread
being sure to completely cover the underbody. Tie off the
herl rope and clip the ends.
5. Turn the fly upside down and tie in the beard. Be sure to
impale your finger repeatedly on the hook during this
step. I like to strip (or snip) off some of the fibers and tie
them in instead of trying to use a whole feather.
6. Turn the fly back right-side-up and tie in the wing. Similar
to the beard, I prefer to strip off some of the fibers and tie
those in. Secure the wing with some thread wraps and
then build a thread head and whip finish.
7. Apply the head cement and admire the bug.
This is a favorite wet fly of mine that has been very
productive. I like it mainly because of the peacock herl body.
There is something about bugs tied with peacock that seem to
really attract the fish. Prince Nymphs, Zugbugs, Pheasant
Tails and the like all seem to work better for me than other
wet patterns. In the interest of a little originality (I stress little) I
decided to tie this variation for the swap. I think the mottled
colors of the pheasant rump beard make a nice addition to the
original pattern. It should be noted that these flies are tied with
authentic, wild Eastern Oregon pheasant feathers. This may
impress those East Coast trout for those of you on that side of
the hill.~Todd Mobley,Portland, Oregon USA
Publisher Note:This fly was orginally tied for a Wet Fly Swap
hosted on the Virtual Fly Box.
Do check the website, it has a huge variety of flies. A must see
for the serious tier.~Deanna Birkholm
