Does anyone have a pattern, and more importantly suggestions on how to tie a mini-muddler in small, small sizes?
I have tied a few 14’s using thinly spun dubbing as a head, Mylar body, and rabbit fur for a wing. Give it a try. I’ve been tying small streamers for brookies and found that a 12 is about as small as practical for me to tie. I fish them just like a nymph dead drifting.
Tons of cool muddlers here
http://www.caithnessqualityflies.co.uk/Muddlers.html
Davie McPhail and Hans Weilenmann have a number of muddler videos, too; our friends on the other side of the pond have a thing for the smaller-sized ones.
I’ve taken them down to short-shank #12s using basic materials - yarn tail, tinsel body, palmered hackle, wire rib and sparse heads; just scale everything down. I’ve also found it easier for me to tie small muddler heads by inserting the deer hair in a dubbing loop, then spinning/wrapping/trimming; they turn out better than traditional spun deer hair heads.
Regards,
Scott
Scott,
Wow! Ask and ye shall receive. I’ll try the dubbing loop and see how that works for me
Rex
Thanks Scott. Never thought of the dubbing loop idea.
I’m really old school I guess, for I tie my Muddlers fairly traditional, but just scale down all the materials to suit the hook size. Deer hair heads get more difficult for me in real small sizes, so I’ll give your loop idea at try.
I agree with above for mine eyes…no smaller THAN SIZE 12…ha!
Here’s how I tie the dubbing-loop muddler head http://www.flyanglersonline.com/bb/showthread.php?55715-Ke-He-Muddler-SBS
Make sure you wax the thread well; keeps the hair in the loop while your spinning it.
Regards,
Scott
Smallest Muddlers I’ve tied were on size 12 3xl curved-shank hooks. I used turkey slips for the wing, and spun Caribou for the head. Caribou is softer than deer hair, and I feel it packs and spins in smaller, tighter, packages.
I found some size 14 three times long hooks (smallest long shank hooks I had) and tried one with spun deer hair. I think It would work with a sixteen.
In hindsight, looking at the small hook gape and the bulky head I might tie this fly on a hook closer to a standard shank length with the same shank length. Probably a #10 for a fly this size.
TaB,
The link attached is for a pattern called the Smuddler. Uses a 3XL Mustad 94831 hook. I have tied it down to a size 16.
http://fishingwithflies.com/Hermann’sSmuddler.html
The most important thing is to get the right deer hair. I’ve had good luck using Comparandun hair, it is short and also spins quite well.
Alberto
This one works: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QIyQuKdNq0