Can anyone help me confirm the origins of a wet fly known as the Scraggly?
– Body: peacock herl, and grizzly hackle palmered and clipped short
– Ribbing: gold wire
– Hackle: hen furnace
I have found only one source which credits Russ Ryder as the pattern originator. Anyone know anything else about this pattern?
-pkb
I remember an article in Fly Fisherman about the Scraggly. Late '80s maybe?
It was created by Russ Ryder to fish in the Housatonic or maybe the Farmington
I believe it was palmered with starling, not grizzly hackle and only clipped short on one side
Making it… scraggly
I may be wrong… I often am 
When I have a chance I’ll see if I can find the article
That sounds like a cool fly. Do you tie them and if so do you have a picture? I’d love to see it, and maybe tie a few.
Cheers,
-RC
RC,
Yeah, it does look like a fish getter. Though I’m neither the tier nor the originator.
I’m simply the web guy posting the pattern on our TU chapter site. Here’s the link:
http://www.tuswvt.org/Fly_Tyers_Corner.shtml
The pattern as shown here is tied by Paul Buccheri, of Rutland, VT, and you can find the link to his site at the above URL.
Enjoy!
-pkb
Found it, I was wrong about the starling
The article is called Perfect Peacock Patterns by Steve Tofani, Fly Fisherman, Dec.'91.
–Hook; Mustad#38941 or #9672 sizes #6 to #18
–Thread: Black
–Body; Peacock herl with palmered, clipped grizzly hackle.
–Hackle: Hen furnace hackle; one side barbules are trimmed down to 3/16 inch
In the article there are other flys by Russ Ryder. The Ryder Midge, the Ryder Caddis, and a Ryder Caddis II
Thanks Dudley!
Now all I need to do is dig up a copy of the article and I’ll be golden.
Too bad FF doesn’t archive back issues or articles and make them available online…
Thanks again!
-pkb
It was Russ Ryder who developed the pattern for CT river FF, He passed many years ago.
The fly was sold commercially by one or two fly shops in CT and was a popular nymph for local FF.
The pattern posted is correct, Steve Tofani was a friend of RR and wrote articles on FF in the 1970’s & 80’s.
Regards,
FK
Thank you for the clarification FK & Dudley.
-pkb
I have been tying and using my version of Russ Ryder?s Scraggly Nymph since I first met him in 1975. I taught English at John F. Kennedy Jr. High School in Southington, CT. His daughter taught girl?s gym there, and the door to the gym was next to my classroom. She found out that I was a fly fisherman and told me about her father. We first met at a small fly and tackle shop on Union Street in Bristol, CT called S&M Fly Tying Materials. The Shop was owned by two great Connecticut fly fisherman, Walt Stockman and Charley Malley (S&M). The shop was about the size of a large closet and jammed full of rods, waders and fishing gear, but all of the best Ct fly tiers/fisherman came there to swap patterns and information. You could learn more about Ct fly fishing and streams in one evening there than you could on the water in a year. Charley and Walt had both retired from Bristol Brass. They created the S&M Bobbin which is the best bobbin I have ever used.
I use the Scraggly Nymph from April through June for trout, and have used it for stocked salmon in the Naugatuck River starting in October. As far as I am concerned, it is the best all around trout nymph ever created. I have given it to friends who use it trolling with lead-core lines for lake trout. I catch rainbows, browns, brookies and, when they were stocked in CT, golden rainbows. My largest fish (hanging on my office wall) was an 8 pound 24? rainbow caught with a Scraggly nymph on a 4 pound test leader and tippet. When Russ heard about this fish, he asked if I would please bring the mounted fish over to his apartment so he could see it. He approved of my changes to his basic pattern and was most appreciative that I came to see him. This was not long before he died.
I fish the nymph on a 7.5? 4lb test leader on a 5wt Cortland 444, 10’ sink-tip line. I use the 4lb test, because the fish hit this nymph particularly hard and it is often lodged well inside the mouth. I cast across stream and let the nymph swing in the current (medium to fast). I use a short jerky retrieve just before the line straightens out, and that is when they most often hit as the fly is rising You will often need hemostats or pliers to remove the fly.
Here is my pattern, which is really just a simplified version of Russ Ryder?s original. I always add lead wire for weight.
Hook: Mustad 9672, size 8 or 10 (4 and 6 for salmon)
Body: Bronze peacock herl, palmered with grizzly saddle hackle which is clipped short and then counter-wound with medium gold wire
Collar: Brown partridge, stripped on one side and then tied in by the tip
Head: Black
Thread: Black 6/0
Weight: Medium lead wire.
It may be that this fly somewhat imitates an emerging caddis, which is why the trout take it so hard and fast, but I just think that it is an all-around buggy fly.
I was on the Farmington River on Friday (5/11/2007) and caught over 12 rainbows and browns ranging from 12? to 16? from the same run on this fly.
If you would like more information on this fly, including a sample (will swap for one of your favorite if you tie), just email me at dickhemenway@netscape.net.
I will also supply a picture of the fly and the S&M Bobbin as I apparently cannot upload images.
Dick,
Great post, thanks for the details. I remember visiting the S&M Fly shop years ago,we would stop in the local Bristol Farm Shop for coffee before heading home,all of the waitresses would state to us “you must have been in the fly shop”?,I took a while to understand how they figured that so well,we smelled like moth balls when we sat down in the coffee shop.
Regards,
FK
I grew up fishing the Farmington with my father, Al Mills, my uncle Earl Ierardi, and their good friend, Russ Ryder. They’re all gone now. They fished mostly wets, with a streamer at the bottom and two droppers above that. One dropper always held a Scraggly, (Russ’s pattern). I’ve been in S&M Fly Tying many times with these people. Only now do i realize how fortunate I was to be surrounded by these three great men. It’s a shame we have no way to honor those who pioneered the sport on the Farmington. I’m sure they’re spirits still roam the river. I talk to my father all the time when I’m fishing. The next time you’re in the Hemlock Pool and you hear a whisper, you turn and no one’s there, or an eagle flies over, I can tell you who it was.
Really enjoy this thread. It is so interesting to read of these local patterns which become very favorite regional patterns. That is one of the reasons I really like reading Terry Helleckson’s book “Popular Fly Patterns”. He often highlights a locally developed pattern - though often Western in region. But, his book does include most popular patterns. Did not find the Scraggly though.
dhemenway,
Noticed you are a “newbie” and just wanted to welcome you to FAOL. From reading your first post, I can see that you are going to be a great asset to FAOL, so, a big welcome from Tennessee to you!
I really liked the sound of the PB Scraggly fly and wanted to try tying one and fishing it. There is very little on the internet for tying instructions, so, I read your description and tied up a few. I would appreciate it very much if you would look at it and tell me where I need to make some changes or went wrong. I really like this pattern and feel it will be a great producer for me and it really “fits” my style of fly fishing.
So, “click” on the attached picture, look it over and let me have it…Thank you for your time…
