Stimulator Dry Fly: Getting A Rise………….

The Stimulator Dry Fly is a great pattern, which was created by Randall Kaufman for Stoneflies on streams. The original pattern was tied with an orange and a yellow body to replicate the Salmon Fly  & Golden Stone. This pattern is not only suitable for Stoneflies but in reduced sizes and different colors, perfect for large bodied Caddis as well (October Caddis & Traveling Sedge).

Stimulator Dry Fly (Green Bodied)

Look at the following two links for very helpful how-to steps for tying the Stimulator:    

                 In The Riffle Stimulator S-B-S     Hopper Juan Stimulator How To

Now the next step in the learning process, that I always use, is how would I present this fly? That is based not just on what line to use and how to cast it, but most importantly where to cast to. And, that is determined by studying up on where the Stonefly or Caddis flies, that you are copying, reside in the stream, river or lake.

Their habitat, their stages…progression in the life cycle take place in certain types of waters as the stages evolve. So study up on how the stonefly ’emerge’ and when/where they return to the water as well as how the Caddis emerge and return to the waters surface. All that will determine where to cast, even how to cast. 

My pattern, above was sloppy in the tail and has less hackle wraps than you will see in the above how to’s. Do it their way! Mix up the abdomen colors: Orange, Yellow, Black, Green, Tan

Fly Tying: Small, Quick Sinking Nymphs

DRONLEE at Fly Tying Nation provides to step by step tutorials on tying his version of the Copper John nymph. Both are only of the same complexity/degree of difficulty of the original Copper John. The pictures are very helpful, of course, in understanding how dronlee arrived at that nice look. Give it a look and keep those wire wraps one right on top of the other as you wrap forward. Nice photography too.

Latex ‘n Copper Nymph at Fly Tying Nation

Fish Tails (Tales) Requires Planning………

If are a fly fisher for Trout and other Spring through Fall species, you may have hung your gear up and won’t give it another thought until Spring looms near. Maybe you will pursue Winter Trout on a few year around waters or Salmon and Steelhead. A few hardy souls fish year around. But, a couple things, as my annual reminders, to consider.

~Did you organize your gear before you stuck it away? Did you put any part of it away wet or damaged? Did you clean up your fly lines and do a tune up on your reels? Is there anything you stuck away in a hurry, at the time, saying to yourself ‘I take care of it later…remember to take care of this later’. Did you?

~You considered learning to tie flies. Have you explored classes/lessons from a fly shop, community college, private lessons, fly fishing club etc. Maybe none of those options are available in your area. There are excellent on-line (S-B-S…Step By Step) tutorials on how to tie that are better than not trying it at all. Also, they are excellent to visit after you take person to person instructions. 

~If you do tie, now is the perfect time, while this past season’s fly selections/losses are fresh in your memory to inventory and make lists of what flies need to me replenished via tying (or purchased, if you don’t tie). This is best done while anticipating a timeline of when and where you will fish this coming year. What are the hatch sequences or subsurface life forms available in the waters you plan on fishing this coming year. Keep a plan pinned up and look at it, especially if you are a new tier so you don’t flit around tying this and that and never really tie all you needed.

This will help you in planning and enjoying your fishing outings and of course having plenty of ‘fishtails’ to expand upon for years to come. Now go check on that gear bag you filled with wet, stinky clothing and then zipped up last month.

Fly Tying: Basic Scud-Nymph Tutorial

This is a good, basic tutorial on how to tie a Scud pattern, best used in rivers. A lighter version would be suitable for lakes. In time, you will select color combinations (green, tan, orange) that provide variety. This basic pattern style had potential for Caddis Pupa/Czech Nymph variations, as well.

Grau Scud Nymphe (Angeltechniken)

 A Grey Scud/Nymph Pattern Tutorial at Angeltechniken

Sexy D.I.Y. Tutorials: Stripping Your Glock

ASHLEY STRIPS YOUR GLOCK  &  MORE EYE HANDY TIPS

I had previously promised a quarterly tease, but less graphic than in the past. I do believe I am a good two quarters behind, so to speak. So, here is the link re field stripping your Glock and other Eye Handy D.I.Y. tips. The info just happens to be demonstrated by young ladies and great graphics. If you are anti-firearms or anti-sexy women then do not open the links. Do not venture forth. Pretty tame stuff…just interesting concept.

Fly Fishing: Wicked Knots & Leaders

”Oh what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive”

Fly Line-Butt Section Connection (Kind of....)

When you buy a fly line and have it put on the reel, at the shop, insist on the shop employee attaching a butt section of 18″ not 6″.  Not with a loop, without! Learn the Surgeon’s Knot or Blood Knot and attach your nice, new tapered leader to the butt section via one of those two knots. From there repair your own leader by replacing lost sections with sections of progressively smaller mono. Carry these small spools of mono, in various sizes to repair the last half of your leader (depending upon the type of fish you are chasing) I usually have larger diameter spools of mono back at the rig should disaster strike and I have to rebuild the leader from scratch. Do not keep buying new leaders every time you break off 3′ of tippet/leader. This is your choice, your money, but over the long haul you save some money and develop the knot tying skills to avoid the disaster above.

There are previous posts here on SwittersB re leader construction and formulas. The ‘net has lots of information re formulas of so much (a % usually) of this X and then that amount of a different, smaller X. Study up on leader construction. May I admit to never having adopted the X concept? I have a basic memorization of X = # line size. I was a gear guy as well as a fly fisher for years. Leaders were built with so many inches of 10#, 8#, 6#, 4# mono. The fly fishing industry feels compelled to continue with the X diameter system and for you to memorize certain X diameters are equal to certain fly sizes etc. Whatever. If you chase trout, or whatever you pursue, have a good idea of the approximate pound strength of your mono related to the X factor. From there your finger tips will sense the approximate thickness (X or #) you have broken off at, on the leader, (my fingers feel the line is about 6# or 4X) and I am going to rebuild the leader/tippet with a section of 4# or 5X to maintain a taper and proper turnover. If my fly is of the miniscule variety then I will factor in a section of 6X as well, and so on. You should have the 3-4 spools you need with you on the water. If you travel ultra light, you may only carry a couple of spools.

Everything About Leaders at GFF…Excellent Resource

Nail Knot, Nipper, Hook Eye Poker

The above knot does not lend itself to proper, quiet presentations. It gets hung up on the guides as you pull your line through to string the rod. Hell, it looks terrible! I infrequently tie this knot myself, so I am by no means as adept as the kids that spool an re-spool lines all day and tie on new butt sections in a shop. There is a handy tool, I have had for years, and use four or so times a year (usually for some one else’s mess) is the ‘nail knot’ tyer device. Sometimes this comes with a nipper and a stylus to poke through hook eyes that have been glued shut. A handy little gizmo, it is well worth the initial expense. Of course, if you want to use a nail/needle then have at it. ‘Tie Fast Nail Knot’ is an excellent little tool as well and used by shops all the time.      Tie Fast Knot Tyer by DPruitt

'Tie Fast' gizmo

It you are going to deceive the fish, then no tangled webs…learn your knots and use them! These gizmo’s will help….if you practice.

Fly Tying: Basic Dubbed Nymph for Beginning Tier

Generic Dubbed Nymph at Hip Wader that provides a good tutorial for the beginning tier

This little tutorial S-B-S provides several visuals that will help the beginning fly tier: The Bead head + wire wrapped shank. This helps add dense weight to the fly to get it down; the tail is synthetic and more durable than hackle barbs or a clump of fur; the use (dubbing) of animal fur, whether from a skin or out of a bag is a traditional facet of  tying. Learning to prepare the fur prior to dubbing is important to get the most out of the material. The Hip Wader site has nice tutorials….explore, but come back here!

Wire wrapped shank + bead head for dense weight (Hip Wader)

Another consideration here is Lead Free Wire for fly tying. I am often using lead wire on my shanks because I have spools of it, big spools. But, I have also bought and have been using the less dense, stiffer Lead Free wire. The combo of wire wraps + a bead head may provide the necessary weight to get the fly down. On smaller flies, it may be token effort without some form of shot on the leader. Either way, the combination of wire + a bead is a good tool for the beginner to consider. In more exacting imitations, a few more turns of wire and no bead may be called for. Some patterns won’t call for any weight. Swimmer nymphs fished higher in the water column don’t need to plummet to the depths. Research Lead Free wire and shot and alternative materials used in wire and shot.

 

Fly Tying: Wet Fly (Oversized Hackle Barbs for Wing)

USING OVERSIZED HACKLE ON SMALLER HOOK FOR WET FLY

Pulling hackle barbs off of a larger hackle and tying them in over the eye of the hook, then after creating a body, pulling them back over the body. Key: make the barbs only the length of the hook shank (not longer or shorter). 

Oversized Barbs Used Here and Pulled Back Over Peacock Herl Body (SwittersB)

Fly Tying Tutorials: Mayfly Emerger

IMPROVED SPARKLE DUN EMERGER

This link provides a nice step by step (s-b-s) tutorial for the sparkle dun emerger with an additional touch or two. The pupa hook is used to drop the tail end of the pattern into or through the ‘film’ thereby placing the Zelon/Partridge beneath the surface like an emerging mayfly’s trailing nymphal shuck. The deer hair comparadun wing and dubbing help support the thorax & wing above the surface like an emerging mayfly dun, almost out of the nymphal shuck/casing. I cannot attribute the nice tutorial beyond ‘Mike T (786)’   

Fly Tying: Caddis Pupalicious II

Ok, I have these OCD moments that fixate me upon some facet of tying. Over the years: peacock, ostrich, CDC, Ice Dub, craft store boas. Of late, deer hair collars for legs/antenna/wings on Caddis Pupa/Adult patterns. I first saw this over on Westfly when Jeff Morgan was twist dubbing deer hair. I have since become increasingly fascinated with the possibilities.

This is a simple, beginner’s pattern “guaranteed” to produce. Ok, I had to throw in that sort of thing. But, I instinctively do know this is a worthy pattern for rivers or lakes. Remember presentation is critical to any pattern: is this pattern being dredged in riffles, swung and lifted up through the water column, diving down to lay eggs? 

Regardless, here is how you tie it: The hook can range from a size 10 to 16, given the materials used; they take up space so a smallish hook in not practical. Here it is a size 12, 2xl shank, nymph hook. The thread  used was black 8/0. I wrapped a layer of lead onto the shank at the mid point, about 6 wraps and overlaid those wraps with thread, then head cement.

Then I created a dubbing loop and inserted strands of a synthetic dubbing material between the thread loop. The loop was spun into a dubbing noodle and then wrapped up the shank like a small rope. About two thirds of the way up the hook shank (the abdomen area), I stopped and tied off the dubbing noodle, removing the remainder.

The thorax/head area remained. I formed another dubbing loop and applied tacky wax. I took pieces of cut deer hair, black in color, and touched dubbed (Gary LaFontaine concept) them to the tacky thread loop. The dubbing crook is carefully spun and the deer hair is trapped between the tightening loop. One again a few wraps of the dubbing (deer hair this time) are wrapped in the thorax area. Tie off the extra upon reaching the head area and cut. Then form a thread head and finish. Mix up the body colors to match the various Caddis in your waters, the deer hair could be black, brown, or even natural.