Stealing Great Fly Tying Ideas

Hi Everybody!

Byron had the flu and that meant we had to reach into the fly tying box and pull out the "emergency lesson!" The emergency lesson was all about learning something from other fly tyers that will make your flies a bit more functional. Tonight the 16 tyers saw some adjustments you can do to some basic patterns to make them more enjoyable to fly fish. In the case of the the beetle pattern below, it was all about the indicator foam that makes the pattern easier to see. For the adams patterns, it was about materials that made the fly float better and be more visible on the water.

Betty found the recipe for a Bastard Adams in a book called Western Trout Fly Tying Manual by Jack Dennis.  Betty bought it in about 1985, and it has excellent step-by-step instructions of many popular flies, which in the age before the internet, really taught her how to tie!

Jack Dennis credits Reverend Dan Abrams with the original pattern, and he ties it with an elk hair wing, but does suggest that one could use calf tail for a more visible fly.  He also dubs it with muskrat.

Don't forget that the Western Canadian Fly Fishing Exposition is on this weekend at Spruce Meadows. Check out their web site for DETAILS.

Next week Rick Miyauchi is our guest tyer. Come on out and enjoy some great patterns that Rick will present to us!

Foam Beetle

Hook: Standard dry fly sizes 12-16

Body: Black hackle

Over body: Black foam 2 mm

Indicator: 1 mm orange foam

Bastard Adams

Hook: Standard dry fly sizes 10-20

Tail: Brown and grizzly hackle fibres

Body: Grey antron or muskrat

Wing: White polyyarn, or macrame

Hackle: brown and grizzly

Parachute Adams

Hook: Standard dry fly sizes 10 to 20

Tail: brown and grizzly hackle fibres

Body: Grey antron or muskrat

Post: poly yarn or macrame 

Hackle: brown and grizzly