JACK FROST An attractor, streamer style pattern Hook: Size 8, Long shank Thread: Black or White Body: White wool wound over a polythene sheet Tail: Red wool Wings: White marabou hackles, red cock hackle & white cock hackle Head: Black or White Thread
ZONKER
Hook: Size 8, Long shank Thread: Black Body: Black chenille Rib: Oval silver tinsel Wing: Zonker strip in a colour of your choice Head: Black thread
We’ll be tying three patterns in our workshop on 22nd August 2019. These are as follows:
FALSE HARES EAR SPIDER A variation of the hares lug and plover Hook: Size 12 Thread: Brown Body: Fox Squirrel body fur Rib: Fine gold wire or waxed yellow thread Hackle: Golden Pheasant wing covert (you can use a game hackle as a sub if needed)
DADDY LONG LEGS A detached body daddy by the late EJ (Ted) Malone Hook: Size 10 or 12 Body: Cock Pheasant tail fibres Wings: Brown or grey cock hackle fibres Legs: Knotted cock pheasant tail fibres hackle: Brown or grey cock
GREY DUSTER This fly works very well on our local River Dane. Hook: Size 12 Thread: Black or Brown Body: Grey rabbit fur Hackle: Badger cock
This was our first workshop of the season specifically designed for new members to come along to the club and enjoy a demonstration from Frank Moors of 4-simple fly patterns. These comprised of; Buzzer, Partridge and Orange, Klinkhammer and a Predator fly.
Partridge & Orange Spider
Hook: Size 12 short shank, medium wire hook Thread: Waxed Pearsall’s gossamer hot orange (No.6a) Hackle: Brown Partridge feather
A length of thread was waxed before starting to tie the fly. The thread was attached to the hook approximately 1/16th inch (1.5 mm) from the eye (to leave space for tying the head). The body was created by even touching turns the length of the short shank hook and the thread returned to the head area with even touching turns.
The ‘fluff’ was removed from a well-marked Partridge hackle feather and the barbules pulled back to reveal the feather tip. The feather tip was tied in by 2 turns of thread and the hackle created by 1 to 2 turns of the feather and then tied-in by 1 turn of thread and the residual rachis cut / snapped off. The head was whip finished and varnished.
In order to ensure that the hackle remains open (barbules extending at 90° to the hook). It is important to avoid covering where the hackle rachis surrounds the hook with thread wraps.
Klinkhammer
Hook: Size 10 Hayabusa 270 larva hook (or specific Klinkhammer hook) Thread: 8/0 thread (colour to match dubbing) Post: Antron wool (strong colour for sighting) Body: Dyed olive hare dubbing Hackle: Grizzle cock hackle
The thread is started at the eye and a layer applied of touching turns to the start of the hook curve (approx. 3/16th inch, 5 mm). Antron wool is folded under the hook to produce a post about half way along the thread wraps and tied-in with a figure of eight turns and ‘posted’ by circular wraps extending 1-2 mm up, then back down, the post.
The thread is then returned to the hook and touching turn wraps extended to a position opposite the root of the hook barb. A 2 inch (5 cm) ‘rope’ is created by winding a small quantity of dubbing around the thread (winding in one direction only) and the dubbing rope wound up the hook to create a carrot-shaped body up to the eye of the hook (beyond the post). The thread was then whip finished at the eye and the fly repositioned in the vice with the shank vertical (eye pointing downwards).
The thread was retied in on the post material. The hackle feather was cleared of ‘fluff’ and tied in by the rachis to the thread wraps on the post (feather extending from the hook in the same direction as the post). The hackle was wound around the post, starting from the top of the post thread wraps, towards the hook shank and the resulting hackle tied in by whip finishing around the post.
The Buzzer
Hook: Size 10 all-purpose heavy wire grub hook Thread: Black UTC 70 denier thread. Rib: Hends body quill (fluorescent pink, BQ41)
Variations: Other rib materials – Stripped dyed peacock quill Coloured flexi-floss / Coloured fine wire Wing buds – Goose biots Breathers – White Antron wool
Frank recommended using a flat thread such as UTC to produce an even body. The thread was started close the hook eye and the body produced by a single layer of touching turns to the middle of the bend of the hook. The rib material was tied in (full length of the body to the thorax) and the thread returned to the thorax area (about 1/8th inch, 3mm from the hook eye) with touching turns. The rib material was wound with 5 to 7 evenly spaced open turns to the thorax area and tied in with thread. The head was built up with touching turns of thread to produce a rugby ball shape and whip-finished. The fly was coated with several layers of clear varnish to finish.
Variations on this fly pattern comprise of the incorporation of brightly coloured wing buds either side of the head and white breather tubes at the head of the buzzer.
A Predator Fly
Hook: Size 6 all-purpose wet fly. Thread: White Dyneema 110 denier. Body: Enrico Puglisi fibres – Pearl, Red and Silver tan; Hends Lama Hair – Turquoise blue (No.22) Head: Black 8/0 thread Eyes: Small stick-on silver black eyes
Starting at the hook eye, touching turns of thread are laid the length of the shank. A small number of red EP fibres was tied ½ ways down the shank extending about shank-length beyond the hook bend. The thread was returned to the eye and 2 lengths of pearl EP fibres tied in either side of the hook, extending about 2-3 shank-lengths beyond the hook bend. The body was built up by tying in further synthetic hair around the hook, to a similar length beyond the hook bend as the pearl fibres, in the following sequence:
– Silver tan above and below the hook – Turquoise blue above the hook – Silver tan either side of the hook
The Dyneema thread was whip finished and black 8/0 thread tied on at the eye and the head formed with thread wraps which were then also whip finished. The body hair was combed and then trimmed using serrated scissors to produce a fish-shaped profile. Small (3/16th inch) silver black stick-on eyes were attached to the left and right side of the head, with Uhu all-purpose adhesive, and the head built up with clear UV-cured resin.
Members from our fly tying club attended the 2019 Cheshire Game and Angling Fair in Peover Park. This is a chance for the club to get out and about, socialise with like-minded people, to tell bad jokes and to share techniques with many of the visitors to the angling village.
Peter & Frank tying up some fabulous flies.
The angling village offers a number of attractions including two well-attended casting demonstrations from AAPGAI instructors. Karl Humphries, a local instructor to the area and John Walker, all the way from Snowdonia. You’ll also find the Grayling Society and Marton Mere Fishery.
It was also lovely to bump into Phil Ratcliffe who was on a well deserved day off, enjoying the show from the opposite side of the fence. Steve Beech & Alan Roe also offered demonstrations and advice on coarse fishing. Alan demonstrating the Wallace cast with a centre pin, an art form mastered only by the few.
It was also fabulous to see so many young people in the angling village, spending the day with family and friends as well as sharing their stories of catching fish and tying flies. Their enthusiasm for the sport was great to see, it was clear for those that attended that being outdoors was certainly a trump card to a video game.
An extended thank to our members, Dononry and Lee for running this year’s tombola and to Peter, Frank and James for tying on our stand.
With our 2019 season fast approaching, our club is a great place to learn the essential techniques to tie flies. No matter your angling preference, game, course or salt, you’ll find like-minded enthusiasts willing to share their patterns, tips and tactics.
Hook: Partridge HE 2, Size 1/0 long shank blind hook with silkworm gut eye Thread: Danville 6/0 Olive changing to Black for the head. Ribs: Flat gold, Oval silver, Oval gold tinsels. Tail: Golden Pheasant breast feather. Body hackle: Heron back quill (Palmered). Body: Mixed brown and olive Marino sheep wool dubbing Hackle: Golden pheasant breast feather. Wing: Bronze mallard slips
Paul described the importance of attention to detail in tying this beautiful fly – using touching turn thread wraps even when they would not be visible in the final fly, not adding unnecessary wraps on the head and selection and preparation of the materials.
The silkworm gut eye was secured with thread wraps and superglue followed by touching turns to a position not quite opposite the point of the hook. The GP breast tail feather was stripped of the fluff and a small V-shape removed from the tip before tying in with the natural curve upwards. The three ribs were tied in (looking down the hook) at 10, 8 and 6-o’clock positions on the shank for the flat gold, oval silver and oval gold tinsels, respectively. The palmered heron back quill feather has more sparsely distributed barbules at the tip so, it needs to be tied in by the tip at the hook end (on the opposite side of the hook to the ribs): thus, giving the greatest density of barbules towards the head of the fly.
The body was dubbed with an even dubbing rope producing a parallel profile the full length of the hook shank. Five clockwise turns of each of the three ribs were tied in sequentially: flat gold, oval silver, oval gold, such that the oval silver was just below the trailing edge and the oval gold just above the leading edge of the flat gold rib. The heron feather was palmers between the two oval tinsel ribs. For the head, a hackle of GP breast feather (tied in at the tip) was added above the body hackle). Both hackles were smoothed down below the hook shank to a throat position and the odd stray barbules removed. The thread was changed to black for the head and two slips of bronze mallard (taken from towards the rachis end of the feather) tied in to produce a profile similar to the keel of an up-turned boat.
The Smokey Dun Classic Salmon Fly
Hook: Partridge HE 2, Size 2 blind hook with silkworm gut eye. Thread: Grey 14/0 Sheer changing to Danville’s Black 6/0 for the head. Tag and rib: Flat silver tinsel (equivalent to size 16 mylar). Tail: Four peacock sword feathers.Body: Natural ‘blue’ rabbit underfur dubbing. Throat hackle: Natural dun hen feather. Wing: Two heron secondary feather slips.
The eye was secured as described in the previous fly. Touching turn thread wraps were taken to opposite the point of the hook. The flat silver tinsel was tied in to produce a tag (4-5 turns). The peacock sword feather barbules were held flat to encourage the natural upward curve and tied in as two pairs on the left and right side of the hook.
The rib was tied in and the body dubbed to the head area with a tight dubbing rope to produce a parallel body profile. A five-turn clockwise rib was added and the hackle feather (selected barbule length to mid shank) tied in by the tip at the head area.
The hackle (3 to 4 touching turns towards the head of the fly) was tied in and the grey thread tied off with a whip finish. The hackle barbules were stroked downwards to produce a throat and the black thread for the head tied on. The left and right Heron secondary feather slip widths were half the gape of the hook. They were tied in as a pair by an intricate procedure: the slips were adjusted so the ends were level and aligned with the tip of the tail; they were held tightly between finger and thumb at the tie-in point and a single loose thread wrap made; the rachis end of the feather was pushed towards the tie-in point to produce a valley for the thread to fall into and finally the thread pulled tight. The wing slips were trimmed and tied-in and the fly finished with a small head.
Stuart gave an enthralling 90-minute presentation of fly tying during which he tied 4 dry fly patterns and gave many fly tying and fly fishing tips. In particular, he recommended the practice of tying several flies at one sitting aiming for consistency. He used a pair calliper to ensure that tails, thorax and body were the same lengths in each fly. He also mentioned fishing tactics reminding everyone not to neglect the use of ‘down-stream’ presentation of flies as this gave them a natural appearance.
The Posh Olive
Hook: Size 14 Partridge SUD 40 dry fly hook Thread: Olive 8/0 thread. Tail: Coq De Leon; 6 – 8 fibres. Dubbing: Fine light olive poly dubbing (Orvis fly rite) tied very sparingly. Wing: Two natural CDC feathers – placed back to back (curving away from each other). Thoraxandhead: Dark olive pine squirrel fur as dubbing.
Emerging Midge (Chironomid)
Hook: Size 22 Varivas 2200 BL. Thread: Olive 8/0 thread. Body: Fine light olive poly dubbing (Orvis fly-rite) tied very sparingly. Outriggers: Veniards Micro Flash. Wing: Fine poly yarn. Thorax and head: Mole fur as dubbing.
Thread started at the curve of the hook with touching turns around the bend. Very sparse dubbing applied with thread turns back to start of thread. Single strand of micro flash tied-in to near side then turned back to produce outriggers on either side of hook and cut to length (to curve of hook).
Thread then taken to eye with touching turns and fine poly yarn wing tied in approx. 1 mm from the eye and cut to size (Stuart mentioned that a single CDC feather could be used as an alternative winging material, but that this could be problematic on cold days so he felt that poly yarn was the better). Mole fur (one of the finest dubbings) was sparingly used to provide a darker coloured thorax.
Tying very small flies relied on careful use of materials ensuring that excess is not used as it could spoil the fly appearance.
Stuart used this as a single fly when the fish were only rising for small flies such as aphids.
The Wedding Day May Fly
Hook: Size 10 long shank dry fly hook. Thread: Olive 8/0 thread. Shuck(tail): Tan poly yarn. Wing: Pink (or white) poly yarn with a 2 -3 mm width of black ether foam tied underneath. Body/thorax: Tan or cream dubbing.Parachute Hackle: Dyed olive Grizzle cock hackle feather.
Thread started at the eye of the hook with touching turns the length of the shank. The poly yarn shuck (at least twice length of hook shank) tied in with thread to provide a shuck length equal to that of the hook shank with touching turns back to the eye (full length of hook).
The pink (or white) poly yarn wing tied in across the hook, approx. 3mm from the eye and posted with ‘figure of 8’ turns. The hackle feather tied in over the eye of the hook with the rachis towards the bend. Approx. 20 mm length of black ether foam (2-3 mm wide) was laid under the wing and used to ‘sandwich’ the poly yarn and hackle feather and tied in place with ‘posting’ turns of the thread. Thread then taken back to the bend and the body dubbed with tan (or cream) dubbing all the way up to the eye of the hook. The hackle was then wound around the wing post starting at the highest point and winding down. The hackle feather was tied in and the fly whip finished at the eye.
The Skippy Sedge
Hook: Size 12 Partridge SLD dry fly. Thread: Pale green 8/0. Tail: Butt of green dubbing. Body: Pine squirrel dubbing generously applied. Wing: Three natural coloured CDC feathers tied in 2mm from the eye (with quills over the eye): one on near-side, one on top and one on far-side.
This fly was developed for the 2001 world championships in Sweden and can be used throughout the year as Caddis hatch in every month.
Thread tied on at eye with touching turns the length of the hook shank. A sparsely dubbed bead of light green applied to butt, followed by a ‘chunky’ body of brown pine squirrel dubbing to thorax region.
CDC wing is tied in one feather at a time and each adjusted to length by pulling the rachis.
Head finished with more dubbing and CDC feather ends cut over the eye of the hook.
The fly is best fished in fast-moving currents so that it sinks at the end of the drift – as the final retrieve mimics the Caddis returning to the surface after egg-laying.
Following on from Karl’s last demonstration (2ndNovember 2017) he was asked about the current situation with game fishing in Wales. We were told that the National Resources Wales (NRW) were finalising new regulations which would probably be ratified by the Welsh Assembly in 2019. (The following link gives the current proposals: NRW proposed fishing controls 16/3/2018). In the North West the Border Esk and tributaries (Liddel and Eden), were made catch and release for all salmon earlier this year. Karl thinks that the decisions being made are based on statistical analysis of poor quality data and consequently the current estimates of migratory fish numbers are probably inaccurate. He was concerned that the Environmental Agency (EA) and NRW were not interested in and do not understand the needs of fishermen and were not the best groups to manage river fisheries. Karl was also concerned that the proposed changes would be impossible to implement. He felt that the salmon and sea trout license was becoming redundant (hence losing the EA revenue), as unless an angler was specifically targeting these species, any accidental catch would be released! Although Karl felt that changes were impacting negatively on game fishing, he was still enjoying and actively participating in the hobby, as evinced by his enthusiasm during the evening.
Karl then went on to demonstrate six flies that he personally found to be productive in rivers.
The Orange Spider
Hook: Size 10 or 12 Thread: Orange Glo-brite No. 5 floss tied to produce a carrot shaped body tied off and finished with 3 coats of varnish (as for a buzzer pattern). Smokey grey 14/0 thread was used for the thorax and head. Hackle: Two to three turns of a grouse neck feather tied in by the distal end of the rachis. Dubbing: Dun ice dub tied sparingly at the thorax to flare the spider hackle. Head: varnished thread
Comments
A variant was also demonstrated with an orange tag and watery olive body. The fly contains no added weight; the heavily varnished body ensuring the fly sinks. Karl recommended a technique of turning the fly through 90 °to whip finish the head as this reduced the risk of the thread unravelling over the eye of the hook. Karl generally fishes this as a team of 3 with a fly such as a ‘Greenwell’s’ as top dropper.
The Avon Bomb
Hook: Size 10 or 12 Jig Hook Thread: Gordon Griffiths Sheer 14/0 – Burgundy Rib: Fine Silver Wire Hackle: Two to three turns of a grouse neck feather tied in by the distal end of the rachis. Body: Three strands of bronze peacock herl Wing: Short length of pink Antron mused with 6 to 8 strands of Krystal flash Hackle: 3 to 4 turns of a ginger cock hackle Head: 3.5mm Facetted Silver bead
Comments A layer of tying thread, with touching turns, to the half-way down the shank. The thread was returned with layers of thread built up to secure the bead. The thread was then taken to a point on the hook opposite the barb with the rib and peacock herl tied in and returned to the hook eye. The herl was wound up to the thorax (leaving room for wing and hackle), secured with thread and then ribbed (opposite direction to the herl). The wing and hackle were tied in with the thread and the wing cut to 2 to 3 mm. The thread was varnished at the bead after whip finishing.
Hairy Green Butt Prince Nymph
Hook: Size 10 long shank, weighted with lead if desired Thread: Veevus B17 14/0 Yellow/Chartreuse for butt, Charcoal grey 14/0 for body and head Tail: Two brown goose biots, trimmed to 2/3rds length of shank and flared over the butt. Rib: Medium Gold Oval Tinsel Dubbing: Fox squirrel mixture of fur plucked from pelt. Wing: Two white goose biots, trimmed to length of shank. Hackle: Mid-section of a brown furnace feather, upper surface forward, tied in at distal end of rachis. Head: Varnished head.
Dry F-Fly
Hook: #16 Medium or fine wire Thread: 14/0 in charcoal Body: Very sparsely dubbed fox squirrel fur Wing: Three overlaying natural coloured CDC feathers tied in on top of head Head: Varnished head.
Comments The body used the residual dubbing from the Green Butt Prince Nymph. A nice way of conserving materials. Use a little CDC oil when fishing for extra buoyancy.
Haslam Variant (Salmon / Sea Trout Fly)
Hook: #8 low water double Thread: Gordon Griffiths Sheer 14/0 Burgandy Tag: Glo-Brite No2 Fluoro Pink Floss Rib: Small Oval Tinsel Tail: Golden Pheasant crest feather Body: Glo-brite fluorescent tinsel (or pearl mylar). Throat Hackle: Dyed blue guinea fowl. Wing: Natural hen pheasant tail feather. Antenna: Two blue/gold macaw barbules from centre tail. Eyes: Jungle cock (placed both sides). Head: Varnished head.
Comments Karl’s tips employed in tying this fly included:
Flattening the base of the golden pheasant crest feather to ensure that the barbules did not splay and they stayed on top of the hook.
Throat hackles and hen pheasant wings were easier to tie in using a vee-shaped section of a feather prepared by cutting the rachis above and below the number of barbules required. The barbules from the left and right side of the ‘vee’ could then be folded together and tied in long with 2 thread wraps and pulled to the required length before securing with tight thread wraps.
Split jungle cock eyes could be repaired by the dipping in a light varnish then using finger and thumb to encourage the split eye to mend.
Congleton Fly Tying Club will be holding an opening evening on the Thursday 30th August 2018 starting at 8pm at the Cygnet Club in Congleton.
Frank Moors will be demonstrating a few simple patterns on the night for those thinking of taking up this fabulous pastime or for those who would like to improve their skills.
Fly patterns for the evening will cover:
Simple Thread Buzzer
Pheasant Tail Spiders
Pheasant Tail Dry Fly
Black Marabou Lure Tadpole style and wing /hackle
Predator Fly – TBC
Those new to tying are more than welcome to tie a pattern on the evening and for those who want to improve their skills, feel free to bring along your gear.
This is the first meeting in our annual calendar so come along and enjoy the evening with like-minded people.
Address:
Congleton Fly Tying Club The Cygnet Club 12 Swan Bank, Congleton CW12 1AH
Please find below photos and pattern details of the competition patterns which Frank demonstrated last night. Good luck in the forthcoming club competition.
CDC Loop Winged Emerger
Hook: fine wire sedge/scud hook size 12. Thread: black 8/0. Shuck: one to three strands of pearl Krystal flash. Rib: one strand pearl Krystal flash. Abdomen: fine textured brown dubbing. Thorax: dark brown haretron dubbing or similar. Wing: two grey CDC feathers.
Hook: wet fly size 10. Tail: hare body guard hairs. Abdomen: hare body fur. Rib: gold wire. Wingcase: goose/turkey feather slip dyed black. Thorax: hare body fur well picked out.
Roger is a secretary of the Grayling Society, a life member of Wild Trout Trust, an active member of the Worcester Branch of the Fly Dressers’ Guild and author of ‘Flyfishing the Welsh Borderlands’ (Coch-Y-Bonddu Books, 2011).
Roger gave a 40-minute presentation followed by a fly tying demonstration of five dry flies suitable for Welsh Borderland rivers and their tributaries.
Trout and Grayling fishing on the Rivers and Streams of the Welsh Borderlands through the Seasons
Roger introduced the presentation by describing which rivers and streams he fished in the Welsh borderland. These comprised; the Dee, Severn, Wye and Usk, and he made specific reference to the Lugg and Arrow tributaries of the Wye. He recommended the use of the environment agency flood information service to monitor the levels of these and other rivers to prepare for fishing expeditions so that they could be timed to coincide with stable or falling river levels. Describing the entomology of the rivers, Roger initially discussed the use of marker insects to monitor river health – Caddis, Gammarus shrimp, Stonefly nymphs, Mayfly nymphs (including Baetis and heptagenid), and then the seasonal variability of these and other insects. Then Roger turned to a discussion of fishing tactics including use of; upstream nymphing, Czech nymphing, dry fly and trotting. He described the use of a team of flies (up to 4) and ‘duo’ teams – dry fly dropper with a weighted nymph or vice-versa (washing-line presentation), and stressed the importance of the ‘induced take’ to capitalise on the, sometimes, impetuous feeding habit of game fish in fast flowing water. To help identify takes he advocated the use of indicators and specifically recommended the use of a sliding ‘sight’ made from coloured strands of Aero Dry Wing tied to the line with a short length of fluorocarbon using a half blood-knot tied back on itself.
The final section of the presentation brought together the tactics and fly selection approaches that Roger had found most successful in the different seasons on these waters. Of particular note, he described the use of March brown, Gold Ribbed Hares Ear, Dark Olive nymph and Orange Tagged Hares Ear for early season nymphing and Hawthorne and Grannom as early season dries. The recommended summer patterns were the Black Gnat and May Fly. Autumn patterns comprised; Crane fly, Red Tag, Treacle Parkin and Coch-Y-Bonddu and in winter he advocated Czech nymphing with Pink Shrimp and Cased Caddis patterns. Roger found by experience that reverse hackled flies (See reverse hackled Barrett’s Bain fly below) improved the presentation when fishing a downriver wind. Finally, Roger referred to use of Trotting and Tankara as additional approaches that he had found to be successful in Welsh Borderland rivers and streams.
The DogsBody
Hook: size 12 medium wire Thread: Dark brown Tail: 10 -12 natural pheasant tail fibres Body: yellow Labrador fur Rib: fine gold wire Hackles: grizzle and red game cock feathers (5 – 6 turns each)
Orange Otter
Hook: size 14 Fulling Mill all-purpose light wire Thread: Dark brown Tail: bunch red game feather fibres Body and thorax/head: Orange baby seals fur dubbing Central hackle: Red game (approx. 10 turns)
Baby Sun Fly
Hook: size 14 Fulling Mill all-purpose light wire Thread: Dark brown Tail: Black cock hackle fibres Body: grey rabbit underfur dubbing Hackle: Coch-Y-Bonddu feather (3-4 turns)
Barrett’s Bain (Reverse Hackle)
Hook: size 14 up-eye dry fly Thread: Dark brown Body: 4-5 natural pheasant tail fibres Hackle: Blue dun cock feather (5 – 6 turns)
Baby Sun Fly (Jig Hook Variant)
Hook: size 16 Jig-eye Thread: Dark brown Wing: Aero Dry wing (Pink or suitable colour for visibility) Body: grey rabbit underfur dubbing Hackle: Coch-Y-Bonddu feather (4 -5 turns)
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