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| Fly recipe Hook: 3x long Nymph Hook (Dai Riki #730) Thread: 6/0 Uni Thread Bead: Gold Cyclops Bead Tail: Brown Goose Biots Abdomen: Ultra Wire Thorax: Peacock Herl Wing Case: Black trash bag with pearl flash-a-bou and epoxy Legs: Partridge or Grouse Tying instructions: Step 1: Thread a bead on the hook and insert the hook in your vise. Attach the thread to the hook. The original pattern uses some small diameter lead wire wrapped under the colored wire to add some extra weight as well as adding more of a taper to the body. Many of the commercially tied version skip the lead wire step because there is a good bit of weight already in the materials used and it is easier to tie in the wire on a bare hook. I have found that the fly fishes just fine without the lead wire wrapped under the colored wire. If you want to add the lead wire to the fly you will want to wrap the lead wire around the hook shank prior to attaching your thread to the hook. Step 2: Once the thread is attached to the hook wrap the thread to the rear. A very easy way to know if you are at the right starting point for most flies is to let your bobbin hang from the hook, the thread should be in line with the barb on the hook. This is generally where the hook shank moves to the bend portion of the hook. Step 3: Attach one goose biot on one side of the hook and the other biot on the opposite side of the hook shank. You will want to tie in the biots so that the concave side of the biot faces out and away from the hook. If you are not getting a very good separation of the biots you can either make a small ball of thread of use some dubbing to form a small ball that will encourage the biots to form a split tail. Step 4: Once the tail is attached to the hook you will need to attach your colored wire. There are two ways that you can do this. The most common way is to use a pair of forceps or pliers to smash the wire flat. This will help to form a even body and eliminate the bump that is common with tying wire bodies. Once you have flattened the wire attach it to the hook at the same point you tied in your tail. The second method, which I prefer to use, is to attach the wire at the front of the hook where you will be tying the thorax portion of the fly. If you attach the wire near the front of the hook all you have to do is wrap the wire to the rear with each wrap right next to the other. Once you have wrapped the wire to the rear and reached the tails all you need to do is cut or break the wire off at the rear. This method will make a very nice tapered body and you will not have the problem with a small bump right at the tail. Most people worry about the wire coming unwound after you have fished the fly for a while but after 15 years of tying and fishing brassies tied using this method I have never seen the wire come unwound. Step 5: The next step is to tie in 1 to 4 strands of flashabou to form the wing case. Once the flashabou is tied in you will want to tie in some sort of backing material, I use a basic black trash bag. This is very important when you use the epoxy to form the wing case. The plastic backing will keep the epoxy from soaking into the peacock herl. The plastic is basically a reservoir to hold the epoxy until it dries. The black backing will also make the flashabou show up better. The easiest thing to use is a black trash bag which you will cut in small strips. Cut the strips wide enough to cover the peacock herl I usually cut them about 1/8 of an inch in width. Tie in the backing material on the top of the flashabou. Step 6: Once you have the wing case tied in attach several pieces of peacock herl. Wrap the peacock herl around the hook to form the abdomen of the fly. Step 7: For attaching the legs I like to do it before I pull the wing case over the top. By tying on the legs first you can use the wing case to help split your legs on each side. To attach the legs simply strip a clump of partridge feathers off the stem of the feather and tie the one clump on each side of the fly. You can also tie a larger clump of partridge directly on top of the hook and use the wing case to split the clump in half. This will make the legs split on each side but they will be slightly splayed upward. Step 8: Once the legs are attached pull the backing for the wing case and the flashabou over the top of the hook and tie it off. Whip finish the fly and cut off the thread. Step 9: If you are going to use epoxy for a hard shell wingcase you will want to tie several flies before you mix up your epoxy. Devcon 5- Minute Epoxy is my favorite epoxy to use for tying. Once you have a dozen of so flies tied up mix some epoxy and put a dollop of epoxy on the wingcase. I have a block of foam that I stick the flies into so that the fly stays level while the epoxy dries. Step 10: Once the epoxy is completely dry the fly is ready to fish. Be sure and let the epoxy cure for at least a few hours because even if the epoxy is hard it will not be fully cured. If you touch the epoxy before it has cured you run the risk of making the epoxy cloudy or leaving a finger print in the epoxy. The epoxy is not a necessity on this fly but it does dress it up a bit. Notes: The Copper John has become of the Go-To fly patterns for many anglers. The Copper John was developed by Dr. John Barr from Denver Colorado. The Copper John became Umpqua Feather Merchants record setting seller and remains one of the more popular fly patterns today. You will find copper johns tied in many differnt colors and with several different variations on the theme of the fly. Adding a soft hackle to the fly has become popular and adds a little extra to the fly. Tie them up in many colors and many sizes because this is a fly that can produce results when others won't. Good luck and enjoy. |
