Olive Mayfly Hair Hackle / Tutorial / SBS

[wayneb]

Hi Ray;

The more I look at this fly, the more I like it!

I really like the longer tail.

One thing I don't quite understand is your tying the dubbing from front to back so thread can secure pheasant tail fibers. Are you saying that you secure the tail as you dub? Or, that by dubbing from front to back then ribbing, it helps to further secure the tailing fibers?

Wayne

[Ron Eagle Elk]

Ray, do the tailing fibers continue over the squirrel dubbing as a "back". That would make sense to me, but can't tell from the photos.

REE

[letumgo]

Ron - Short answer, yes, the pheasant tail fibers form the back of the fly.

Long answer, here are the detailed tying method I used to tye these flies:

1) Mount Hook
2) Attach silk thread to the hook roughly one hook-eye distance from the front of the hook. Leave ~2 to 3 mm (~1/8 inch) of bare hook shank behind the eye of the hook to minimize build-up later. Leave this area of the hook bare until the final head is formed.
3) Wind the thread 1/3rd of the distance back towards the bend of the hook, then wind it forward to the tye in point. (This will build up two layers of silk thread under the front 1/3rd of the body which will later help form the taper of the body).
4) Tye in three or four strands of pheasant tail fibers. (The length of the tail is measured to be equal to the full length of the hook. The tail extends from the end of the straight part of the hook shank.) Wrap the silk from the tye in point, back to the bend of the hook and forward to the tye in point. Leave the butt ends of the pheasant tail fibers hanging out over the eye of the hook. They are folded over the back of the fly in a later step.
5) Wax the silk thread and dub about 75 mm (3 inches) of the thread. The dubbing should taper from thick (next to the hook) to very thin (near the bobbin). Wind the dubbed-thread to the bend of the hook forming the body. Ideally the dubbing will run out right at the bend of the hook, leaving just the bare silk thread.
6) Fold the butt-ends of the pheasant tail fibers back over the top of the body of the fly. Wrap the bare silk thread forward to secure the pheasant tail fibers over the back of the fly. As you wrap the silk foward, this will form the body segmentation.
7) Form a 50 mm (2") long dubbing loop and wax the loop. Wrap the silk thread forward to the eye of the hook.
8) Insert a dubbing twister into the open dubbing loop. Clip off a small clump of squirrel hair from the hide and place it into the butts into the dubbing loop. Carefully distribute the hairs to form a thin ribbon of hair 25 mm (1") long. The hair should radiate at 90° from the dubbing loop (perpendicular).
9) Twist the dubbing loop until the hair is secure and then wrap it forward to the eye of the hook. As you wrap the dubbing loop forward, use you off-hand to pull the hairs towards the back of the fly. Otherwise the hairs will get trapped under each following wrap.
10) Secure the dubbing loop and clip off the excess.
11) Form a neat head.
12) Whip finish and clip off the tying thread.
13) Brush fly with a velcro strip to frizz the body.
14) Pull the fur hackle collar out of the way with your off-hand and add a drop of head cement to the head to finish the fly.

Rince, Repeat...

[VERN-O]

very nice work gents......this to me is the pinacle of swaps. as a sepctator on this wap I am with envy. Exclellent work.....and yes Ray I'm going to need tutorial on these the next time we meet up!!!!

[tie2fish]

That looks like a killer pattern, Ray. The "full" hackle gives it a profile similar to the Irish mayfly patterns that I find very atttractive. As you will see when you get my swap entry, I used a sparse hackle approach that's more suggestive of a spider.

[wayneb]

Hi Ray;

Thanks for the tying directions, it all makes sense now.

Now if I can just find an olive squirrel pelt, perhaps shoot one off an olive tree??

Wayne

[BruceC]

Nicely done, Ray, et al. I too am sorry that work schedules kept me from committing to this swap but thanks to some swell recipes, I can partake in the bounty!

Best,
Bruce C

[letumgo]

I bumped this thread to remind myself to fix the missing pics in the initial post (done) and add this to the tutorials (done).

[fflutterffly]

And the book comes out when. I'd like to see a forum book with special instructions on flies you love. Great information thanks

[cicvara]

-Very nice, I have little to tie them.Thanks.