FLYMPH FORUM

Kelly, thanks for such a wonderful thread. It's great to see these traditional patterns spark some interest and then end up taking bass in Texas. Perfect. I haven't tied with that feather but I probably have some. I'll give this a try later if I can find all the parts.

Kelly,Dabbler flies tend to have the wing laying over the body, be quite long and are tied in after the body. Lawrence Finney shows how to do the technique in the second video on this page.
http://www.finneysflies.com/videos_69.html
Just a happy coincidence that it happens to be on a Dabbler.
If you can remember back to the thread I had going when I was in Ireland, I spent a lot of my time there fishing with the Dabbler's inventor. Dabbler was Donalds nickname at school.

"Irish Trout & Salmon Flies" by E.J. Malone is a book worth searching for if you are having an Irish fly kick.

I am sure Hans has posted video showing the tied in barbs over the eye and pushed back after the body has been tied. Perhaps he will read this and be able to link to something for us.

William you are welcome.

Jeff, thanks for the tip on the book. I might get it way in the future. I like all the Dabbler flies I've seen. You met the man who made them? Now I am even more jealous...lol. I have seen a video or two, on how to make them. They don't look hard. But that mallard might be a little tricky.

Kelly, the Mallard is better than most as it "knits" together well and once stripped from the quill does not tend to fly apart! If you watch Lawrence wrap in the video he reverses the thread a couple of times to re-align the fibres and they remain knitted together. Not sure the Pheasant feather used for the Bracken Clock would behave the same way so it might be easier to place them over the eye first before forming the fly body.

Thanks Jeff. If you place the fibers first, how could you wrap the herl? I guess I am confused.

The hackle fibres are the first thing added to the hook with the initial thread wraps. The points of the hackle are pointing out away from the bend and over the eye/facing forward. Then the thread is advanced to the bend adding your rib and tag materials. Offer up the herl and wrap as per normal, bring your rib forward and tie it off- work the hackle fibres back into an upright position- advance the thread through and form the head.

This is about where it would be nice for Hans to pop in with a video. . Much easier to see it done than for me to try to explain it!

Basically..... if you tie the hackle so it looks a bit like your avatar or a Tenkara fly, then work it back to be in a traditional stance after the body is tied.

<<<Basically..... if you tie the hackle so it looks a bit like your avatar or a Tenkara fly, then work it back to be in a traditional stance after the body is tied.>>>

Oh, I see what you mean. Thank you Jeff.

Kelly, you have come a long way astray from your streamers since you joined this forum. I remember when you claimed to be unable to tie small flies. Now you tie them and tie them well. You ought to be proud.

dd

DD, thank you. I can't tie a small fly....lol. Size 16 is as low as I can go. Without the readers, and Opti-Visor, I would not be able to do even this. Streamers are great, because there is not as much eye strain. But this forum, the Flymph Forum, has stirred up this obsession with the wingless wets... That obsession is DIRECTLY the result of the people here. The help, guidance, and friendship here, have helped me a great deal.

Stefan (dd) - Having watched Kelly's tying for many years now, I can confidently add that Kelly can proficiently tye any style she sets her mind to. I have a pair of Kelly's streamers proudly displayed above my fly tying desk, right next to one of Mary Dette's March Brown Catskill dry flies.