#22 midge pupa SBS

[AndyBaird]

The first anniversary of Ed Koch's death is this July. I'll spend the month "Fishing the Midge" in his honour.

Hook: TMC 200R (Daiichi 1270 has a big-eye which makes the last steps a little easier to control)
Thread: Uni Trico 17/0
Abdomen: Stripped peacock quill
Wing-buds: Goose biots, tan
Flash: Uni pearl mylar, #16



Take thread down the shank level with the barb, pinched of course. You can see how fine the Trico thread is, ideal for tying small.



Catch in a stripped peacock quill (pre-treated with Dilly Wax to soften). Ensure the darker barring is visible as you wrap forward, to provide natural segmentation.



At the point of tie-in the stripped quill is super-FINE and easily snapped. Make the first wrap by hand and hold in place with your finger tip. Grab the tip with hackle pliers to control forward wraps.



Aim for a neat, uniform finish. Nature is full of mutation and odd-ball characteristics but segmentation on pupa is highly uniform... usually.



Select two tiny goose biots and catch in either side of the hook at just short of the midway between the hook point and the eye. This will make for an attractive proportion when the head is formed.



Add a length of pearl mylar on top, dead-centre. Bind the biots and mylar down hard with 2-3 turns of thread.



Form a neat head with multiple turns of thread. You'll need to work the Trico thread to build bulk, then add permanent marker to colour up.



Draw the mylar forward dead-centre and tie down with a single wrap of thread. I don't want to exaggerate the flash so...



... the biots are drawn forward and tied down next, just one turn of thread per biot will hold everything in place.



Colour the thread with permanent marker and cord-up to add bite and strength, then bind everything again HARD with 2-3 turns of thread.



Trim tag-ends with a sharp razor-blade. Nick-in just ahead of the thread, towards the eye, and slice back and forth with minimal pressure until the materials are released. Then whip-finish over the tag-ends to tidy things up and provide a blunt finish to the head. The slim abdomen and bulbed head is all part of the game. The abdomen should be a little slimmer than the natural, the head a little fatter. These subtle contrasts with the natural provide trigger appeal.



Several coats of Hard As Nails finish the fly and smooth the interface between the abdomen and head. This design is bomb-proof. The gloss cuts through the materials and adds natural transparency. You can see how subtle the flash is in this shot, it would be overstated if tied over the biots. The trout's eye is massively powerful, and subtlety is far more effective at triggering strikes.

Please remember Ed this July.

Best,
Andy

[Alpinefly]

Very Nice Pattern and tying Andy !!! Thnaks for shareing !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[willowgrub]

You should be a brain surgeon with those hands

[Tak]

Andy,

I wanted to respond to this about the stripped quills.

Opps,
Tak