We wanted to highlight a few newer materials that we have been using in our midge tying. Snow shoe hare's foot kind of got hard to find for a little but, so we started to play with some other options. Poly yarn works well, but we just got some EP trigger point international fibers that is a very fine option for wings. I have no idea what "trigger point international" means, but I'm translating it as "really good winging material." We also wanted to show how to use Veevus body quill as a trailing shuck because it has just enough luster to make an effective shuck. Keep in mind that I always use floatant on this bad boy, and Loon Lochsa is definitely my favorite.
Check out the new video:
Updated Recipe:
*We used a Tiemco hook in the video because it's what we had at the bench. The Gamakatsu C12-BM is a great hook too because it's barbless and it has a bigger eye.
Hook: Gamakatsu C12-BM - #28 (+)
Thread: Uni 8/0 - Black (+)
Shuck: Veevus body quill - Tan (+)
Wing: EP trigger point international fibers - Quick Silver (+)
If you want snowshoe hare's feet, we have those too (+)
A dozen #30 bunny midges on a dime
Several years back all of my free days in the winter consisted of arriving at the river about 8:00 am, rigging up the 3 weight and walking slowly down to the stretch of the river where the fish liked to eat dry flies. I HATED nymphing, and I would rather go and sit at the side of the river waiting to see a nose, fin, or tail come up for a snack. I quickly realized that my offerings needed some tweaking if I was going to be able to take advantage of these risers. I had been tying a lot with snowshoe hare's foot (because I had no money, and good hackle costs money...) and I began to tie with some small hooks. I started with a #24 and got the fly to be proportionate without a lot of added bulk where the wing was tied in. I wanted a shiny trailing shuck and a very faint rib. I started with a wire rib, but adding any more metal on an already minuscule hook was going to compromise the buoyancy of the bug. I settled on tying thread of a slightly different color. Off to the river to fish, and the bugs performed very well, except for the fact that the fish seemed to be taking size 64 emergers that day. I would drift a #24 right down Santa Claus lane with no takers. I had to go smaller. The fly shop was on the way home, and they thought I was nuts for asking for #30 and #32 hooks, but hey, THEY were the ones who had them on the shelves. The next weekend, the smaller flies performed amazingly, and I have been fishing small flies ever since. I tie this fly from #18 to #32 in black, brown, olive, gray, etc. The key is the wing and the shuck; you can do whatever tickles your fancy in the middle.
Recipe:
Hook: TMC 2488 #18-28 or TMC 518 #28-32
Thread: Veevus 16/0 or Uni 8/0 color to match natural bugs
By
How do you feel about hookup ratios on size 30 vs 22 vs 14 hooks?
ReplyDeleteGuide Jeremy Hunt at http://www.flysandguides.com/ advocates tying size 20 & 22 zebra midges on a size 14 hook. Here is the article on his old site: http://www.taneycomotrout.com/articlestips/articlesmidgefishing.html
I spun some up some size 20s on a fine wire size 14 hook, and after fishing them I have to agree with Jeremy that the trout don't seem to mind, at least on a zebra midge. It can't hurt that it also adds a little extra weight, either.
Have you ever tried this with nymphs or dry flies?
That works when you are dealing with nymphs, but all the extra metal of the hook doesn't wrok with dry flies. You would have to add a lot of extra materials to a dry fly to get it to float a bigger hook. Hookup ratios really depend on the hook as well. The TMC 2488 is a great pupa hook because of the wide gap and straight eye.
DeleteFabulous imitation.
ReplyDeleteI like the wings of SRF, has many applications.
By the way, great blog and thanks for the link!
Thanks! Also, thanks for the acronym SRF... that will save me a lot of typing.
DeleteHow do you see the fly? Do you fish it behind a larger fly?
ReplyDeleteA lot of times I do, but it really shows up well due to the wing being very buoyant.
DeleteDo u dress the wing?
ReplyDeleteDo u dress the wing?
ReplyDeleteI like to put Loon Lochsa on it for maximum flotation.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteIs SRF an acronym for Bunny Midge?
ReplyDeleteNice tie, Cheech. Would say it's a dun, emerger, or both?
ReplyDelete