Spey Fly DVD $30 Delivered Call or email |
| My second love behind the full dressed featherwing flies would have to be the old Scottish Spey & Dee patterns. |
| The old ghillies used barnyard materials & the furs & feathers obtained while hunting as a matter of economy. While it's no longer legal to use heron, rail, kite, & plumage from other protected species, we have excellent substitutes available. Wild turkey, pheasants, & other game birds have feather markings similar to the protected species, & are very effective on fishing flies. Modern patterns keep the style & character of the Spey/Dee fly, while using "hot" colors that are deadly on steelhead. |
| Spey Fly DVD $30 Delivered Call or email |
| Hook: Any salmon/steelhead type | Sample is an Alec Jackson # 1.5 |
| Thread/head: Wine colored 8/0 or 12/0 | Small, tapered head |
| Tag: Bright yellow floss | From barb to point |
| Tail: G. P. crest | A "topping" about 1- 1 1/2 hook gaps long |
| Butt: Yellow ostrich herl | 2 turns over hook point to hide tie-offs |
| Body: Bright blue floss | Smooth & tapered |
| Ribs: Medium oval silver tinsel | 5 turns evenly spaced; tie off UNDER shank |
| Hackle: Kingfisher blue schlappen | Wound tight behind the ribs, from 2nd turn |
| Throat: Hot purple mallard flank | 2 turns only, wound "doubled" |
| Wing: Narrow strips of hot orange goose or turkey | Set flat & tentlike |
| With Thanks to Bud "old coot" Smithers , who originated this pattern as a whole feather wing salmon fly; the "German Forest Ranger". |
| Hook= Any long shank, light wire salmon/steelhead model | Sample fly is on an Alec Jackson #1 1/2 |
| Thread= Black | 6/0-12/0 |
| Tag= Fine silver tinsel | Oval tinsel is stronger than flat, & adds a bit more flash |
| Tail= G.P.crest | Crests are often referred to as "toppings" in the old tying books |
| Butt= Black dyed ostrich herl | 2 turns only, to hide the tie-offs of the tag & tail. Avoid leaving excess material forward of the butt; it will make a "lumpy" body |
| Body= Black silk floss | Floss is tied in at the front, & wound towards the butt; binding down the ribbing tinsel. Reverse direction, & tie in the hackle tip with the floss. This tie in should be at the point where the 2nd or 3rd turn of ribbing crosses under the body |
| Ribs= Flat & fine oval gold tinsel | 5 or 6 turns, with the oval butting against the trailing edge of the flat |
| Hackle= Imitation heron belly, dyed loden green | Use a permanent marker to blacken the tips of a green dyed maribou hackle. Strip one side, & wrap immediately behind the tinsel rib |
| Throat= Teal flank | Tied in by the tip, "doubled", & wrap 2 or 3 turns |
| Wing= Goose strips dyed loden green, with narrow strip of yellow over narrow strip of black married to top edge | Reversing the thread will prevent the far wing from collapsing. The yellow strip replaces a topping, which was used in the original Ranger type wing. The black strip replaces the bars in the original's tippet wing. |
| Cheeks= Jungle cock | Set drooping |
| This is a variation on the old Pacific North West steelhead standard. It uses soft materials that give more action & mobility in the water than the chenille & bucktail used in the original. I like to tie it on fairly large hooks. The fly in the picture is on an Alec Jackson #1 1/2. The nickel plating prevents the floss butt from turning "muddy" in the water. |
| Hook=Any salmon/steelhead model | Partridge "N" series have a 2x long shank, similar to the old Spey/Dee style. |
| Thread=Black | 6/0-12/0 |
| Butt=Flourescent Lime floss | Underwrap with silver tinsel, or use plated hook. |
| Tail=G. P. crest dyed bright red | 1-1½ hook gaps long |
| Body=Black dyed seal or substitute | Loop dub loosely |
| Ribs=Flat silver tinsel & fine oval silver (wire) | 5 turns only.Oval is counter-wrapped to re-enforce hackle. "Pick" hackle clear as wire is wrapped. |
| Hackle=Schlappen or imitation heron ie:maribou or pheasant rump, dyed black | From 2nd turn of flat tinsel, & following back edge of tinsel. Right handed tyers will strip left side of feather, & tie in by tip. |
| Throat=Mallard flank dyed chartreuse | Tie in by tip, "fold" or "double", & wrap 2 turns. Tie off under shank to avoid a lump at the wing position. |
| Wing=Narrow strips of white goose or turkey | Set low & tented. Reversing the thread helps prevent crushing the far side wing. Practice will allow setting both at once. |
| This is a modern variant, tied in the old style. The combination gives a great silhouhette, with just a touch of hot color that seems to turn on fall steelies. I like to tie it on fairly large hooks, and fish it on a hard swing. The fly in the picture is on an Alec Jackson #1 1/2. The gold plating adds a little extra flash. |
| Hook=Any salmon/steelhead model | Partridge "N" series have a 2x long shank, similar to the old Spey/Dee style. |
| Thread=Black | 6/0-12/0 |
| Tag=Embossed gold tinsel | Butted turns, DO NOT OVERLAP |
| Tail=G. P. crest dyed hot orange | 1-1½ hook gaps long |
| Butt=Hot orange dyed herl | 2 turns to hide tail tie-down |
| Body=Black dyed seal or substitute | Loop dub loosely |
| Ribs=Flat gold tinsel & fine oval gold (wire) | 5 turns only.The oval is wrapped touching the back edge of the flat. |
| Hackle=Schlappen or imitation heron ie:maribou or pheasant rump, dyed black | From 2nd turn of flat tinsel, & following back edge of tinsel. Right handed tyers will strip left side of feather, & tie in by tip. |
| Throat=Mallard flank dyed hot orange | Tie in by tip, "fold" or "double", & wrap 2 turns. Tie off under shank to avoid a lump at the wing position. |
| Wing=Narrow strips of hot orange goose or turkey | Set low & tented. Reversing the thread helps prevent crushing the far side wing. Practice will allow setting both at once. |
| The Milwaukee Spey was created to combine the black/pink colors that are so effective on steelhead into a pattern that would trigger strikes under most conditions of clarity & temperature. Black flies have a good silhouette, & pink gives a splash of hot color. The pattern has been effective on the winter run steelies in Wisconsin's Lake Michigan tributaries. |
| Hook: Alec Jackson #1 1/2 or equivilant | Any long shank, light wire salmon model |
| Body: Half hot pink, half black seal | Any seal substitute may be used |
| Ribs: Medium flat & fine oval silver tinsel | 5 turns only, with the oval following the flat in touching turns |
| Hackle: Imitation heron belly dyed hot pink | From the 2nd turn of tinsel. Strip one side, & tie in by the tip, from the 2nd or 3rd turn of ribbing. |
| Throat: Mallard flank dyed hot pink | Two turns, "doubled" |
| Wing: Strips of black goose | Set low & flat( tent-like), by reversing the thread |
| Head: Black thread | 6/0-12/0 |
| Bob's Big Magic Marker |
| Tying Speys with All New Colors |
| Text & images by Bob Blumreich |
 Many of the old Scottish Spey
and Dee type flies called for materials that are now illegal under numerous state,
federal, and international laws. Other materials are available, but so expensive that
they're not practical to use on fishing flies. As ethical tyers and anglers, we need
substitutes that will maintain the character of the old flies, not break any laws, and not
require a second mortgage to buy. Here's a little trick to imitating heron belly hackles.
The natural feather has a white center, with black tips on each flue. Dying the feather
leaves the tips black, and the center white part takes the color. Using a black permanent
marker pen to stain the tips of a colored marabou feather creates a very natural looking
imitation of heron hackle. The solvents in the ink burn the excess fuzz from the flue, and
make it look very much like the real thing. The feather will get matted, so allow it to
dry, and then brush it out with a piece of Velcro. Using colors other than black on the
tips will give some "hot" combinations for steelhead flies. Try this variation on the old PNW
standard: |
Polar Shrimp Variation |
|
| Hook | any steelhead/salmon model |
| Body | hot orange SLF or similar |
| Rib | oval gold tinsel |
| Hackle | red tipped-orange marabo |
| Throat | red dyed mallard flank |
| Wing | narrow strips of white goose |
| Head | red |
HINTS:
| A right handed tyer will strip the
left side of the body hackle before tying in by the tip. Wrap the hackle close behind the rib, from the 2nd or 3rd turn of tinsel. This depends on how dense the tyer wants the finished fly. Use dubbing needle to pick thru the hackle barbs while wrapping the counter rib. The wire is wound in the opposite direction to the rib & hackle, in order to bind down the hackle stem, & reinforce it against bite-thru's. Throat hackles are usually two turns of doubled feather,(duck flank, guinea, schlappen,etc), that has been tyed in by the tip. Allow the wings to set slightly down on the sides, in order to keep a low profile. Use of a cautery burner permits close trimming of butts, without disturbing the wing's position. See your Opthamologist. |
 A Touch of Pink |
 Dad's Favorite Streamer-Spey Style |
 Damian Wilmot's Grey Ghost |
| GUIDED FISHING | SCENERY | FLY TYING | SPEY SWAPS |
| Home | Spring Creeks-1 | Featherwing Primer | Millennium Swap |
| Driftless Spring Creeks | Spring Creeks-2 | Speyfly Primer | ff@ Spey Swap |
| Hatch Chart | Great Lakes Salmon | Links | Century-1 |
| Steelhead & Salmon | Great Lakes Steelhead | Century-2 | |
| Clutter | Century-3 |
