FLYMPH FORUM

Details on a classic wet fly that everyone knows! The Brown Hackle Peacock!



Step-by-Step Tying Instructions:

Photo One: Tying thread down the shank to just short of the bend. Tie in mylar tinsel with gold side inward. Wrap five rounds down and six back up. Tie of mylar with three tight wraps and add just a small drop of head cement to keep the wraps secure. Pick two peacock hurls and even them by the tips. Cut off 3/4" of the tips and secure them to the hook shank. Form a dubbing loop and cut the bottom of the loop off level with the butt ends of the hurls. Gather the hurl/thread together in a hackle pliars and twist them clockwise until the hurl "pops". Wind this peacock rope forward (occasionally twisting to maintain the "pop") until an eye length behind the eye! Secure with 3-4 tight wraps and again apply a small drop of head cement!


Photo Two:


Photo Three:Select a soft, brown feather from a hen cape and trim the butt end with your scissors about six barbs up the shaft. This will help keep the feather secure under the wraps of thread. Secure the feather with four tight turns and another small drop of head cement. Make 3-4 wraps of hackle as you fold the fibers backward on each turn! Secure the hackle, trim the excess, and begin to make a small, cone shaped head extending backwards enough to push the hackles into a swept back position. Whip finish and apply enough head cement to gloss the head really well! Sometimes, it takes two coats!


Photo Four:I have much more history and tying notes to share with you about this pattern including a recipe! I will post these tidbits shortly!


Photo Five:A big THANK YOU shout out goes to Ray for posting the pictures above and stepping me thru this process! It was fun and I hope everyone enjoys it! This pattern is a real killer for me and a blast to tie!


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Photo 8:

Awesome SBS!

Thanks Bill! I hope to get a recipe and some interesting histories posted tomorrow! This pattern is so great to tie and fish!
Doug

Lovely SBS!!
For over 60 years I have had both Gray and Brown Hackle Peacocks (tied with red hackle tails) in my fly boxes. Can't leave home without them!!

Recipe for Brown Hackle Peacock plus a few side notes! Again, thanks to Ray for help in the technical department!

Brown Hackle Peacock
Thread: 6/0 Danville's black

Hook: First choice, Tiemco 3761. It just has those classic lines suited to this and other similar patterns! A similar and often used hook is Cabela's Model 22. Size 14 seems to work really well!

Tag: UTC brand mylar tinsel in size x-small. Gold side out please! Five turns down and six turns back. The sixth turn is caught by the waiting thread with three tight turns and a drop of head cement for security!

Body: Two peacock hurls captured in a two strand dubbing loop. At the bottom of the loop, cut the thread loop and hurls off even and grab them with your spare set of hackle pliars! Turn the rope until the peacock "pops" and then wind forward in touching turns to just short of the eye leaving enough room for the waiting hackle! Another small drop of head cement goes well here! You could not ask for a better fly body than spun peacock hurl. It's fuzzy and soft and looks buggy!

Hackle: A single feather from a Whiting brand - Hebert Miner hen cape in brown! This hackle, even though it looks like a stiff dry fly hackle, is quit soft and works well on this pattern! I am blessed to own it! More later on where this beautiful cape came from!

Head: As small as you can get away with! This is done in memory of our pal Bill Shuck! He used to marvel at the "tiny little heads" on my offerings. On conventional wet fly patterns, the head is a dominant feature but, I chose to down play this! A generous amount of head cement (sometimes over two coats) completes the pattern!

Nicely done, Doug
I'm lovin' that bronze hurl you got there!
All mine comes off a few well guarded sticks.

Doug - When you sent me the images, I immediately knew they had the makings for an excellent tutorial. Thank you for sharing the tutorial and description of your tying process. The finished fly sort of reminds me of the ones along the bottom of Mark's FlymphForum logo (top left of screen/very similar profile).

No wonder the Brown Hackle Peacock has been around so long. Simply elegant and effective fishing pattern.

Well done, my friend.

Thanks for the kind words everyone! Ray, I couldn't have done it without you! Sincere thanks go out to you!
I have a few more "Tying Notes" about the construction and history of some of the materials gone into this pattern! It takes a village.....and so it is with this particular pattern!
I forgot to mention in the text above about building an under body onto the hook shank before the hurl rope comes forward! I try to make a cigar shaped body perhaps tapered a bit thinner at the waste than at the shoulder. It gives the hurl body that classic shape. Also, he curved shank on the two hook brands mentioned above lend a grace and ever so slight natural curve that is reflected in the overall look of the fly! This may not been the way that the original pattern was tied but, if you think about it, most of yesterdays patterns tied today are modified and adapted to fit the look we are striving for! I make about six passes back and forth along the hook shank finishing with an abrupt drop off at the front end of the body! Another under body shape is achieved with wraps of fine lead (or non-lead) wire. Yes, I occasionally weight this pattern to reach down a bit further and quicker in the water column!
The hackles come from a genetic hen neck that I bought back in 2012 at the Dette fly ship during the first Flymph rendezvous! Bill Shuck was along with me as we toured and adored "Mecca"! That was a great trip and one that I will never forget! As usual with most modern hen necks, the feather shafts are considerably longer much like a rooster hackle! And, sometimes the fibers are stiffer. Not so with this one! The feathers are extremely soft and do a great job under the surface staying pliable and lively (life like)! These patterns are tied with the great memories I have of being in Bills company and visiting such an enchanted and historic place! More coming soon!

Doug and Ray, Howdy;

Great to see the teamwork you 2 use to create the SBS.

Doug, beautiful fly, very well put together. With all that head cement
dabbed on it should last for a few generations of den dwellers. chuckle.


hank

Dougsden, I’m a new guy here and my first post is thanking you for a great sbs! I will be sure to tie some of these up.
Thanks again, Mike.