Foxy Lady Flymph

[letumgo]

Thanks for the encouragement guys.

Jeff - I tyed this fly specifically for trout, but the pink coloration may perhaps be useful for grayling. If I were tying for steelhead, I would change a few elements of the fly. I'd use a larger spey style hook. I'd move the tail up to the mid-section and then have a pink silk tag, with a silver tinsel under body/silver wire rib. I think I can find feathers large enough on the honey dun hen cape to use with a steelhead pattern. If not, I'd switch to wood duck for the hackle. Ya can't beat the beauty of wood duck...

EDIT - Adding the steelhead version of the fly...



Foxy Lady Steelhead Flymph
Hook - Alec Jackson Model 2051 Spey Hook / Size 7 (Black)
Thread - Pearsall's Gossamer Silk (Salmonberry)
Body Hackle - Collins Hen Saddle Feather (Honey Dun) - Stripped on one side
Tag/Underbody - Fine Mylar Tinsel (Silver)
Rib - Fine Stainless Steel wire (Silver)
Rear Body - Kreinik Soie Platte Silk (Pink/No. 932)
Tail - Small Bundle of Fibers from Large Hen Saddle Feather (Honey Dun)
Body - Leisenring/Hidy style Silk Dubbing Brush (Fox Squirrel Body Fur on Salmonberry Pearsall's Gossamer Silk)
Front Hackle - Large Hen Saddle Feather - Prepared, tyed in by the tip and folded before wrapping. Front hackle is intentionally full.
Head - Tying silk wrapped to form a small head (westcoast steelhead style)

[crazy4oldcars]

Beautiful.
The name of the fly and the "dancin' and prancin'" made me laugh. There used to be an establishment out by the college by that name, where a lot of dancin' and prancin' occurred. A lot of dispersing of dollar bills, too. Long since gone now, I wonder what the schoolboys do these days to while away time between classes?

Kirk

[William Anderson]

Ray, this last pattern is really nice, no surprise, but it's that first pattern that really gets my attention. Nice job working with the materials to come up with a fly that is no doubt an attractive presentation. I've been spinning bodies like a fiend and have found the fox squirrel one of the most difficult to manage, as evidenced by your spun body card. This works out very well for a size 12 fly, but anything smaller and your have to really tweak the construction of the body to manage the spike factor. I've enjoyed spinning bodies of pine squirrel and blends of hare's mask/muskrat/beaver to create a very manageable body. These are tough to keep sparse when you start working with the spikier guard hairs, but the results, as you show are really nice. It was a bulletproof body before you ribbed it, but stainless steel ribbing? That's new to me and no doubt makes for a body that will outlive us all.

You do great work.

w

[Kelly L.]

Dang Ray, you do good work!