FLYMPH FORUM

The Scrumpy Spider is a more variegated take on the classic Stewart's Black Spider



Scrumpy Spider
Hook: Kamasan B175 #14
Thread: Benecchi 12/0, black
Body hackle: Whiting Farms Coq de Leon hen, medium pardo - twisted around thread

Cheers,
Hans W

Delightfully scruffy...

Donald Nicolson wrote:I know you speak excellent English, probably better than mine,
but the word 'scrumpy' is a dialect name for rough cider, deadly in small quantities.
Very popular among the rural population of the west of England.
If it works well, an appropriate name.

Hi Donald,

Yes I am familiar (from a safe distance) with the eh... enhanced cider called scrumpy, and chose the name for the pattern with due consideration

Cheers,
Hans W

Hans, this is another nice fly using the CdL cape. I've tied and fished a few Stewart style spiders using a cree hackle and a few using a grizzly that were very effective. Lacking the original feathers in my bag, you have to look around for alternatives. This is a nice one.

I seem to recall that Otter tied a version of Stewart's Black Spider with purple silk replacing the brown of the original. This has nothing to do with yours, just wanted to mention...

dd

daringduffer wrote:I seem to recall that Otter tied a version of Stewart's Black Spider with purple silk replacing the brown of the original. This has nothing to do with yours, just wanted to mention...

dd

Or this one


Dun Spider (variant)

I have several of Stewart's black spiders in my box. 12's, 14's, and 16's. Very effective, and love to tie them. I've tried Stewart's method of twisting the thread and hackle, but I think I'm to heavy handed - never had much luck doing that. I use Dave Hugh's method of walking the thread back forward thru the hackle to reinforce it. Seems to work fine, and I use fewer "helping" words.