Frank Sawyer's Nymphs

[joaniebo]

I posted this on the "Sparse Grey Matter Forum" but I got a request to also post it here on the "Flymph Forum".

A few pics to enjoy, including some of the Sawyer-tied nymphs sent to me by a friend who knew the Sawyer family

[joaniebo]

In addition, here's a link to see how Frank Sawyer tied his Pheasant Tail Nymph plus his PT dry fly that used a red (brown) hackle tied in with silk thread. Enjoy.

[daringduffer]

Funny. Both Ronnie and Lars-Åke are friends of mine.

dd

[Bazzer69]

Thanks for posting. Although I hail from the country once called Great Britain this is the first time I’ve seen a genuine Saywer Nymph. Is there any chance of a close up of his Red PT and the Killer Bug? I’m interested to see the colour of the wire etc he used. He did write a very small book on his upstream nymphing which I once owned but sadly do not any longer. I suspect his source of wire was the lacquered red that was found in small transformers and the like. What strikes me the most about these photos is the fact that they all are pretty “scruffy”. Look at the difference between the top Killer Bug and the bottom one.
Barry

[joaniebo]

Barry

Hope this is a little better.

Bob

[Bazzer69]

Barry

Hope this is a little better.

Bob

Yes it is,
Many thanks

[joaniebo]

Barry

If you download the pic and look at it closer, the colors are a lot better and easier to see

Bob

[letumgo]

Thanks Bob, for sharing these treasures. I love seeing the originals. The pics give a good sense of the slender proportions Sawyer tied.

[daringduffer]

Nymphs tied by mrs Margaret Sawyer are still available:



http://www.flyhookfiller.se/bastsaljare/sawyerpt.html




http://www.flyhookfiller.se/bastsaljare/sawyergg.html



http://www.flyhookfiller.se/bastsaljare/sawyerss.html



http://www.flyhookfiller.se/bastsaljare/sawyerkb.html

They all cost SEK 200 per dozen. It's the same source as my silk reference chart and some of my silk collection.

dd

[Greenwell]

Thanks for posting. Although I hail from the country once called Great Britain this is the first time I’ve seen a genuine Saywer Nymph. Is there any chance of a close up of his Red PT and the Killer Bug? I’m interested to see the colour of the wire etc he used. He did write a very small book on his upstream nymphing which I once owned but sadly do not any longer. I suspect his source of wire was the lacquered red that was found in small transformers and the like. What strikes me the most about these photos is the fact that they all are pretty “scruffy”. Look at the difference between the top Killer Bug and the bottom one.
Barry

Barry,

The wire color in the Sawyer nymphs I have on the original cards is much more a copper brown than the red that everyone expects. I will try to shoot a couple close up photos of them if I can. In the meantime, here is a shot of one of my PTs tied with wire that is very close to the original. (I have experimented with various wires for PTs for many years and have found that color doesn't seem to matter: size and suppleness are more important. The very best that I have found is some inexpensive stuff from India!)

Pheasant Tail Nymph.jpg (158.96 KiB) Viewed 138003 times

This fly is on a TMC 3769 size 14, a shorter hook than Sawyer used but one that has been my choice for these flies for over 30 years. Sight fishing with PT nymphs is by far my favorite method of fly fishing. It's a stalker's game and demands a great deal of observation and concentration. I have never tired of it.