FLYMPH FORUM

Thought the group may enjoy seeing something different. The Short Tail a Louis Rhead Nature Fly for the month of April. Well over one hundred years old.

I would love to hear more about this fly and Louis Rhead, and how this came into your collection…

Tell us more…

Is this the same Louis Rhead?

“Softly Creeping, Lightly Dropping” - Louis Rhead 1902 from “The Speckled Brook Trout”

That's a gorgeous fly. Would like to know more about that one.

Ray, quick google search. https://luresnreels.com/rhead.html



His book, Fisherman's Lures and Game Fish Food, is available on Abebooks,com. First editions are very reasonable depending on condition. One very good first edition was $20.

Louis Rhead was an illustrator of books back in the early 1900's. His work is still much sought after today. He was also a writer of fishing books who hung out primarily in the Catskills the Roscoe area. The fly was a gift and belonged to
Harry Darbee. It is backed by a 150% provenance as to source.

Tom

Does the wing have one, or two feathers (one casing in each direction)? I’m trying to work out the recipe. I would be nice to replicate and fish this pattern, the next time I am in Roscoe.

Double wing Ray.
Tom

A very interesting fly. Louis Rhead was way ahead of his time!

Tight Lines- Ken

Thanks Tom.

I've sat studying the photo for a while, trying to sypher out the recipe of this fly pattern. Here are my guesses.

Rear Extended Body:
Core - Sewing Needle
Rear Body - Pearsall's Gossamer Silk (Brown)
Rib - Fine Round Metal Tinsel (Silver)

Front Body (Thorax)
Hook - Unknown TUE hook
Tying Silk - Pearsall's Gossamer Silk (Dark Green or Faded Black)
Wing - Two Partridge Feathers (Natural Brown - barred sides facing outwards)
Thorax / Abdomen - Furnace Hackle (sized roughly double the hook gap)
Antenna - Guinea Fowl (Natural Speckled)

How close to do you think this is to the original recipe?

Do you have any idea what make/size hook that fly is tyed on?

By the way, I found one of Louis Rhead’s digital books for free on Google Books. His Brook Trout book is available on Amazon Kindle for $3.71. I downloaded it and was reading it this afternoon.

I really like Ray's thought of fishing this pattern in Roscoe. I'd love to see Ray's tutorial, and then pictorial, of the end result. I love learning new history...

Mike62 wrote: ↑Sat Nov 20, 2021 9:15 pm I love learning new history...

Mike - I too love learning new history about fly tying/fishing. Tom's post has sent me down a rabbit hole the past couple days, finding Louis Rhead books and reading thru them.

One of my favorites so far has been Louis Rhead's book called "American Trout-Stream Insects"
LINK DIGITAL COPY: https://archive.org/details/americantroutstr00rhearich
Mr. Rhead describes his methods of tying the flies, beginning on page 104 of the book. This section of the book may help me piece together the construction of the flie above.
https://archive.org/details/americantro ... 4/mode/1up

LINK FOR HIS OTHER BOOKS (one LR wrote or illustrated):
https://archive.org/search.php?query=cr ... 57-1926%22
https://archive.org/details/cu31924003241605
https://archive.org/details/cu31924003241605
https://archive.org/details/howtofishdryflyd00rhearich

Google searches helped me find another interesting commentary in "Fishing Flies" by Terry Hellekson.
https://www.google.com/books/edition/Fi ... is%20rhead

Rhead's mention of Halford's books sent me on yet another search:
https://archive.org/details/cu31924003437765

Thanks Tom, for once again sparking my curiosity.