FLYMPH FORUM

An ancient wooden spool of Carlson Currier embroidery silk is among my father's things. I would call the color burnt orange.

I had to give it a try last night. My guess is that it is similar in weight to Pearsall's Naples silk, but I'm not sure.

This fly clearly has the wrong tail. Seemed like a good idea at the time, but not in the clear light of morning.

One of the reasons I used the transparent, natural seal dubbing is to test my technique of photographing against white. It is a challenge to get the palest fibers to be visible on a white background.

Burnt orange Dun
Hook: 12 Kamasan B405
Thread: Pearsall's gold
Tail: Hooded merganser
Abdomen; Vintage Carlson Currier silk, shade 63 (burnt orange)
Rib: Gold wire
Thorax: Natural seal spun on tying thread (Clark block)

That's nice.
I'm gonna have to get one of those blocks. They sure do make nice bodies.

I'm not sure why you don't like that tail today, Lance -- it looks really good to me. And you've done an admirable job of capturing the transluscent seal fur, even against the white background. All in all, I think this is a top quality work of art.

I'm with Bill: this one will fish--a little smaller hook and it would certainly make a great sulphur emerger. As it is, the combination of Hooded merganser and silk twist conveys all sorts of chitin-y goodness.

Lance - Is there another type of fur at the center of the dubbed thorax? It seems a to be a pale gold color. It that just the difference in the exposure, when compared with the seal fibers further from the body?

Please do not take my questions as criticism. They are not meant that way at all. Rather, I am trying to learn how you go about photographing a light fiber over white background. I would find that a definite challenge.

Great fly. I love the look of the gold rib, set against the burnt orange background.

letumgo wrote:Lance - Is there another type of fur at the center of the dubbed thorax? It seems a to be a pale gold color. It that just the difference in the exposure, when compared with the seal fibers further from the body?

Ray, the body was nothing but transparent seal fur on the Pearsall's gold silk thread, which provides the pale gold undercolor that you noticed.
Glad you like the fly. Thanks!

Bill, so you think the tail is not too dark? I was starting to think that I should have gone with a rich ginger cock barb.

CB, I've been tying some 14s too, experimenting with different hackles and ribs. And I'm going to do some 16s. I just got a perfect snipe skin, and am trying that for the hackle. What a beautiful feather.

I'm working up the nerve to photograph some of these and post them, to get some advice.

Lance

Here's a nice discussion about the theory and practice of "shucks":
http://www.troutnut.com/topic/2145/2/co ... n-question

A couple of points caught my attention:

1.) shuck color is determined more by the nymph than the dun; I think that explains why Bill's recent sulphur tie and Jim S.'s "Pop-top Flymph" work so nicely with a pheasant tail body.

2.) the size of the mayfly affects shuck color as well; bigger insects have thicker exoskeltons and hence will have darker shucks than their smaller brethren.

3.) finally--if I'm not mistaken--mayfly husks retain a lot more pigmentation than do caddis husks, so don't anybody throw out their light-colored Z-lon.

For myself, I'm starting to appreciate just how well my infertile freestoners down here in the Smokies match up with my particular, ah, skill-set...put me on the Henry's Fork and think I'd start chunkin' rocks in short order.

Wow, this thread went in several directions, which is fun.

Lance, that's a great looking fly and I'm digging the tails. It's a nice tailing material. A question about the body length. I typically try to keep the body from dropping down the bend, but everyone's preferences and variables make the overall results more interesting. Just curious if you were going for something. The silk looks really nice. I like the color shift from the dubbed thorax thread to the abdomin thread. Photographically...that's a tough job, but this reads very well to me. The difference between translucency and just white material is tough. It's hard to tell if the hackle (is this a light cream or light dun? ) has the same translucency as the thorax, but it's not at all hard to understand just from the image alone.

cool post.

CB, that's an intersting discussion on shucks. I like the fussy ento stuff and you're observations are something I hadn't considered. Come on out East.

w

CreationBear wrote:Here's a nice discussion about the theory and practice of "shucks":
http://www.troutnut.com/topic/2145/2/co ... n-question

CB,
Thanks for educating me. I am looking at this hooded merganser tail material with new appreciation.
And Mr Dub-ya, you are right about my having gone around the bend too far on this one. Just got a little careless, or forgot that I wasn't using the Grip.
Lance

I am looking at this hooded merganser tail material with new appreciation.

FWIW, their feathers are really sought-after by the salmon/steelhead tyers out there--a skin will bring $250-$400, I believe.

At any rate, the guys over on Jason's board are really playing a different game in terms of their entomological knowledge--I'm just grateful I live where the proverbial "weak mind/strong back" approach still yields the occasional trout or two.