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Kenspeckle Grouse & Green
Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2012 10:13 am
by CreationBear
I was playing around last night with another "hot spot" combination, in this case English grouse with a chartreuse wire brush thorax:
Since all I had at hand was "brassie" sized chartreuse wire, I wouldn't want to tie on much smaller than the #14 TMC 200r that's pictured, but with finer wire I could see going down to at least a #16--a possible BWO for some of y'all maybe.
Another thing I tried out was some homemade silk dubbing--basically Pearsall's Marabou snipped into sections, then "pulped" using Mike C.'s "pebbles in a jar" method. (I even went so far as to use his patented "use your wife's stocking as a sieve technique"...which reminds me I should get around to telling her which one it was.

) At any rate, mixed with a little brown mole it makes for a great touch-dub:

Re: Kenspeckle Grouse & Green
Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2012 10:41 am
by fly_fischa
What a delicious looking pattern. I love it, simply stunning buddy.

Re: Kenspeckle Grouse & Green
Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2012 11:04 am
by Roadkill
Beautiful fly!!
Re: Kenspeckle Grouse & Green
Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2012 11:44 am
by chase creek
Lovely fly - doesn't get much buggier looking than that. Really like the color combination.
Re: Kenspeckle Grouse & Green
Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2012 11:45 am
by CreationBear
Thanks, gents--it's not quite as wooly in-hand as in the photo, so I'm hoping it might fish if there are some Quill Gordon's coming off in a couple months.

Re: Kenspeckle Grouse & Green
Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2012 12:35 pm
by Mataura mayfly
Really cool fly and excellent photography.
Wher do I find more info on the dubbing making pebbles and jar method?
Will a search of the forum lead to results?
Re: Kenspeckle Grouse & Green
Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2012 12:47 pm
by letumgo
Great flies and photos, Jon. Looks like a deadly fly.
Jeff (Mataura mayfly) - Here is a link to Mike's post regarding the dubbing blending method.
http://www.flymphforum.com/viewtopic.ph ... ing#p23661
Have fun!

Re: Kenspeckle Grouse & Green
Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2012 1:40 pm
by CreationBear
Jeff--
No worries if you can't find Mike's instructions (though his treatise on dubbing that Ray linked to is outstanding).

Simply snip, say, 1-2mm lengths of floss into a small jar, add a few pebbles, then cover with water. Screw on the lid, shake everything about until the floss breaks down--it doesn't take long--then strain out the silk fibers.
As I said, I'm just starting to play around with it, but I believe Mike uses it on his otherwise traditional North Country spider patterns as a way of creating a "halo effect;" elsewhere he mentions a blend of silk dubbing as making a good water rat sub.
Hopefully we'll see what other folks come up with--and do try the Loren Williams' "double hackle" sometime: I think it's really suited to those bigger flymphs you've been tying.

Re: Kenspeckle Grouse & Green
Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2012 2:29 pm
by DNicolson
A very nice fly, but one question, where did you get the word 'kenspeckle'
*Sc. 1850 J. Grant Sc. Cavalier xxiii.:
Jock’s gey gleg at the uptak’, and mair kenspeckle than ye think.
II. n. A mark by which a person or thing may be known or recognised (Bnff. 1866 Gregor D. Bnff. 94; Abd.4 1931; Lth., Lnk. 1959).
[O.Sc. has kenspecke, 1614, ken-speckled, 1684, kenspekill, a.1538. Appar. a deriv. in -le of Eng. dial. kenspeck, conspicuous, prob. of Scand. orig. Cf. Norw. dial. kjennespak, Swed. känspak, quick at recognising, O.N. kennispeki, faculty of recognition, the orig. meaning still surviving in I. 2.]
Re: Kenspeckle Grouse & Green
Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2012 2:40 pm
by RnF
Killer pattern. I may have to tie some of those myself. Would be great in the high country fly once the ice and snow melts. Thanks for sharing!