Hot Chocolate Nymph
Hook - Mustad Model R50/94848 (Size 12)
Thread - Bennechi 14/0 Thread (Black)
Rib - UTC Ultra Copper Wire (Amber / Size Small)
Abdomen - FTD Hairs Ear Dubbing (Pheasant Tail color)
Tail/Dorsal Line/Wing Case - Guinea Hackle (Dyed Brown)
Thorax - FTD Hairs Ear Dubbing (50/50 blend of Dark Brown and Claret)
Hackle - Guinea Hackle (Dyed Brown)
This fly was an experiment. A while back I bought some guinea feathers which had been dyed a rich brown color. The feathers are beautiful, but I found them to be very difficult to use. The stems of the feathers are quite thick, making them difficult to wrap, without a lot of unwanted bulk. I desided to try using the feathers on a small nymph pattern to see if I could wrestle the feather fibers into something useful. I decided to try preparing the feather by clipping out a small section of the center stem, to form a V-shape. The feather was then tyed in at the back of the thorax section.
Once the rib and abdomen had been formed, I pulled the tips of the hackle over the back of the abdomen and wrapped the copper rib forward, segmenting the body. The base of the feather is left on until after the thorax had been formed. The feather is then drawn over the top of the thorax, forming the wing case.
The hackle at the front of the fly is formed in a similar way (prepared hackle/tyed in with just the tips showing.
Wayne/Hans - You both contributed techniques to this fly. Thanks for the help. Without it, I doubt I could have used these feathers.
Wayne - The brown color was inspired by your stonefly submission. Thanks for the inspiration.
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