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Dee Style Strip Wing Salmon Fly Pattern
Dee Style Strip Wing Salmon Fly pattern
designed and tied by Bruce E. Harang
Materials:
Hook: Blind
eye long Dee Salmon iron to suit (illustrated DA2091 Alec Jackson blind eye
salmon hook)
Thread: Gudebröd 6/0, light color, here BCS 94 Tan
Tag:
Gold Twist (round single strand) Tinsel, size fine
Tail:
Crest dyed steelhead purple with sprigs of golden pheasant yellow rump feather
fibers over
Rear Butt:
Black Ostrich herl
Rear
Rib: Gold
Flat Tinsel, size to suit (size medium shown)
Rear Hackle:
Red Cock saddle hackle
Rear
Body: Red
Mohair locks used as a floss
Body Joint Butt: Black Ostrich
herl
Front Rib: Gold
Flat Tinsel, size to suit (size medium shown)
Front Hackle:
Whiting Spey Hackle - Black
Front Body:
Steelhead (dark) Purple Mohair locks used as a floss
Throat:
Teal or Widgeon breast with good penciling (Widgeon shown here)
Wing:
Feather strips tied horizontal and delta wing Dee fashion (here white turkey
tail dyed dark purple)
Cheeks:
Jungle cock eyes (optional)
Head: Gudebröd 6/0, BCS 118 Black
Tying Instructions:
1. Mount a blind eye or a return loop salmon hook in your vise (here a Daiichi Alec Jackson Blind Eye Salmon Hook). If you use a blind eye hook continue with step 2; if you use a loop eye hook skip to step 5.
2. Cut a piece of 2 or 3 strand twisted gut so that it is long enough to form an eye of about 1/16" with both ends extending to the end of the hook shank front taper. Form a loop eye by crimping around a bodkin needle and mash or chew the ends to create a taper. NOTE: If you are going to fish the fly cut a piece of #30 braided Dacron long enough to form the eye and tie the loop material all the way to the back of the body of the fly.
3. Attach the working thread about 1/8" behind the front end of the blind eye hook shank. Then mount the gut such that the legs of the gut lie side by side on the bottom of the hook shank and not along the sides of the shank. The crimped eye loop should all extend immediately in front of the end of the hook shank.
4. Bind the gut to the shank with tight touching turns of untwisted working thread to the end of the tapered ends of the gut creating a smooth thin flat thread wrap. Whip the thread and cut off. Soak the thread and gut in head cement or adhesive of choice and let dry.
5. Attach the working thread to the rear of the hook shank at a position one thread wrap the thread to the right to a position directly above the point of the barb.
6. Tie in a
length of fine gold twist on the top of the hook shank with one turn of
thread. Remove the tinsel metal from the core of the tinsel butt which
should reach a point on the hook shank directly over the point of the
hook.
Alternatively: pre-strip the metal tinsel from the core leaving an
exposed core length that reaches the point of the hook and tie in on top
of the hook shank wrapping the working thread to the right to a point
directly over the hook point.
7. Wrap the fine gold twist forward with the first turn on the bare metal hook shank and the rest of the turns on the thread base moving towards the front of the hook. Tie off the tinsel on the bottom of the hook shank with one turn and remove the metal from the core. Leave a core butt long enough to reach the front of the thread under wrap of step 5.
8. Tie in the tail crest up against the front edge of the fine gold twist tag such that the crest extends to the bend of the hook or slightly beyond.
9. Tie in a small bunch of golden pheasant yellow rump feather fibers as a veiling over the tail with the fibers extending about 1/2 to 2/3 the length of the tail crest.
10. When you are satisfied with the position of the tail and veiling which should be in line with and directly above the hook shank, cut off the crest and veiling fiber butts and cover them with thread wraps.
11. Prepare and tie in a natural or dyed black ostrich herl such that the herl fibers angle toward the back of the hook and wrap over the tail tie in point covering all of the butt material, tie off the herl and cut off the butts.
In the image above I have also used white synthetic floss to fill in the majority of the gap between the end of the gut and the bottom of the hook shank.
12. Attach white floss and complete a smooth even underbody, whip finish, and cut off the excess white floss. Mark the center body joint and body butt location on the underbody as well as about 1/4" at the front end of the hook wire for the wing and head area.
13. Attach a length of flat gold tinsel on the bottom back of the hook shank directly against the front of the butt. Then fold a red cock saddle hackle feather and mount it by the tip on the bottom of the hook up against the front of the butt, and finally tie in a length of red mohair on the bottom of the hook shank again up against the front edge of the butt. Then wrap the working thread forward to the body joint mark in touching flat thread wraps to keep the nice smooth underbody you have worked to create. NOTE: The body profile is a smooth cylinder which is the typical Dee body shape.
14. Wrap the mohair forward in slightly overlapping turns to the working thread and tie off. Burnish the mohair to smooth and pack the mohair. Finally cut off the excess mohair. The tie off point will be where the body butt will lie thus hiding the slight thread build up here from having to tie off three different materials.
15. Wrap the flat gold tinsel forward in an open spiral, five wraps being traditional. Tie off and leave the excess.
16. Wrap the red hackle feather forward immediately behind and up against the flat tinsel. Stroke the feather fibers backward as you wrap to help them lay properly. Cut off the hackle feather butt, flex off the flat tinsel butt, and cover the tinsel end with thread wraps.
17. Prepare and tie in a natural or dyed black ostrich herl such that the herl fibers angle toward the back of the hook and wrap over the tail tie in point covering all of the rear body joint material, tie off the herl and cut off the excess.
18. Attach a length of flat gold tinsel on the bottom back of the hook shank directly against the front of the butt. Then fold a black Whiting Spey hackle feather (or preferred Spey hackle substitute) and mount it by the tip on the bottom of the hook up against the front of the butt, and finally tie in a length of Steelhead (dark) purple mohair on the bottom of the hook shank again up against the front edge of the butt. Then wrap the working thread forward to the front body joint end mark in touching flat thread wraps to maintain the nice smooth underbody you have worked to create.
19. Wrap the mohair forward in slightly overlapping turns to the working thread and tie off. Burnish the mohair to smooth and pack the mohair. Finally cut off the excess mohair. The tie off point will be hidden by the throat thus hiding the slight thread build up here from having to tie off three different materials.
20. Wrap the flat gold tinsel forward in an open spiral, five wraps being traditional. Tie off and leave the excess.
21. Wrap the black Spey hackle feather forward immediately behind and up against the flat tinsel. Stroke the feather fibers backward as you wrap to help them lay properly. Cut off the hackle feather butt, flex off the flat tinsel butt, and cover the tinsel end with thread wraps.
22. Stroke the hackle feathers fibers down and rearward to create a pleasing flow to the fly body.
23. Prepare a well penciled teal or widgeon flank feather by stripping off the fluff and the fibers from the left side of the feather when you are looking at the good side with the butt down. Tie it in on the bottom of the hook shank immediately in front of the front body joint with the good side of the feather facing down. Wrap the flank feather two or three turns covering the front body joint tie off area and tie off and cut off the excess. Finally stroke the fibers down and back to match the hackle feathers position. Whip finish and cut off the working thread. Apply a drop or two of penetrating head cement, let dry, and attach the black thread to finish the fly.
24. If you are going to add the optional drooping cheeks made of jungle cock nails, mount one nail on each side of the fly just in front of the throat tie off point.
25. Prepare a set of Dee style wings using the method taught in the Dee Wing tutorial here or you may mount the feathers one at a time onto the hook. Here the wings comprise slips of white turkey tail dyed dark purple. Mount the wings immediately in front of the throat feather. When you are satisfied that the wings are in the proper flat horizontal orientation hold the wings just behind the tie in point and carefully cut off the wing feather butts. Cover with thread wraps using untwisted flat thread.
26. Wrap a small proportional head, whip finish, soak with a penetrating head cement, and coat with several coats of Sally Hansen Hard as Nails polish.
27. Here is a variation with the optional jungle cock cheeks.
