Floss Bodied Soft Hackles

Partridge & Yellow

Show

Tying Instructions

1. Slide a slotted tungsten bead (small round opening first) onto the hook. Place in the vice and slide the bead forward up against the hook eye. Twist the bead as necessary so the slotted portion of the bead navigates around the angled shank so the bead pushes tight against the hook eye.

2. Wrap 5-6 turns of leadwire behind the bead. This adds weight and helps stablize the bead to the shank.

3. Attach the thread to the hook shank behind the leadwire wraps. Spirol wrap the leadwire to secure and bring the thread back behind the leadwire.

4. Cut a section of Danville 4-strand floss from the spool. Double the floss over itself and snip it to have twice the material. Keep the floss ends even and attach to the top of the hook shank just behind the lead wraps. The end of the tag should be just beyond the end of the hook. This is subjective, you can have shorter tag or a longer one.

5. Trim the floss off just behind the wire wraps and wrap the thread to the hook bend securing the tag material to the top of the hook shank to the bend of the hook.

6. Tie in a wire rib to the bottom of the hook shank behind the leadwire and secure the ribbing to the bend of the hook. This should start to even out your body profile. Apply dubbing to the thread hanging from the bend of the hook.

7. Twist the dubbing onto the thread with your thumb and index finger. Start a first wrap of the dubbing at the tail-tie in position to lock in the fibers and twist some more to create a tight noodle. This is allow you to create a slim tapered body.

8. Wrap the dubbing up to where the wire wraps begin. This gives you about a half hook gap of space for the thorax material and the collar. Tie off the dubbed with some thread wraps.

9. Wrap the wire ribbing forward with about four spirol wraps to the thorax area and secure with thread wraps. Break off the tag end of the wire with back and forth motions and secure with some additional thread wraps.

10. Attach two strands of peacock herl by the tips on the thorax area securing the herls to the top of the hook shank behind the bead..

 

 

Materials to Order Material, click the link
Hook	TMC 2529 #10-18
Thread	Yellow Silk Thread
Body	Yellow Silk Thread
Thorax	Pale Yellow Superfine
Hackle	Gray Partridge Hackle

Dame Juliana Berners

Floss Bodied Soft Hackles

Floss Bodied Soft Hackles are some of the oldest fly patterns originating in Great Britain. Dame Juliana Berners wrote about the Partridge & Orange in 1496, Treatise of Fishing with an Angle. The floss bodied soft hackle patterns were also known as Yorkshire Spiders and North Country flies since many of these patterns were developed in Northern England and Scotland.

Silk Thread

Sylvester Nemes brought interest in the pattern to the United States in 1975 with his book, The Soft Hackled Fly. The floss recommended by Nemes was Pearsall’s Gossamer Silk Thread. This thread had been around since the early 1900’s and had been “the” silk thread to create the floss bodies. Pearsall discontinued making silk threads in 2012. Other silk threads are available. Ephemera Silk thread is often suggested, some consider it an upgrade from Pearsall. Ephemera Silk thread has been around for over 180 years, manufactured in France. Why silk thread?? The silk thread has a translucency when wet that cannot be replicated by rayon or nylon floss materials. It gives the soft hackle a depth to the body similar to an actual caddis emerger or mayfly.

Match the Hatch

The Partridge & Yellow is one of the best-known soft hackles. It is an excellent choice for Sulphur or yellowish mayfly hatches. Swing the pattern to the edge of the stream as this is where many of the mayflies are emerging. The Partridge & Orange is another soft hackle with a distinguished history. T.E. Pritt described this pattern in 1895 in his book, Yorkshire Trout Flies. Like the Partridge & Yellow, the Partridge & Orange imitates emerging caddis pupa, diving adult caddis or sunken may fly spinners. The movement of the hackle is the keynote of this pattern. It needs to be free to oscillate within the water, so do not overwrap the hackles or restrict the hackles with thread wraps. By only having a couple of wraps, the pattern allows light to pass through to the body giving it an illusion of life.

Many patterns use Hungarian Partridge for a hackle but Ruffed Grouse is another gamebird hackle that can be used on any of these soft hackle patterns. It has a pleasing orange and black mottled coloration and flows much like the partridge. You will have the best selection by purchasing the entire gamebird skin to have a wide range of hackle sizes.

Unique Pinkish Dubbing

The Tups Indispensible is an old pattern from England with an interesting history. The pattern goes back to 1890 where Mr. R.S. Austin, a tobacconist in Devon, South West England, also tied and sold fishing flies. He had a quite successful pattern that had a unique pinkish dubbing and that pattern was brought to the attention of G.E.M. Skues, the father of modern nymph fishing. Mr. Skues tested the pattern on his local water the River Ichen and was impressed with the effectiveness of the pattern, particularly the thorax dubbing.

Skues added some crimson seal fur to the dubbing and worked out a name for the fly with Mr Austen. They called it the Tups Indispensible. “Indispensible” since it should never be left out of your fly box. The term “Tups” refers to a Ram that is used for breeding. Sheep farmers would apply dye to the underside of the Ram and would inspect their females the next morning for stained backs. This would be referred to as being “tupped” by the Ram.

It happened that Mr Austen would collect the hair from the same location that this dye was applied to the Ram. It would have a little urine mixed with it but the hair was very soft and yellowish in that particular area. Adding some combed dog hair from his lemon yellow spaniel, some cream seals fur, and some crimson seal hair, Austen had a dubbing recipe that he kept to himself until his death. Now, you know the rest of the story….

Partridge & Orange

Hook	TMC 3761 #10-18
Thread	Orange Silk Thread
Body	Orange Silk Thread
Hackle	Brown Partridge Hackle

Partridge & Green

Hook	TMC 3761 #10-18
Thread	Green Silk Thread
Body	Green Silk Thread
Thorax	Caddis Green Superfine
Hackle	Gray Partridge Hackle

Grouse & Orange

Hook	TMC 206BL #10-18
Thread	Orange Silk Thread
Body	Orange Silk Thread
Hackle	Black and Orange Grouse Hackle

Tups Indispensable

Hook	TMC 9300 #10-18
Thread	Yellow Silk Thread
Body	Yellow Silk Thread
Thorax	Pink Shrimp Hare-tron Dubbing
Hackle	Light Dun Hen Hackle
Tail	Light Dun Hen Hackle