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Holo Midge – new twist on a proven pattern
Holo Midge, Red
Tying Instructions
1. Attach the bead to the hook and onto the vise
2. Attach a wire ribbing and lay a thread base securing the wire over the top of the shank.
3. Create a thread foundation with the wire ribbing at the top of the hook shank to the bend of the hook.
4. Take a piece of tinsel and trim the end into a point, anchoring the point to the bend of the hook where the thread fouindation ended
5. Wrap the thread back up to the bead and wrap the tinsel with slight overlaps up to the bead and secure with thread wraps.
6. Trim off the tag end of the tinsel.
7. Wrap the wire ribbing in widely spaced spirol wraps up to the bead and secure with a few thread wraps.
8. Wiggle the wire tag end so that it breaks off near the bead. Take a piece of mylar flash over the thread and attach the piece to the top of the hook shank behind the bead. Add a number of thread wraps as a collar behind the bead keeping the bead very secure.
9. Whip Finish.
10. Apply some Super Glue to the thread collar for durability. Some apply Super Glue to the whole midge but this distracts both the holographic qualities of the tinsel and subdues the wire ribbing. I think it’s better just to apply the glue to the collar.
11. The finished Holo Midge, Red
| Materials
to Order Material, click the link |
|
|---|---|
| Hook | Daiichi 1150, sizes 16-20 |
| Thread | Red Veevus 12/0 |
| Head | Gold Tungsten Bead |
| Body | Red Holographic Tinsel |
| Collar | Red Veevus 12/0 coated with Loons Fly Finish, Thin |
| Shuck | 1/100 Micro Opal Flash |
| Ribbing | Xtra Small Gold Wire |
San Juan River, NM
Holo Midge
The Holo Midge is just a variation of the Disco Midge that originated on the San Juan River. Naturally, when Holographic tinsel became available, around 2010, it was used as a body material for the midge providing both color and translucency. Brian Chan and Phil Rowley each had similar midge patterns using Frostbite, Krystal Flash, or Super Floss but these, like the Disco Midge, continued to have a peacock herl thorax. On the Holo Midge, the bead is the thorax. There is no herl. Outside of that change, it is basically a Disco Midge with a fine wire ribbing and a coating of Super Glue.
Other Holo Midge Variations
Orvis markets one Holo Midge as Lexi’s TH Holo-ZMidge. Rather than having a slender profile as a chironomid, it tends to have a tapered body similar to Caddis pupae patterns. The Holo Midge is also very popular at Pyramid Lake where they keep the slender body profile but increase the hooks size to #12-16 for the large chironomids that inhabit that lake. The locals gave it a name of Maholo Midge.
Local Pyramid guide, Doug Ouelette, has a whimsical pattern called the 49ner Midge and, of course, it has the 49ner colors of red and gold ribbing. When beads are not added to the pattern, a thorax of thread is usually built up. Often this thorax is coated with a thin layer of UV Fly Finish and may have biots along the sides of the thorax to represent gills. Within both the U.K. and Canada, these beadless beauties are called buzzers. Usually tied in sizes #14-22.
Variations
Lexi’s TH Holo-ZMidge, Chartreuse
| Hook | Daiichi 1150, sizes 16-20 |
| Thread | Black Veevus 12/0 |
| Head | Gold Tungsten Bead |
| Body | Chartreuse Holographic Tinsel |
| Collar | Black Veevus 12/0 coated with White Poly Yarn |
| Ribbing | Small Gold Wire |
Lexi’s TH Holo-ZMidge, Purple
| Hook | Daiichi 1150, sizes 16-20 |
| Thread | Purple Uni-thread 8/0 |
| Head | Nickel Tungsten Bead |
| Body | Purple Holographic Tinsel |
| Collar | Purple Uni-thread 8/0 coated with White Poly Yarn |
| Ribbing | Small Silver Wire |
Lexi’s TH Holo-ZMidge, Black
| Hook | Daiichi 1150, sizes 16-20 |
| Thread | Black Veevus 12/0 |
| Head | Nickel Tungsten Bead |
| Body | Black Holographic Tinsel |
| Collar | Black Veevus 12/0 coated with White Poly Yarn |
| Ribbing | Small Silver Wire |
Maholo Midge, albino wino
| Hook | Daiichi 1150, #10-14 |
| Thread | Uni-Thread 6/0, Wine |
| Head | White Dazzle Brass bead ,7/64 or 3/32 |
| Body | Cranberry Holographic Tinsel |
| Collar | Uni-Thread 6/0, Wine coated with Small Amber Wire |
Holo Midge, 49ner
| Hook | Daiichi 1150, #10-14 |
| Thread | Red Veevus 12/0 |
| Head | Gold Brass Bead |
| Body | Red Holographic Tinsel |
| Collar | Red Veevus 12/0 coated with Gold Mylar Tinsel size 16/18 |
Banded Maholo Midge, Copper Wino
| Hook | Daiichi 1150, #10-14 |
| Thread | Uni-Thread 6/0, Wine |
| Head | Copper Brass bead ,7/64 or 3/32 |
| Body | Cranberry Holographic Tinsel |
| Collar | Black Glass Bead, Small coated with [yith_quick_view product_id=4670 type=”button” label=”Loons Fly Finish, Thin |