Bodkin / Patterns

Borcher's Drake

Dry Fly · Trout · Grayling · Intermediate · 1 version

Reference Recipe

  • Hook Standard dry-fly hook (Mustad 94840 / TMC 100), #12-16
  • Thread Black 8/0 (70 denier)

Materials

  • Tail Moose body (3-4 stiff fibers, tied slightly long)
  • Body Dark turkey/condor (Turkey quill fibers, wrapped)
  • Wing Blue dun material (Pair of hackle tips, upright and divided)
  • Hackle Grizzly and brown mixed (2 dry-fly hackles)

How to tie it

  1. Mount the hook and start thread behind the eye, laying a base back to the bend.
  2. Tie in a few moose-body fibers for the tail, slightly longer than one shank length, and spread them for support.
  3. Tie in two blue-dun hackle tips at the one-third point, stand them upright, and divide with figure-8 wraps and a few thread turns at each base.
  4. Bind a small bunch of dark turkey quill fibers at the bend and wrap them forward to just behind the wing to form a segmented body.
  5. Tie in one grizzly and one brown hackle together behind the wing.
  6. Wrap both hackles a couple of turns behind the wing and a couple in front, then tie off and clear the eye.
  7. Whip finish and cement; a drop of head cement on the wing bases adds durability.

Tying videos

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