Wing Natural case (Nature's Spirit Select Cow Elk)
Hackle Barred medium ginger hackle (Fly Fish Food Yard Bird hackle)
Hot spot Multi-colour (McFlyFoam, Clown package)
How to tie it
Lay a tan 70 denier base from behind the eye back to the bend and keep it flat and even. Vinyl Rib is translucent and telegraphs every bump underneath it, so the underbody has to be genuinely smooth, not just close.
Tie in the tan Vinyl Rib at the bend by its thin, tapered edge and return the thread forward to the 70% mark.
Wrap the Vinyl Rib forward in touching turns to the 70% mark and tie it off. Slight tension flattens each turn against the last and gives you the glossy, segmented abdomen that makes this fly look wet even when it is floating.
Clean, stack and measure a small clump of natural cow elk so the tips reach just past the bend, tie it in at the 70% mark as a downwing and trim the butts short. Keep the clump sparse on a size 16. Too much hair and the fly rolls onto its side.
Tie a short tuft of the Clown McFlyFoam on top, immediately in front of the wing, and trim it to a stubby post. The multi-colour yarn is the whole reason for the name: whatever the light is doing, one of those colours will still be visible, which is what lets you fish a size 16 caddis at distance.
Tie in the barred medium ginger hackle in front of the hot spot and take three or four turns to form a collar, then tie off and clear the eye. The collar is what keeps the fly up in riffled water and it also props the sighter upright.
Whip finish, and trim the hackle flat underneath if you want the fly to sit lower on flat water.