Bodkin / Patterns

Deceptive Deer Hair Diver

Nymph · Largemouth Bass · Smallmouth Bass · Pike · Intermediate · 1 version

Reference Recipe

  • Hook Wide-gap bass/stinger hook, 2-6
  • Thread Black Flat waxed / GSP

Materials

  • Tail Yellow/white material (2 pairs saddle hackles)
  • Tail Flash/Collar Grizzly + Krystal Flash (Grizzly hackle collar plus a few flash strands)
  • Body Yellow/olive material (Spun and packed deer hair)
  • Collar Contrasting indicator fibers (Deer hair tips swept back as a skirt)
  • Weedguard Mono (20-30 lb hard mono loop (optional))

How to tie it

  1. Mount the hook and start thread at the bend. Deer hair spins best on a bare, waxed base with strong thread.
  2. Tie in a splayed saddle-hackle tail about a shank long, add a few strands of flash, and wind a grizzly hackle collar in front of it.
  3. Spin a clump of deer hair, then keep spinning and packing tight clumps forward, leaving the tips of the first clump swept back as a collar/skirt.
  4. Pack hard as you go, half the hair you think you need per pinch, until the front two-thirds is a solid dense bundle.
  5. Whip finish at the eye, then trim the spun hair: flat and shaved on the bottom, a broad sloped, cupped face up front.
  6. Leave the swept-back collar untrimmed so it pushes water and gives the fly its diving action.
  7. Whip finish and cement.

Tying videos

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