Bodkin / Patterns

Don's Crusher Chironomid

Midge · Trout · Advanced · 1 version

Tyer Recipe

  • Hook 2X-long curved chironomid hook, 16
  • Thread Blue dun (body), copper (thorax) 8/0 (copper nano silk for the thorax)

Materials

  • Magic bead Brown bead (3/32 inch, one)
  • Breather yarn gills White poly yarn (One strand, trimmed short)
  • Anti-static bag strip, body Bronze/brown material (One strip)
  • Wire rib Red wire (Fine, 6-7 turns)
  • Nano silk thorax Copper floss (A few wraps)
  • Paint marker White uni stretch (One dot on top of the thorax)
  • UV resin / Loctite finish Clear uv resin (One coat over the fly)

How to tie it

  1. Slide the 3/32 inch brown magic bead on with the wide side toward the eye. Start fine black thread behind the eye, lay a strand of white breather yarn across it, take a couple of wraps, whip finish and cut, then push the bead forward over the yarn butts. Pull the gills tight and trim them fairly short.
  2. Start the blue dun thread behind the bead and take a few wraps for a base layer.
  3. Tie in the bronze anti-static bag strip and the fine red wire together right behind the bead, then bind them both along the side of the shank all the way back to the bend.
  4. Wrap the thread back forward to the bead to build a slightly tapered underbody.
  5. Wrap the anti-static bag strip forward to form the body all the way to the bead, covering most of the thread, a spot or two showing through is fine, and tie it off.
  6. Rib with 6-7 turns of the red wire, tie off behind the bead, and windmill off the tag.
  7. Whip finish the blue dun thread and cut it, then start the copper nano silk behind the bead, take a few wraps for a thorax, and whip finish twice.
  8. Shield the gills with a fingertip and singe off any loose nano silk fibres with a torch.
  9. Put a single white dot on top of the thorax with a white paint marker so the fly has the white gills and a white mark on top.
  10. Coat the whole fly with UV resin or Loctite, cure, and it's finished.

Tying videos

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