Streamer · Baitfish · Trout · Advanced · 1 version
Tyer Recipe
Hook Streamer hook, 3X heavy / 7X long, #2
Thread Black 6/0
Materials
Barred wood duck flank Barred tan wood duck flank (One clump, deliberately splayed, for the tail)
Oval tinsel, medium Gold oval tinsel (One length for the rib)
Wool yarn White poly yarn (One length, three passes, for the body)
Saddle hackle Tan saddle hackle (One long, soft throat)
Gray squirrel tail Natural gray deer belly hair (One short sparse clump from the tail base plus one longer clump)
Stick-on Mylar eyes Silver / prismatic (One pair, sized to the head)
Monofilament, ultra fine (Danville) Clear weed guard (A few turns to lock the eyes on)
Head cement Clear head cement (Enough to bury the mono and eyes)
How to tie it
Run a black thread base back to the bend, the white yarn covers it, so no need to be fussy.
Pull a clump of barred wood duck flank off the stem WITHOUT aligning the tips and tie it in as a tail, deliberately splayed and scattered rather than neat. The ragged tail moves better in the water.
Tie in the medium gold oval tinsel at the rear and leave it hanging.
Tie in the white wool yarn and make three passes over the body. Start each pass on the bump with a very tight wrap to squash the yarn down, then relax the tension as you come off the bump so it fluffs. This evens out the tail tie-in hump.
Align the tail, then counter-wind the tinsel rib forward, taking one turn at the very back without disturbing the tail, and tie off.
For the underwing take a short, sparse clump of squirrel from the BASE of the tail where the hairs are shorter and show less white tip, brush out the underfur with a toothbrush, and tie it in about half the body length long.
Over it tie a fuller clump of longer squirrel, unstacked and ragged, reaching the end of the tail. Firm wraps to hold, check alignment, then soft wraps at the rear. The short underclump thickens the front of the wing so it tapers toward the tip, compensating for squirrel's lack of natural taper.
Tie in a long, soft tan saddle hackle throat beneath the shank.
Build a deliberately fat head with the 6/0 thread (bigger than you would normally want, because it has to carry the eyes) and whip finish.
Pick a stick-on Mylar eye off the sheet with a bodkin point and set one on each side of the head, checking they are level and sized to the head.
Pinch the eyes lightly and take a few gentle turns of Danville ultra-fine monofilament over and around them to lock them down. The mono breaks easily, so use very little pressure.
Coat the whole head with head cement. The mono disappears into the glue and the eyes curve to the head, and they will not come off.