Wing White calf body hair (substitute deer body hair)
Thorax Peacock herl, with palmered brown hackle
How to tie it
Pinch the barb on a 3X-long dry fly hook and start red 140 denier thread just behind the eye. The body is bare red thread, so starting up front gives you a second layer on the return trip.
Wrap back to where you want the front of the butt and leave the thread there. There is no tail. Catch two or three strands of peacock herl in with a few wraps back and break the excess off.
Wrap the herl forward into a fat butt, five or six turns depending how big you want it, and secure with a couple of wraps.
Spin the thread counterclockwise to flatten it and wrap forward in touching turns to build the red body all the way back up front.
Take the thread back a couple of millimetres to leave room for a big thorax. Stack a medium tuft of white calf body hair (white deer body hair substitutes), measure it a little past the bend, cord the thread clockwise and take three or four tight wraps. Let it flare in front.
Snip the front butts off in a few small cuts and take a few wraps over the stubs to flatten the base for a smooth thorax.
Look at the wing from the front and snip out any fibers splayed off the sides — you want to keep some of the red body showing.
Tie a brown hackle in at the back of the thorax, leaving the stem a little long to smooth that area out, take a few wraps forward over it and snip the butt.
Catch the same peacock herl in at the front of the thorax, wind it back to the rear of the thorax, then bring the thread up front.
Wrap the herl forward five or six turns over the thread underbody for a thick thorax and snip it off rather than breaking it.
Palmer the brown hackle forward four or five open wraps so the peacock still shows between the turns, and tie it off short of the eye.
Pull the hackle fibers back to clear room and whip finish a small head — it is a dry fly, so keep the head small. Snip any fibers crossing the eye.