Muddler Minow

[John Pierce]

FLY: Muddler Minnow

Submitted by Dave Robinson

COMMENTS

• This wet fly is a sculpin (bottom fish) imitation but a also a multiuse pattern.
• Good around river mouths.
• A demonstration on how to spin deer hair. The tricks are tying the tail and wing on top then spinning & packing the deer hair and trimming the head.

TOOLS

• Comb.
• Hair Stacker.
• Hair Packer (wider better than thinner).
• Razor Blade.

MATERIAL

• Hook: #6 to 10 3XL Streamer.
• Thread: 3/0 & 6/0 Brown.
• Tail: Turkey Quill Pair.
• Rib: Fine Gold Wire.
• Body: Wide Gold Tinsel or Flat Gold Braid.
• Hackle: Squirrel Tail (+ optional Flash).
• Wing: Turkey Quill Pair.
• Head: Spun Deer Hair Collar and Head (buy summer deer hair without fuzz at base).

METHOD

• Hook in vice, thread on hook, wrap back to end shank.
• TAIL: Spray quilled wing with artist supply spray for feather writers. Cut off two small sections flatter side of feather with razor blade. Match together with dull side out, measure tail with half of shank length. Place on top of shank at end and tie on at end of shank, spiral wrap thread around barbs to eye of hook, cut off excess, wrap thread to create smooth body.
• BODY Measure fine wire half way down shank, tie on to end shank.
• BODY: Tie tinsel half way down shank, wrap to end shank, wrap thread forward to eye. Wrap tinsel around shank, slightly overwrapping, up to eye, tie on thread behind and in front of tinsel, cut off excess.
• RIB: Wrap wire up shank in opposite direction, tie on, cut off excess.
• UNDERWING: Few strands of squirrel tail, measure so that just short of tail, tie onto shank, trim off excess to front.
• WING: Using razor, remove 1/4 of turkey barbs, twice. Even up tips, measure as almost same length as tail, tie on with thread, pull butt ends down on each side of shank to make wings stand up, trim off butt ends.
• DEER HAIR: Cut off less that pencil size amount. Comb out fuzz, drop tip down into Hair Stacker tool, tap to align tips, remove with tips aligned, place own shank with tips about half way back, wrap on with thread and push hair around hook, wrap on, stroke back and wrap in front. Use Hair packer to push hair back.
• Cut off another clump of deer hair, tie on, cut off excess, push back with Hair Packer tool.
• Cut off third clump hair, comb out, tie on, hair packer.
• Tie thread on front with half hitch (whip finish may trap some hair fibres).
• With razor blade, and fly upside down, cut off hair on bottom from behind eye, with scissors clip off hair around eye to form tapered head (except for flat bottom).
• With scissors, cut off deer hair.
• Head cement or superglue drop slide down thread at end. Trick: Drag eye through lip balm before start tying fly to fill eye so that don't get filled with head cement.