SBS Griffiths CDC

Step by step instructions to tie a CdC griffiths gnat

griffiths cdc gnat fly

Hook: Hanak BL100 or BL130 size #20
Thread: Griffiths 14/0 Black
Material:Peacock herl and small black CDC feather

griffiths cdc gnat fly
Start with black thread wrapped sparsely down to hook bend.
Tie in CDC feather by tip after stroking barbs back.
Tie in herl, and move thread to front with sparse turns.

griffiths cdc gnat fly

Grab the CDC stem and peacock herl with hackle pliers and give a few twists to make a loose rope. Wind forward onto hook, stroking CDC barbs back so they are not trapped.
Tie off well behind eye, trim and whip finish.

The threads were put in sparse so there is less material to absorb water, and no head cement is used to cut down on weight.

this fly can also be tied dubbing brush style after laying down the herl, using a magic tool to prepare the CDC. Especially if you want shorter CDC.

Afterburner and Ring Stinger Flies

Step by Step

Ring Stinger, Afterburner and Tied Damsel

Some marabou experimentation that provided some very lifelike movement and that can curry favour with fish

First of all, what I can only describe as stacked marabou. I haven't seen anything like it, but as you well know there a seldom any new ideas in the world, especially fly fishing.

I have made two versions, the Ring stinger and the Afterburner, based on this technique. I also did a baitfish, but was not happy with the result.

The Afterburner is shown above and a different version of the same method, the Ring Stinger is shown below

ring stinger fly
Ringstinger, rear view - Above
and side view - Below

Click on the Image above to take you to the step-by-step instructions

The ring stinger with booby eyes

And now the method of tying...

Tie a good generous clump of red marabou to tail of streamer hook (eg. Hanak H280 #8).
Pinch it off a bit at a time to shorten (do not cut).
Tie on another clump of red, but do not shorten.
If you are making a ring stinger, ignore this step.

Tie on some good chunks of marabou as shown on the top and sides of the hook

afterburner fly
Trim roughly as shown to form a big under-body

Do some more of the same to the right of the first clump
Trim as shown, it does not have to be too neat but must be symmetrical.

Tie on the tip end of a marabou feather with a thin shaft.
A thin shaft as you will now palmer the marabou to form the outer body.
Clear any trapped fibres with each turn using a bodkin.

Trim off excess hackle and whip finish.
Strengthen this with a bit of superglue, and your fly is ready.
You can add some eyes, or create a version with a bead.

This is how it looks wet, but the movement is unbelievable.

buzzer / chironomid / midge flies

A buzzer really looks good with a clear glass bead to imitate the bubble on a rising pupae, and with a fringe of cdc to imitate the gills.

It is not easy to thread or pull the cdc through the bead, so this is how I do it.

midge

First, put the bead on the hook and move it out the way.
Then put on your stacked cdc feathers using a thin thread like griffiths 14/0

Secure the CdC with as few turns as possible, tie off on the hook shank and cut thread.

midge

Now slip your bead over the tied down feathers, and put a drop of glue behind the bead so that it wicks up into the bead and secures the CdC properly.
Be careful not to use too much glue

Then continue with the rest of the fly

Spun Dragon Fly - Step by Step

Using a grub hook (The example is a Hanak 310 heavy buzzer hook) start the thread at the back of hook.
Prepare a mix of layered marabou in a clamp.

Make a dubbing loop from the thread, insert dubbing spinner, then add the marabou to the brush and spin

Wind your thread forward about a third of the way, wind the dubbing brush up to this point, folding the fibres back with each turn.
Make sure the marabou is dense and the winds are close together

Repeat for next third, and again to just behind the eye.
Secure brush with a whip and trim off excess brush

Do some basic trimming of the marabou

And some more until it looks like this

Tie on a pair of plastic eyes

Give the marabou a good scrubbing and trim again.
Don't trim too neatly

You can experiment with different eyes
Perhaps even booby eyes on a light hook.

An alternative, is to build the body with smaller single colour brushes, using one colour then the next to achieve a mix.

You will then end up with stacked layers like this

Twin-eye Marabou Charlie

Step by Step Instructions

Twin-eye Marabou Charlie
veniard twin-eye damsel charlie
When fishing off a bank into an area with obstacles you need to avoid snagging your fly. One option is to use a floating line with neutral density (non-sinking) flies, but if you want to fish on or near the bottom you need to make another plan.
Tying a fly that floats hook up is your best option in this case, and is better than a fly with a weedguard. This fly does a little of both, it's light and it swims upside down (as long as you tie it on with a loop).

veniard twin-eye damsel charlie

Using a Hanak H300 Hook, start off with a touch of superglue on the shank behind the hook eye and wind on a suitable thick base.
Build up until the twin eye can be pushed on firmly (too firm and it will break). Apply a final bit of glue and press the head on as shown above.

veniard twin-eye damsel charlie

Tie in a marabou tail as shown, I always mix three shades to give a more natural look.

Advance the thread to behind the eyes and wind the remaining marabou forward. Secure it and trim.

Tie in a mixed bunch of marabou 'charlie' style after turning the fly over. They should protrude just beyond the hook bend, not the length of the tail (to avoid wrapping).
Its easier to do two smaller bunches, but avoid excess thread build up.

veniard twin-eye damsel charlie

Trim the marabou, whip finish and your fly is done.

WPLJ (White Porn & Lemon Juice) Fly

(with apologies to Frank Zappa)

	Looking for an attractor fly to tie one day, I settled on the Mickey Finn. Once tied, I realised that there was not much movement in bucktail, so it was substituted with marabou. It looked pretty good, but I was still not satisfied. More movement was required and it needed a bead head to get some depth. Sequins were added to create some turbulence in front of the fly. Turbulence alone can be a fish attractor, so turbulence and movement must make a killer fly.
	This was the result, and the next weekend when things were really slow at Lakenvlei, I hauled out the MMMF (modified marabou mickey finn) and proceeded to catch a good number of fish, when others were not doing well at all. The fly moves best on a steady retrieve, so the best method was a fast figure-of-eight retrieve. What also worked (watch out, because here comes heresy) was just letting the fly follow the boat as the wind drifted it. Trawling! There, I said it. I trawled a fly because it works. On the way home I was thinking about making the same pattern in baitfish colours, as it is the time of year that there are fingerlings in the water. Hence the colour combination of white & yellow. Credit for the name goes to the Frank Zappa song that was playing while I was thinking about the fly, White Porn & Lemon Juice
Fly Tying Instructions for the WPLJ
	Use a #8 x2 or x3 long shank hook. Put on two sequins (in sequence) with the cupped part facing forward. Put a tungsten bead on backwards. Two sequins are used as one alone breaks quite easily. Using black head varnish, glue the two sequins together & move the bead up and colour it black too. You could use black sequins & black beads.
	Lay a base layer of thread, return thread to eye & tie in some red copper wire along the underside of the hook shank as shown. Then tie in some flat tinsel at the back & advance your thread to just behind the bead.
	Wind on the tinsel in overlapping turns, trap with the thread & trim it.
	Wind the wire forward as shown, trap with thread, and break off the tag end.
	Tie a generous clump of white marabou onto the TOP of the hook shank, as close behind the bead as possible. Trim excess.
	Follow that with a layer of yellow marabou, followed by a light topping of brown or olive.On top of that goes a short piece of black marabou. Dub a small clump of black marabou onto the thread.
	Finish off by winding on dubbing & then two whip finishes. Pull out any excess dubbing.Your WLPJ is done!

Caddis Emerger

Step by Step Instructions

	Materials: Hanak H390 Hook Stripped Peacock herl Elk or Klipspringer hair Jackal or Squirrel tail
	Tie on a base of thread (use thicker one for speed) and create a body profile
	Tie in and wind on peacock herl, then secure with thread. Place thread about a third back from hook eye. A little to the left of where it is here. Tip: To strip peacock herl use an eraser.
	Tie in the elk hair. Hair tips should align with back of hook.
	Secure and trim off to create a head in line with hook eye.
	Stick the jackal hair on top, about twice the length of the elk hair, whip finish and trim.
	Sneak in a tiny bit of adhesive on top to secure the jackal. Otherwise they come out easily. You are done.