Starting to tie dries; Parachute Adams

[TKenneth 0]

Not getting on here as much as I was hoping, but continuing to tie flies when I can. Started tying nymphs, which seemed easier, and this past weekend started to tie some dries. Heres a size 16 parachute adams, swcond day of tying them so I feel a bit more comfortable. Please offer any suggestions to help me improve as I go. Thanks.

Size 16 dry fly hook

Grey dubbed body

Pheasant tail tail (only feathers I had that were long enough)

Grizzly and brown hackle

White polypropelene yarn post

[SilverCreek 0]

You are getting MUCH better.

I am getting picky here since I think you did a good job.

When I click on the photo, I notice that the fly body has guard hairs sticking out of the dubbing. The original adams was tied with muskrat underfur fur that was untanned and therefore still has the natural oil on the underfur to make it waterproof and help the fly float.

Grab the fur between the thumb and forefinger of left hand and cut the fur off at the skin. Now grab the bottom the cut fur with the thumb and forefinger of your right hand. Now grab the guard hairs, which are the long hairs that stick out and pull them out. That will leave just the soft underfur. Now when you dub the body, there will be no long hairs sticking out. The fly body will be smooth. You can trim the guard hairs off if this fly for a smoother body,

The back of dubbed fly body goes Slightly too far back just slightly past where the hook starts to bend. It makes the fly body just slightly too long. I mention this just so you will notice it.

These are very MINOR faults and really make no difference on how the fly will fish. So for the  next Adams, pick out the guard hairs out of the fubbing, use the proper tail hackle, and dub a slightly thinner body.

You have done very well in a short time!

 

[Poopdeck 0]

Indeed, nice tie. You now unlocked the secret that dry flies are not that difficult to tie. Just takes a little practice. Keep at it. 

[flyflinger 0]

I concur with SilverCreek - you are progressing nicely!  Incremental minor improvements would include:  a streamlined and smooth body, and some nice stiff cock hackle fibers for the tail.  (The tail is important in supporting the rear of the fly on the surface film.)  Wrapping parachute hackle just requires practice to get in a thin horizontal plane, but you are off to a good start.  

Regards,

 

 

 

[flytire 0]

i believe the original "adams" was tied with gray wool body

TheAdams-HistoryRevisited.pdf - Google Drive

TheAdamsFinalChapter.pdf - Google Drive

Grandpa's Story Part 2 (youtube.com)

Grandpa's Story part 3 (youtube.com)

[SilverCreek 0]

Thanks flytire

[SilverCreek 0]

There are a subtle changes that you can make in how you tie a parachute pattern that determines how it rides on the surface film.

If you look a dry fly hackle carefully, you will notice that the barbs have a dull side and a shiny side. The barbs also have a natural curve so the shiny side has a convex shape and the dull side is concave.

So how you wind the hackle on the post and where you tie off the hackle will determine how the fly "sits" on the water surface.

Concave side down allows the tips of the hackle to project below the body of the fly and and support the fly higher on the meniscus. Theoretically, the hackle should act as springs because they are concave side down and gravity acts against the bend of the hackle. Concave side up and the hackle bends away from the water and the body of the fly has to depress the meniscal surface before the hackle even contacts the meniscus.

Tying the hackle down on the bottom of the post elevates the last wrap of hackle and the fly will ride lower than if you wrapped the hackle all the way down the post and tied off behind the hook eye.

So there are 4 possible combinations of how you wrap the hackle and where you tie the hackle off that determine how high the fly rides.

Finally, the length of the hackle tips also determine how high the fly will ride if you tie with the concave side down. The longer the hackle, the farther the tips will extend below the body.

How high you want the fly to ride, depends on whether you consider the parachute to be a dry fly or an emerger. So if you really think the parachute is a dry fly, I believe you should tie it concave side down with the hackle tied off on the hook.

I tie off on the post with the concave side up, not because it is the easiest way to wind and tie off the hackle. I do it because I agree with Gary Borger that the parachute more of an emerger pattern than a true dry fly. Gary believes the trout see the post of the parachute as the body of an emerging dun and not the wings of an adult dun. Gary discusses the parachute fly in his book, Designing Trout Flies.

Go to this link where Gary discusses the parachute as a Stage 3 emerger.

https://www.garyborger.com/2016/09/09/parachute-flies-stage-3-emerger/

I believe that parachutes work better than standard dries for the same reason that sparkle duns work so well. They ride low in the film. I tie some parachutes with zelon tails to mimic the end of the developing shuck just the same as a sparkle dun.

If you look at the Klinkhammer pattern, it is essentially a parachute tied on a bent hook so that the body of the fly projects into and below the meniscus. Ever wonder why a parachute that has taken a fish becomes more effective? It looks even more like an emerger or a cripple and less like a dry, especially if the back half of the fly begins to sink.

This what Stage 3 of mayfly emergence looks like.

 

Gary describes stage 3 below:

"Stage three of emergence of the three groups that hatch at the film—mayflies, caddis, and midges—occurs as the adult pulls itself free from the nymphal or pupal skin. The wings have started out (Stage 2) and now comes the head, and legs. The body of the insect is sticking straight up, or nearly so, the wings are pulled down along its back, the legs are out and on the water. It looks for all the world like a Parachute Adams or Klinkhammer. The parachute “dry” flies are actual emergers. The body is below the hackle and so it snuggles into the film or actually rides below the film—just like the nymphal or pupal body of the emerger.

The Parachute Adams is a great representation of stage three. Tie the Adams Family; in addition to the gray body of the original, tie them with a black body, a pale yellow body, a tan body, and a pale olive body in sizes 12 to 20 and you can match nearly all the mayflies, caddis, and midges that are emerging. A great fly."

 

http://www.garyborger.com/2016/09/09/parachute-flies-stage-3-emerger/#jp-carousel-6393[/img]

[TKenneth 0]

Silver Creek: Thanks for the kind words and tips. I'm trying to not spend another $100 on the exact materials for these flies, and instead using what I have that is closest. Once I'm a bit more polished and start to tie more regularly I will get the correct materials.

I believe the dubbing I'm using is possum, although I also have hares fur, but I see your point on the guard hairs. I will try and remove them on the next flies.

As for the body going slightly into the hot bend, it is something I try and keep just at the right point, but in my defense these hooks are tiny and hard to see! I try to make sure the tail feathers do not bend down when I start my dubbing, if they move down I know I'm into the bend, but I can try and keep it one wrap further from the bend.

And your last post on the hackle is very informative, and I'll go back and reread it a few times in the future to try and keep all the info inside my head. Thanks for the advice.

[TKenneth 0]

Poopdeck: Yeah, they're not necessarily more difficult, just trying to stick with flies that add on new technique into what I already know, to keep my skills gradually building. And thanks for the kind words.

Flyflinger: Agree on all your points, dubbing is still a pain for me and I'm always trying to get away with using less and less, but it seems like if I use any less that there will just be the bare thread. How many wraps do you think would be best for size 14 and 16 flies?

Flytire: Thanks for the history. Always interesting to see where things started.

[SilverCreek 0]

11 minutes ago, TKenneth said:

Poopdeck: Yeah, they're not necessarily more difficult, just trying to stick with flies that add on new technique into what I already know, to keep my skills gradually building. And thanks for the kind words.

Flyflinger: Agree on all your points, dubbing is still a pain for me and I'm always trying to get away with using less and less, but it seems like if I use any less that there will just be the bare thread. How many wraps do you think would be best for size 14 and 16 flies?

Flytire: Thanks for the history. Always interesting to see where things started.

I wrote a piece in Fly Tyer Magazine on how to dub. I wrote about it in the post below.

 

 

[chugbug27 0]

Btw, a 3x2 patch of muskrat will set you back three bucks and if only used for dry flies might outlast both you and your grandchildren. 

[flytire 0]

Fly tying a complete dubbing techniques tutorial | PDF (slideshare.net)

[john1962 0]

For me being a beginner and for what it's worth, that's a really nice tied fly.

Good job

Tightlines