Hotspot Midge Fly - Fishing Footage

[McFlyLures 0]

Tying these midges is no easy matter. The material list is small, just two color threads and some flashabou, but they are so small, that I have trouble with my not so good eyes to tie them. Your experiences might vary. However they are great for fishing on the san juan river. I lost a few of them my last trip, so this time I need to tie some more up for fishing.

Hook: Daiichi 1110 - size 28

Thread: Ultra Thread 70 - dark brown and white

Hot Spot: Flashabou - hot pink

[feathers5 0]

Nice midge pupa and hot spot idea. Do you feel ribbing is not necessary?

[Dave G. 0]

McFly, nice little midges ! I had to break down a few years ago and buy a magnifier for my tying station. I can get by without it on size 16 or so and larger but not on my 18-24 midges.

 

Our spring hatch (early black midges) are about size 24) and later on are about size 20 Chironamids. The midges aren't tied a whole lot different from yours, just black.

 

The Chironanmids though ( pupa and emergers) I rough up dark grey to black Danville 6/0 thread and rib it with white or ivory/cream thread, no varnish on those. I've even put in just the tiniest touch of rabbit dubbing on size 18 chironamid emergers and they work spectacularly. Chironamids are a little different from the standard curved pupa tie, I use a Kaufman tie for them, they have a wisp of antron sticking out each end, tied on a straight hook. I have some very thin lead, and my first step is to lay in a piece of that lengthwise to the hook and everything is wrapped over that and the shank. I found that without the lead the flies wanted to float initially till good and soaked and midge pupa should hang under the surface about 8-9 inches. I grease up the leader so it will float except for the last foot of tippet.

[McFlyLures 0]

Nice midge pupa and hot spot idea. Do you feel ribbing is not necessary?

Well, I never ribbed this fly, kinda like a black beauty isn't ribed, but you could for sure. I don't think that the ribbing will make a huge dofference, but maybe it will. I just tie multiple of these at a time, and I tie to fish, not just to tie. So I like removing as many steps as possible. Haha.

 

But yeah, get some fine silver wire (like you would for a zebra midge, and rib it. It probably will look better and work better.

[McFlyLures 0]

McFly, nice little midges ! I had to break down a few years ago and buy a magnifier for my tying station. I can get by without it on size 16 or so and larger but not on my 18-24 midges.

 

Our spring hatch (early black midges) are about size 24) and later on are about size 20 Chironamids. The midges aren't tied a whole lot different from yours, just black.

 

The Chironanmids though ( pupa and emergers) I rough up dark grey to black Danville 6/0 thread and rib it with white or ivory/cream thread, no varnish on those. I've even put in just the tiniest touch of rabbit dubbing on size 18 chironamid emergers and they work spectacularly. Chironamids are a little different from the standard curved pupa tie, I use a Kaufman tie for them, they have a wisp of antron sticking out each end, tied on a straight hook. I have some very thin lead, and my first step is to lay in a piece of that lengthwise to the hook and everything is wrapped over that and the shank. I found that without the lead the flies wanted to float initially till good and soaked and midge pupa should hang under the surface about 8-9 inches. I grease up the leader so it will float except for the last foot of tippet.

Your chironamids sound cool, from what I am picturing in my head after your description of how you tie sounds like it would work great!

[flytire 0]

black beauty isnt ribbed?

 

https://www.google.com/search?q=black+beauty+fly&biw=1600&bih=770&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&sqi=2&ved=0ahUKEwil8eq1pJ7RAhUG0iYKHSIGDcEQ_AUIBigB&dpr=1

[Dave G. 0]

 

This was the closest photo I could find to it but without the wing. My peacock thorax is smaller, just two to three turns is all. I've done them as a bead head too, in which case the antron is behind the bead, sticks up at 90 deg to the shank but I prefer the original and without the wing. Depending where we fish, the real casings of these things litter the water in sizes from 18 to about 14.

[McFlyLures 0]

 

This was the closest photo I could find to it but without the wing. My peacock thorax is smaller, just two to three turns is all. I've done them as a bead head too, in which case the antron is behind the bead, sticks up at 90 deg to the shank but I prefer the original and without the wing. Depending where we fish, the real casings of these things litter the water in sizes from 18 to about 14.

I was picturing wrong... haha! But this is much cooler then I was picturing. Cool fly

[McFlyLures 0]

black beauty isnt ribbed?

 

https://www.google.com/search?q=black+beauty+fly&biw=1600&bih=770&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&sqi=2&ved=0ahUKEwil8eq1pJ7RAhUG0iYKHSIGDcEQ_AUIBigB&dpr=1

Interesting... I have been to a few fly shops that sell some small black midges with a fine dubbing head without ribbing... they all call them black beauties. I stand corrected... not sure what their flies really are then if not BB's... eother way, I still catch fish on non ribbed midges. Not sure if it's just cause my local trout are dumb, or fish in general don't care. But by all means, rib this fly and it probably will work great!

[Dave G. 0]

 

 

I was picturing wrong... haha! But this is much cooler then I was picturing. Cool fly

 

Also my rib is more muted. These things are in mass in the water, they stack up vertically in big clusters trying to break the water tension to surface FWIW. There is a rib in the casing but it's not super pronounced, it still gives a candy cane effect, if so none the less. The actual fly fully out of the casing is thin by comparison, much like a mosquito, though darker and non biting.

[feathers5 0]

 

Nice midge pupa and hot spot idea. Do you feel ribbing is not necessary?

Well, I never ribbed this fly, kinda like a black beauty isn't ribed, but you could for sure. I don't think that the ribbing will make a huge dofference, but maybe it will. I just tie multiple of these at a time, and I tie to fish, not just to tie. So I like removing as many steps as possible. Haha.

 

But yeah, get some fine silver wire (like you would for a zebra midge, and rib it. It probably will look better and work better.

 

 

 

Nice midge pupa and hot spot idea. Do you feel ribbing is not necessary?

Well, I never ribbed this fly, kinda like a black beauty isn't ribed, but you could for sure. I don't think that the ribbing will make a huge dofference, but maybe it will. I just tie multiple of these at a time, and I tie to fish, not just to tie. So I like removing as many steps as possible. Haha.

 

But yeah, get some fine silver wire (like you would for a zebra midge, and rib it. It probably will look better and work better.

I'm not disputing your success with this fly without a rib, you're right, the less materials the easier and faster it is to tie. I just always assumed, there's that word, that ribs were very prominent on midge pupas, so it's good to include one.

Thanks