Fly of the Month - December 2009

Next to Nothing

Hook – 18 to 24 or small straight shank
Thread – UNI-Thread 6/0, color to match hackle (black with mallard flank or grizzly hackle)
Hackle – brown, black, olive, grizzly, or mallard flank. Use 3 to 5 hackle spurs

Tying – Debarb the hook and insert in the vice. Lay a thread body from two hook eyes widths behind the hook eye back to the start of the bend of the hook. Tie in the hackle, with the tips pointing to the rear as a tail. The length of the tail should be about equal to the length of the hook. Run the thread forward to two eye widths behind the hook eye. Fold the remaining hackle fibers backwards to create a downwing. Run the thread back to about 1/3 of the hook length. Whip finish and cut the thread. The wing can be trimmed if it extends beyond the tail of the fly.

The “Next to Nothing” can be fished under an indicator or swung like a soft hackle. Al has a warning when fishing this fly: “Be ready for a fight!” and “Don’t drop it on your foot!”

Fly tied by Al Taylor

Click for Printable Recipe