New Page 4

Fly of the Month

Bob Ireton brings together his experience in fly fishing, aquatic entomology, and knowledge of fly tying techniques and materials, to design and tie durable and effective flies.

Volume 4, Issue 3 March 2003

GOLD RIBBED HARE'S EAR NYMPH

By Bob Ireton

I recently read that the Gold Ribbed Hare's Ear Nymph is arguably the most popular fly in the world. That is a pretty strong statement! Then I started thinking about it. This fly does mimic a lot of aquatic life forms the world over. It is a tried and true old standby. And I have read about the success of this fly. I have known a lot of fly fishermen who have had good results using this pattern. I personally have used the GRHE with great success! I would think that everyone who fly fishes would know about it soon after the Woolley Bugger. With all this in mind, I would say that the Gold Ribbed Hare's Ear Nymph could very well be the most popular fly in the world!

Fish, most of the time, feed randomly on whatever food forms that arrives in front of them, rather than on specific foods. A fly pattern that resembles a great number of these different food forms makes a great 'searching' pattern. This fly certainly fills this requirement. You can't go wrong with a good supply of Gold Ribbed Hare's Ear Nymph's in your fly box!

MATERIALS

Hook - Mustad 3906B, Dai-Riki 060, Daiichi 1560, Orvis 167T, or equivalent.
Size 8-20
Thread - Black, 6/0 or 8/0, depending on size of fly.
Weight - Lead wire, or equivalent, approximately same diameter as hook shank.
Tail - Hare's mask guard hairs.
Rib - Oval gold tinsel, sized to match fly size.
Abdomen - Hare's ear or mask dubbing.
Wingcase - Mottled turkey quill.
Thorax - Hare's ear or mask dubbing.

TYING STEPS

1 - Place the hook properly in the vice. Pinch down barb, if desired. Attach thread behind hook eye, and lay on a thread base rearward, stopping at hook barb. Tie a half hitch.
2 - Using lead wire approximately the diameter of the hook shank, or equivalent, wind several wraps around the hook shank in the thorax area. Build a thread ramp on both sides of the weight to make a smooth transition for the dubbing. Then also wrap the thread to cover the weight. Bring the thread back to the rear end of the thread base, and tie a half hitch. Cover the entire thread area with head cement.
3 - Tie in an appropriate sized clump of hare's mask guard hairs for the tail. The tail should be 1/2 to 2/3 the length of the hook shank. Now tie in the tinsel for the ribbing. Trim the tag ends of the hair and tinsel, and finish securing with the thread. Tie a half hitch.
4 - Spin some hare's mask dubbing on the thread. If you have trouble with this, the use of a small application of dubbing wax on the bare thread may help. Keep the amount of dubbing sparse, as it is much easier to dub a small amount and add more if needed, than to use too much, and not be able to remove the excess! If you can rotate the hook point away from you, the dubbing process becomes much easier, and safer!
5 - Palmer the dubbing forward, forming a tapered abdomen that is 2/3 the length of the hook shank. Remember, you can always spin on more dubbing if needed, but you will have a difficult time removing excess dubbing! Tie a half hitch.
6 - Palmer the ribbing forward to form a segmented abdomen. Tie in the ribbing, trim the tag end, and tie a half hitch.
7 - Cut a segment of mottled turkey feather, and tie in with the shiny surface up. This will be the wing case. Trim or tie in the tag end, and tie a half hitch.
8 - To dub the thorax of this fly, I use a dubbing loop to get a really 'buggy' look. Form a thread loop, and lay some dubbing in the loop. Spread the dubbing evenly in the loop. A dubbing loop tool will make this step easier, but it can be done without one.
9 - Spin the thread loop that contains the dubbing to form a nice, tight dubbing loop.
10 - Palmer the dubbing loop forward to form the thorax. As you do this, stroke the hair rearward after each wrap. Tie in, and trim tag. Bring the turkey feather forward over the thorax, and tie in. Trim the tag end, form a head, and tie a half hitch. Now tie a whip finish, snip off the thread tag, and add head cement to the thread and wingcase. Pick out some dubbing to form legs.

The Buckeye United Fly Fishers, Inc is a non-profit corporation organized under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, incorporated in the State of Ohio for the preservation, conservation and wise use of our fishing waters and game fish; and to assist in the protection and improvement of our natural resources