before the post gets under way, I just want to thank all here for all the inspiration you give by sharing all your ties...some of the detail of different styles and patterns and materials too, is a real education...
This is a salmon/steelhead pattern using some really demure yet beautiful colors…it imitates a small shrimp or bug…when I was making some pictures of this tie, I laid it on my firewood pile , a favorite background I use…I looked down and it looked like I had termites in the firewood for a second…what better name for it! except when I laid one of the doubles down on the kitchen counter, my wife said if she didnt know better she would have rolled up a magazine and whacked it…something about a cockroach…I will take that as a compliment sort of…but I like termite better…
this pattern uses what I call a "cheater wing" that works as the main wing, before final tightening down I pull down a few barbs from each of the wings to make the throat...these are to copy the legs of a shrimp...the food species this pattern imitates...this tie is inspired by a more classic fly, the "carron" a traditonal Irish salmon fly...the "termite" is a great pattern for a novice or intermediate fly tyer...
this is also a good candidate for a double hook...I tied a few of these too.... this fly moves a lot on a retrieve...on the larger double I also added a small tip of another flank on the underside behind the eye to make the throat more full...
here you can see the guinea hen a bit more...also the buffalo wool dubbing...
depending on the feathers i grabbed from the guines skin, it wasnt clear the sahpe of the tail tip until I waxed it good...some are pointier than others...although I couldnt really tell ahead of time...
I tied a few on the No.4 & No.1 doubles with a braided loop...I wanted to see what "old school" would look like...this is the one I went fishing with today...
I just straightened out the steel lop to tie the braided on...making the hook just a bit longer...and allowed some more wing feather length too..I must admit, between tying the doubles, with that barb on the backside, and tying the loop too I did snip one trimming, and cut my thread more times than I want to say...my big goal in tying is to try and make the bugs the same...and not cut the thread!...
I have some more pics on a page I made up...and for the novice and intermediate tyers i am working on an SBS too...all the best...ted
tales of a wandering monk
materials used...
No.1 Tiemco 7999 hook , upturned eye (black)
No.1 AO Feathers double w/ down eye(black)
No.4 AO Feathers double w/down eye(bronze)
(2) dyed mallard flanks , golden brown, wings
(1) guinea hen , tail
cream colored buffalo wool & rabbit fur , body dubbing (I am running low on that color...so I mixed in some bunny rabbit)
.015 silver wire, ribbing
the termite
Linear Mode
