Are you ready to take your fly tying skills to the next level? We will walk you through the process of tying a realistic hard shell mayfly nymph using Hemingway fly tying materials. Follow these step-by-step instructions to create a lifelike fly that will attract even the most selective trout.
Gather Your Materials
Before you begin, make sure you have all the necessary materials at hand. For this realistic pattern you may be making up the mayfly or the stonefly nymph. In order to do this, you will need:
Thread: Turrall Drax Fine ETT 8/0 72D White
Hook: Turrall T937 Barbless Grub or T936 Larval for a longer shank on a larger stonefly.
Rib: Fine Lead Wire to add some weight or use a thin clear mono line.
Tail: Hemingway's realistic Mayfly body with tail (or Stonefly)
Body: Hemingway’s Yellow UV Ice Dubbing
Wing Buds: Hemingway’s realistic Mayfly (or Stonefly)
Wing Back: Hemingway’s realistic Mayfly (or Stonefly)
Rubber Legs: Hemingway’s realistic Mayfly (or Stonefly)
Adhesive: Zap A Gap for securing the buds and back and creating the solid shell.
Step 1: Secure the hook and thread
Secure your hook nice and firmly into the vice. Make sure the point is just hidden to avoid any snagging whilst tying. Tie on with your thread and secure with a few wraps. Make sure to line the hook nicely with thread to provide a stable base for tying on your materials and work your way to the base of the hook with even wraps of the thread to tie in your first materials.
Step 2: Start tying in the tail and body (1a / 1b)
Secure the Hemingway realistic mayfly nymph body at the base of the hook. A couple of wraps of thread should be enough to hold the tail in place. Make sure it is centred on the top of the hook and secure before moving on to the next step.
At this point if you wanted to add a rib using a material such as lead or wire then secure the rib in on the side of the hook and wrap the thread over the rib to the base of the hook. This rib can then be wound back up later on in the tying process. Adding a rib can add extra weight to the fly if needed.
Step 2: Add the back cover (2a / 2b)
Take the Hemingway realistic mayfly nymph back cover and position it on top of the body, making sure they are aligned correctly. Secure them in place with a few wraps of thread over the plastic tag.
Step 3: Dub and secure the body (3a / 3b)
Using your dubbing create a body for the fly.
Dub your material onto your thread. Remember to twist in one direction and if needed use some fly-tying wax on the thread to help with grip. Some threads such as the Turrall thread may come pre waxed for this purpose.
Create a tapered body, up to halfway up the hook.
Once the body is dubbed fold over the plastic body section toward the eye of the hook and wrap a few turns of thread to secure the body, in the middle of the hook just after the dubbing. Make sure the body in centred on the back of the hook.
Before folding over the back cover add some Zap a Gap to the top of the plastic body and then fold over the back cover. Secure the back cover with a few wraps of thread.
If using a rib at this point wrap the rib up in small even turns, winding away from you following the segments of the back. Tie in the rib with a few wraps of thread at the end of the dubbing.
Step 4: Tie in the wing bud and legs (4a / 4b / 4c)
Just behind the eye of the hook secure in the wings bud cover. A few wraps of thread over the plastic tab should be enough to keep this in place. The wing bud cover should be extending over the top of the eye of the hook.
Next secure your plastic legs into place on top of the wing bud cover. Again a few wraps of thread on the plastic tab should secure this in place. The legs will be extending over the eye of the hook and will sit on top over the wing bud cover.
Using your Zap a Gap super glue apply this in between the rubber tegs and wings buds, securing the two together. Allow this to set.
Step 4: Thorax dubbing and securing legs and wing buds (5a / 5b)
Wind your thread back down from the eye of the hook to the dubbing in the middle. Using your chosen dubbing continue to create a dubbed body up until the eye of the hook. Keep this tapered and thin.
Once at the eye of the hook sweep back the rubber legs and wing bud cover and create a head behind the eye of the hook. Tie off and cut you thread.
Fold over the rubber legs towards the back of the hook, keeping the legs centred on the back of the hook. Add some super glue to the joint between the body section and legs as they meet in the middle and let set.
Step 4: Finish the Fly (6a / 6b)
To get a hard finish on the fly apply your Zap a Gap adhesive on the back of the fly and down each side of the body. This will not only add strength to the fly but provide a hard-shell cover. Adding layers of clear varnish will also add weight and help create a clear shell if needed.
If you have decided to use a rib, then at this point you will be winding you rib up through the legs to the eye of the hook and securing the rib in place with a few wraps of thread behind the eye. Again, you may add super glue or varnish to the shell of the fly as needed.
Using a marker paint the legs and tails lightly with a dark colour. A black Thingamabobber marker will do the job or some other permanent equivalent.
There you have it! You have successfully tied a realistic hard shell mayfly nymph using Hemingway fly tying materials. This lifelike fly is sure to fool even the most discerning trout in the water. Practice these steps and experiment with different variations and colours to create your own unique flies for your next fishing adventure.
Leave a comment