Dry fly
Bright bands drifting over pale stones
A size 14 attractor dun dry fly with a red, white and blue body and dun hackle, tied for trout on moving water.
Stars and Stripes Attractor Dun is a sparse trout dry fly with a banded body and long, fine tails. Red and white thread bands lead into a speckled blue tinsel thorax under a light dun hackle.
- Imitates
- Attractor
- Hook
- size 14
- Tippet
- 5Xrule of three
- Red and white banded thread body
- Blue holographic tinsel thorax band
- Light dun hackle, lightly swept back
- Long dun tails for a high float
- Size 14 dry-fly hook
On the water
Red and white bands march up the body in neat stripes, then meet a band of blue tinsel flecked with silver. A light dun hackle fans out behind a small tan head, and long grey tails trail off the bend.
Drop it on a riffle or the seam beside a boulder and let it ride drag-free. The hackle keeps it perched, and the colours catch the eye of trout and angler alike when nothing in particular is hatching. A small twitch at the end of the drift can wake up a lazy fish.
Even rib spacing makes the whole fly. Wind the red thread in open turns the same width as the white gaps, and the stripes read clean from the bank to the bottom of the vise.
Rigging
- Tippet
- 5Xhook size divided by three
- Leader
- Nine feet, tapered — longer and finer in flat water
- Rig on 5X or 6X tippet with a long leader for calm water.
- Dress the hackle and tails lightly with floatant before the first cast.
- Fish dead-drift through seams and riffle tails, adding a short twitch at the end.
Where and when
- Hatch
- Attractor
- Target
- Trout
- Water type
- Riffles, pocket water and smooth glides on trout streams
- Also fishes
- Also fishes well as a dropper-free searcher on small mountain creeks, and swung just under the film once the hackle soaks.
Make it yourself
Beginner6 materials · 9 steps
- Style
- Dry fly
- Hook
- Standard dry-fly hooksize 14
- Thread
- Tan 8/0
Materials in the order they go on the hook
- TailDun hackle fibers
- RibRed thread
- BodyWhite thread
- ThoraxBlue holographic tinsel
- HackleLight dun rooster hackle
- HeadTan thread
Details
- Colors
- Red, White, Blue, Dun grey, Tan
How to tie it
The steps, from first wrap to whip finish (9)
- Mount the hook and start the tan thread behind the eye, then wrap a smooth base back to the bend.
- Tie in a slim bunch of dun hackle fibers as the tail, about one shank length beyond the bend.
- Tie in a length of red thread at the bend for the rib.
- Tie in white thread and wrap it forward in flat, touching turns over the rear 55 percent of the shank.
- Wind the red rib forward in open, even turns so red and white bands match in width, and tie it off.
- Tie in blue holographic tinsel and wrap a tight band covering the next 20 percent of the shank.
- Prepare a light dun hackle with fibers about twice the hook gap and tie it in by the stem ahead of the tinsel.
- Wrap the hackle three or four turns, stroking the fibers slightly back as you go, and tie it off.
- Build a small, neat tan thread head, whip finish and add a drop of head cement.
Proportions (5)
- Tail: about one shank length beyond the bend, sparse.
- Banded body: rear 55 percent of the shank, red and white stripes equal width.
- Blue tinsel band: roughly 20 percent of the shank.
- Hackle: fibers about twice the hook gap.
- Head: small, leaving a clear hook eye.
Tips (4)
- Flatten the white thread by spinning the bobbin so the body lies smooth under the rib.
- Count your rib turns and keep them evenly spaced for crisp stripes.
- Wrap the tinsel with no overlaps so the silver flecks lie flat and bright.
- Keep the tail sparse; a few long fibers float better than a thick bunch.
Common mistakes (4)
- Uneven rib spacing blurs the stripes; mark the shank lightly with turns of thread before winding.
- A lumpy underbody shows through white thread; build a smooth base first.
- Too many hackle turns crowd the eye; stop at three or four.
- Tail fibers splaying wide; pinch them tight and use soft loops when tying in.
Every kit size
Materials only
Size 14 · Materials only · 12 flies
$48.75
$4.06 a fly
Includes Standard dry-fly hook · and 8 more
Every item in this kit · 9 items
Hooks & beads
- Standard dry-fly hook$6.50
Thread & wire
- Tan 8/0 thread$2.95
- Red thread$3.25
- White thread$2.95
- Blue holographic tinsel$3.25
Materials
- Dun hackle fibers$11.95
- Light dun rooster hackle$11.95
Finishing
- Head cement$5.95
Guide
- Printed recipe and tying stepsIncluded
Size 14 · Materials only · 48 flies
$78
$1.63 a fly
Bought separately $82.10 · you save $4.10
Includes Standard dry-fly hook · and 8 more
Every item in this kit · 9 items
Hooks & beads
- Standard dry-fly hook$13
Thread & wire
- Tan 8/0 thread$5.90
- Red thread$3.25
- White thread$2.95
- Blue holographic tinsel$3.25
Materials
- Dun hackle fibers$23.90
- Light dun rooster hackle$23.90
Finishing
- Head cement$5.95
Guide
- Printed recipe and tying stepsIncluded
Size 14 · Materials only · 144 flies
$202.75
$1.41 a fly
Bought separately $230.40 · you save $27.65
Includes Standard dry-fly hook · and 8 more
Every item in this kit · 9 items
Hooks & beads
- Standard dry-fly hook$35
Thread & wire
- Tan 8/0 thread$17.70
- Red thread$9.75
- White thread$8.85
- Blue holographic tinsel$9.75
Materials
- Dun hackle fibers$71.70
- Light dun rooster hackle$71.70
Finishing
- Head cement$5.95
Guide
- Printed recipe and tying stepsIncluded
With vise & tools
Size 14 · With vise & tools · 12 flies
$198.75
$16.56 a fly
Includes Standard dry-fly hook · and 17 more
Every item in this kit · 18 items
Hooks & beads
- Standard dry-fly hook$6.50
Thread & wire
- Tan 8/0 thread$2.95
- Red thread$3.25
- White thread$2.95
- Blue holographic tinsel$3.25
Materials
- Dun hackle fibers$11.95
- Light dun rooster hackle$11.95
Finishing
- Head cement$5.95
Tools
- Rotary pedestal vise$79
- Ceramic bobbin$14
- Fine-point scissors$16
- Whip finisher$9
- Hackle pliers$7
- Bodkin$5
- Bobbin threader$4
- Dubbing wax$4
- Canvas tool roll$12
Guide
- Printed recipe and tying stepsIncluded
Size 14 · With vise & tools · 48 flies
$220.50
$4.59 a fly
Bought separately $232.10 · you save $11.60
Includes Standard dry-fly hook · and 17 more
Every item in this kit · 18 items
Hooks & beads
- Standard dry-fly hook$13
Thread & wire
- Tan 8/0 thread$5.90
- Red thread$3.25
- White thread$2.95
- Blue holographic tinsel$3.25
Materials
- Dun hackle fibers$23.90
- Light dun rooster hackle$23.90
Finishing
- Head cement$5.95
Tools
- Rotary pedestal vise$79
- Ceramic bobbin$14
- Fine-point scissors$16
- Whip finisher$9
- Hackle pliers$7
- Bodkin$5
- Bobbin threader$4
- Dubbing wax$4
- Canvas tool roll$12
Guide
- Printed recipe and tying stepsIncluded
Size 14 · With vise & tools · 144 flies
$334.75
$2.32 a fly
Bought separately $380.40 · you save $45.65
Includes Standard dry-fly hook · and 17 more
Every item in this kit · 18 items
Hooks & beads
- Standard dry-fly hook$35
Thread & wire
- Tan 8/0 thread$17.70
- Red thread$9.75
- White thread$8.85
- Blue holographic tinsel$9.75
Materials
- Dun hackle fibers$71.70
- Light dun rooster hackle$71.70
Finishing
- Head cement$5.95
Tools
- Rotary pedestal vise$79
- Ceramic bobbin$14
- Fine-point scissors$16
- Whip finisher$9
- Hackle pliers$7
- Bodkin$5
- Bobbin threader$4
- Dubbing wax$4
- Canvas tool roll$12
Guide
- Printed recipe and tying stepsIncluded
The creator
How it was made
1 iteration led here; the saved one is marked
1 Saved
Remixes
3 steps back
- Riverstone Olive Mayfly Dun@dekasso · the original
- Streambed Jade Mayfly Dry Fly@dekasso
- Stars and Stripes Attractor Dunyou are here
1 remix of this
Where this came from
“make the body red, white, and blue like american flag”
fly pattern · made
1 remix
25 — from 1 remix, at the Derby's published weights, since . Views are not counted.
- dry fly
- attractor
- dun
- trout
- red white blue
- banded body
- dun hackle
- tinsel thorax
- size 14
- riffles