Russet Mayfly CDC Soft Hackle
by @john
CDC Soft Hackle · Wet fly
A brown wisp drifting just under the film
A sparse brown CDC soft hackle on a size 14 wet-fly hook, tied to swing or drift as a mayfly emerger for trout and grayling.
A mayfly soft hackle with a slim, ribbed body, a wispy tail and a loose collar of brown CDC. Brown thread, fine copper wire and dun-brown CDC fibres make up the whole fly.
- Pattern
- CDC Soft Hackle
- Imitates
- Mayfly emergence, typically spring and autumn afternoons
- Hook
- size 14
- Tippet
- 5Xrule of three
- Brown CDC collar moves in light current
- Slim thread body ribbed with copper wire
- Long CDC tail fibres
- Size 14 wet-fly hook
- Swing or dead-drift as an emerger
On the water
A thin brown body, banded with copper wire, runs back to a few long CDC tail fibres. Up front, a collar of brown CDC flares out like smoke, soft enough to stir in still air. A neat thread head finishes it off.
Fish it in riffles and runs when mayflies start coming off. Let it dead-drift a foot under, then let the line tighten and swing it up through the seam. The CDC breathes on every pause.
CDC hackle is the part to get right. Use only a few turns and keep the fibres long and sparse, so the collar moves in the current rather than clumping into a ball.
Rigging
- Tippet
- 5Xhook size divided by three
- Leader
- Nine feet, with fluorocarbon tippet to get it down
- Fish on 5X or 6X tippet; a long leader helps it sink naturally.
- Dead-drift it upstream, then let it swing across the current at the end.
- Skip the floatant. Wet CDC sinks slowly and stays in the film zone.
Where and when
- Hatch
- Mayfly emergence, typically spring and autumn afternoons
- Target
- Brown trout, Rainbow trout, Grayling
- Water type
- Riffles, runs and the soft seams below them
- Also fishes
- Slow pool tails and stillwater margins, fished slowly on a long leader during midge and mayfly activity.
Make it yourself
Intermediate5 materials · 10 steps
- Pattern
- CDC Soft Hackle
- Style
- Wet fly
- Hook
- Wet-fly hooksize 14
- Thread
- Brown 8/0
Materials in the order they go on the hook
- TailBrown CDC fibres
- RibFine copper wire
- BodyBrown thread
- HackleBrown CDC feather
- HeadBrown thread
Details
- Imitates
- Mayfly emerger
- Colors
- Brown, Tan, Copper
How to tie it
The steps, from first wrap to whip finish (10)
- Mount the size 14 wet-fly hook in the vise and start the brown thread just behind the eye.
- Lay a thin thread base back to the bend.
- Tie in a small bunch of brown CDC fibres as a tail, about a hook shank long.
- Tie in the fine copper wire at the bend.
- Wrap the thread forward in smooth, even turns to build a slim, slightly tapered body, stopping two eye-lengths behind the eye.
- Counter-wrap the copper wire forward in five or six open turns and tie it off.
- Prepare a brown CDC feather and tie it in by the tip just behind the eye.
- Wrap two or three turns of CDC, stroking the fibres back with each turn.
- Tie off the feather and trim the waste.
- Build a small, neat thread head and whip finish.
Proportions (4)
- Tail: roughly one hook shank in length, sparse.
- Body: slim, covering the rear three-quarters of the shank.
- Hackle: CDC fibres reaching to the hook point or just past the bend.
- Head: small, about one eye-length.
Tips (4)
- Keep the thread flat while wrapping the body for a smooth, segmented look under the wire.
- Wrap the copper rib opposite to the body thread so it locks down cleanly.
- Stroke CDC fibres rearward between turns so they sweep back over the body.
- Leave plenty of room behind the eye for the hackle and head.
Common mistakes (4)
- Too much CDC: it clumps and stops moving. Use a single feather and only two or three turns.
- A fat body: it kills the slim mayfly shape. Build it with thin, even thread layers.
- Crowding the eye: leave two eye-lengths free before tying in the hackle.
- Trapping CDC fibres in the head: pull them back before each thread wrap.
Every kit size
Materials only
Size 14 · Materials only · 12 flies
$32.55
$2.71 a fly
Includes Wet-fly hook · and 6 more
Every item in this kit · 7 items
Hooks & beads
- Wet-fly hook$6.50
Thread & wire
- Brown 8/0 thread$2.95
- Fine copper wire$3.25
Materials
- Brown CDC fibres$6.95
- Brown CDC feather$6.95
Finishing
- Head cement$5.95
Guide
- Printed recipe and tying stepsIncluded
Size 14 · Materials only · 48 flies
$69.11
$1.44 a fly
Bought separately $72.75 · you save $3.64
Includes Wet-fly hook · and 6 more
Every item in this kit · 7 items
Hooks & beads
- Wet-fly hook$13
Thread & wire
- Brown 8/0 thread$8.85
- Fine copper wire$3.25
Materials
- Brown CDC fibres$20.85
- Brown CDC feather$20.85
Finishing
- Head cement$5.95
Guide
- Printed recipe and tying stepsIncluded
Size 14 · Materials only · 144 flies
$165.84
$1.15 a fly
Bought separately $188.45 · you save $22.61
Includes Wet-fly hook · and 6 more
Every item in this kit · 7 items
Hooks & beads
- Wet-fly hook$35
Thread & wire
- Brown 8/0 thread$26.55
- Fine copper wire$9.75
Materials
- Brown CDC fibres$55.60
- Brown CDC feather$55.60
Finishing
- Head cement$5.95
Guide
- Printed recipe and tying stepsIncluded
With vise & tools
Size 14 · With vise & tools · 12 flies
$182.55
$15.21 a fly
Includes Wet-fly hook · and 15 more
Every item in this kit · 16 items
Hooks & beads
- Wet-fly hook$6.50
Thread & wire
- Brown 8/0 thread$2.95
- Fine copper wire$3.25
Materials
- Brown CDC fibres$6.95
- Brown CDC feather$6.95
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
$211.61
$4.41 a fly
Bought separately $222.75 · you save $11.14
Includes Wet-fly hook · and 15 more
Every item in this kit · 16 items
Hooks & beads
- Wet-fly hook$13
Thread & wire
- Brown 8/0 thread$8.85
- Fine copper wire$3.25
Materials
- Brown CDC fibres$20.85
- Brown CDC feather$20.85
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
$297.84
$2.07 a fly
Bought separately $338.45 · you save $40.61
Includes Wet-fly hook · and 15 more
Every item in this kit · 16 items
Hooks & beads
- Wet-fly hook$35
Thread & wire
- Brown 8/0 thread$26.55
- Fine copper wire$9.75
Materials
- Brown CDC fibres$55.60
- Brown CDC feather$55.60
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
Remixes
Remixed from
- Russet Mayfly CDC Soft Hackleyou are here
No remixes yet — make your own version.
Where this came from
fly pattern · made
1 save
8 — from 1 save, at the Derby's published weights, since . Views are not counted.
- cdc
- soft hackle
- wet fly
- mayfly
- emerger
- brown
- copper wire
- trout
- grayling
- swing