Scarlet Wrap Pheasant Tail Nymph
by @dekasso
Flashback Pheasant Tail Nymph · Nymph
A spark of red at the riffle's edge
A gold bead flashback pheasant tail nymph in olive with a red thread head, size 14, for trout feeding on mayfly nymphs.
An olive flashback pheasant tail nymph with a gold bead and a bright red thread band behind it. Buggy olive dubbing, a black wire rib, a mottled pheasant wing case and a pearl tinsel stripe make up the fly.
- Pattern
- Flashback Pheasant Tail Nymph
- Imitates
- Olive mayfly nymphs, typically most active before spring and autumn hatches
- Hook
- size 14
- Tippet
- 5Xrule of three
- Gold bead takes it down quickly
- Red thread band behind the bead
- Pearl tinsel stripe over the wing case
- Picked-out olive dubbing for legs
- Size 14 on a 2X-long hook
On the water
Olive dubbing, shaggy and picked out, wrapped with a dark wire rib. A strip of pearl runs down the back over mottled pheasant fibres. Then a tight band of red, and the gold bead shining up front.
Drop it into a riffle or along a seam and let the bead take it near the stones. Dead drift is the start. A slow lift at the end of the swing brings it up like a nymph heading for the surface.
Picking out the thorax matters. Rough up the olive dubbing with a dubbing brush or velcro so the fibres splay out like legs, then keep the wing case and pearl stripe clean and tight over the top.
Rigging
- Tippet
- 5Xhook size divided by three
- Leader
- Nine feet, with fluorocarbon tippet to get it down
- Tie it on 5X or 6X fluorocarbon tippet and add split shot in deeper, faster water.
- Fish it under an indicator set about one and a half times the water depth.
- Let it dead drift, then lift the rod slowly at the end of the drift.
Where and when
- Hatch
- Olive mayfly nymphs, typically most active before spring and autumn hatches
- Target
- Trout
- Water type
- Riffles, pocket water and current seams
- Also fishes
- Works in slow pools on a long leader and as the point fly below a dry in clear stillwater margins.
Make it yourself
Intermediate8 materials · 11 steps
- Pattern
- Flashback Pheasant Tail Nymph
- Style
- Nymph
- Hook
- 2X-long nymph hooksize 14
- Thread
- Olive 8/0
Materials in the order they go on the hook
- BeadGold brass bead
- TailOlive pheasant tail fibres
- RibBlack wire
- BodyOlive hare's ear dubbing
- Wing caseMottled pheasant tail fibres
- FlashbackPearl flat tinsel
- ThoraxOlive hare's ear dubbing
- HeadRed 8/0 thread
Details
- Imitates
- Olive mayfly nymph
- Colors
- Olive, Red, Gold, Pearl, Brown
How to tie it
The steps, from first wrap to whip finish (11)
- Slide the gold bead onto the hook, small hole first, and set the hook in the vise.
- Start the olive thread behind the bead and lay a base back to the bend.
- Tie in olive pheasant tail fibres for a tail about half the shank length.
- Tie in the black wire at the bend.
- Dub a slim, tapered body of olive hare's ear over the rear two-thirds of the shank.
- Wrap the wire forward in five or six even turns and tie it off.
- Tie in mottled pheasant tail fibres for the wing case, then the pearl tinsel on top, both pointing back.
- Dub a fuller thorax of olive hare's ear up to just behind the bead.
- Pull the pheasant fibres, then the pearl tinsel, over the thorax and tie them down behind the bead.
- Trim the excess, switch to red thread and build a neat band behind the bead.
- Whip finish on the red band and pick out the thorax fibres for legs.
Proportions (5)
- Tail: about half the hook shank.
- Body: rear two-thirds of the shank, tapering thicker toward the thorax.
- Thorax: front third of the shank, noticeably fuller than the body.
- Wing case: the width of the thorax, lying flat on top.
- Red band: four to six thread wraps wide, right behind the bead.
Tips (4)
- Keep the dubbing thin on the thread; build the taper with turns, not clumps.
- Counter-wrap the wire so it locks down the dubbing and stays even.
- Lay the pearl tinsel dead centre over the wing case so it reads as one clean stripe.
- Use a dubbing brush lightly on the thorax so fibres splay down and out.
Common mistakes (4)
- Crowding the bead: leave space for the red band before dubbing the thorax.
- A bloated body: dub sparingly and save bulk for the thorax.
- Twisted flashback: hold the tinsel flat while pulling it forward and tying down.
- Too long a tail: measure against the shank before tying in.
Every kit size
Materials only
Size 14 · Materials only · 12 flies
$46.75
$3.90 a fly
Includes 2X-long nymph hook · Gold brass bead · and 9 more
Every item in this kit · 11 items
Hooks & beads
- 2X-long nymph hook$6.50
- Gold brass bead$7.50
Thread & wire
- Olive 8/0 thread$2.95
- Black wire$3.25
- Pearl flat tinsel$3.25
- Red 8/0 thread$2.95
Materials
- Olive pheasant tail fibres$4.95
- Olive hare's ear dubbing$4.50
- Mottled pheasant tail fibres$4.95
Finishing
- Head cement$5.95
Guide
- Printed recipe and tying stepsIncluded
Size 14 · Materials only · 48 flies
$75.67
$1.58 a fly
Bought separately $79.65 · you save $3.98
Includes 2X-long nymph hook · Gold brass bead · and 9 more
Every item in this kit · 11 items
Hooks & beads
- 2X-long nymph hook$13
- Gold brass bead$15
Thread & wire
- Olive 8/0 thread$2.95
- Black wire$3.25
- Pearl flat tinsel$3.25
- Red 8/0 thread$2.95
Materials
- Olive pheasant tail fibres$9.90
- Olive hare's ear dubbing$13.50
- Mottled pheasant tail fibres$9.90
Finishing
- Head cement$5.95
Guide
- Printed recipe and tying stepsIncluded
Size 14 · Materials only · 144 flies
$180.09
$1.25 a fly
Bought separately $204.65 · you save $24.56
Includes 2X-long nymph hook · Gold brass bead · and 9 more
Every item in this kit · 11 items
Hooks & beads
- 2X-long nymph hook$35
- Gold brass bead$41
Thread & wire
- Olive 8/0 thread$8.85
- Black wire$9.75
- Pearl flat tinsel$9.75
- Red 8/0 thread$8.85
Materials
- Olive pheasant tail fibres$24.75
- Olive hare's ear dubbing$36
- Mottled pheasant tail fibres$24.75
Finishing
- Head cement$5.95
Guide
- Printed recipe and tying stepsIncluded
With vise & tools
Size 14 · With vise & tools · 12 flies
$196.75
$16.40 a fly
Includes 2X-long nymph hook · Gold brass bead · and 18 more
Every item in this kit · 20 items
Hooks & beads
- 2X-long nymph hook$6.50
- Gold brass bead$7.50
Thread & wire
- Olive 8/0 thread$2.95
- Black wire$3.25
- Pearl flat tinsel$3.25
- Red 8/0 thread$2.95
Materials
- Olive pheasant tail fibres$4.95
- Olive hare's ear dubbing$4.50
- Mottled pheasant tail fibres$4.95
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
$218.17
$4.55 a fly
Bought separately $229.65 · you save $11.48
Includes 2X-long nymph hook · Gold brass bead · and 18 more
Every item in this kit · 20 items
Hooks & beads
- 2X-long nymph hook$13
- Gold brass bead$15
Thread & wire
- Olive 8/0 thread$2.95
- Black wire$3.25
- Pearl flat tinsel$3.25
- Red 8/0 thread$2.95
Materials
- Olive pheasant tail fibres$9.90
- Olive hare's ear dubbing$13.50
- Mottled pheasant tail fibres$9.90
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
$312.09
$2.17 a fly
Bought separately $354.65 · you save $42.56
Includes 2X-long nymph hook · Gold brass bead · and 18 more
Every item in this kit · 20 items
Hooks & beads
- 2X-long nymph hook$35
- Gold brass bead$41
Thread & wire
- Olive 8/0 thread$8.85
- Black wire$9.75
- Pearl flat tinsel$9.75
- Red 8/0 thread$8.85
Materials
- Olive pheasant tail fibres$24.75
- Olive hare's ear dubbing$36
- Mottled pheasant tail fibres$24.75
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
4 iterations led here; the saved one is marked
1
2
3
4 Saved
Remixes
No remixes yet — make your own version.
Where this came from
“make the wrap behind the bead red”
fly pattern · made
0 — nothing entered the score yet, at the Derby's published weights, since . Views are not counted.
- pheasant tail
- flashback
- gold bead
- olive
- mayfly nymph
- trout
- red thread
- pearl
- nymphing
- hare's ear