PT Nymph Hooks

[BelAirSteve]

As some of you know from my recent posts, I am fairly new to tying, but I am embracing it with a great deal of interest and energy. I have read a lot, and watched a lot of videos, and yes I do tie too! A trap I fell into early was reading and watching videos, but not tying much...duh.

As you know, there are an infinite number of patterns for every fly...guys add a twist here and there. One video I saw tied a classic PT nymph on a curved hook. It definitely looks "buggy" and I thought I might give it a try. If you think about the fact that a curved hook helps to represent the nymph in motion, it makes sense.

So my question is this. Do any of you tie PT nymphs on curved hooks, and have you had success with them?

Thanks as always,

Steve

 

[jayL]

Yes and yes. I tie them on curved and straight hooks. I especially prefer curved hooks for smaller sizes.

 

[BelAirSteve]

jayL wrote:
Yes and yes. I tie them on curved and straight hooks. I especially prefer curved hooks for smaller sizes.

Jay,

Wow...you are fast! Thanks. How far down the bend do you tie in the tail?

 

[bam]

BelAir,

Tie them 1/3 of the way around the bend like you would an emerger or caddis pattern. Check you-tube for examples.

 

[jayL]

About a 45 degree angle off a hook held "level" in the vise. Like bam said, check youtube.

Here's an approximation of where I do it. I tried to draw close to a 45 degree tangent line, and that's where I attach the tail.

 

[blueheron]

You can also tie them on straight hook and put a curve in it before you take it out of the vise. That's one less thing to buy, especially important when starting out. Hopefully you have a sturdy vise, carefully hold something underneath your fly with a small radius, I use scissors, about halfway on the shank and push down at the eye. A small curve is all that is needed and it will make a difference in the swimminess of it.