Small grey midge pattern wanted

[jkilroy]

Hello All,
Last night I was out and the trout were feeding on a very small gray midge pattern. On numerous occasions I have come across this scenario where I try with a small gray dry fly midge and nothing! Maybe my 18 was not small enough, most likely. What I think I need is something very small that sits in the surface film, probably an emerger.

Anyone have any easy patterns for this?

 

[ezpickins]

There are thousands of patterns to choose from - but of course you can't carry them all. So you have to pick a few. I've pretty much settled on a tiny thread-body midge-parachute pattern in various colors:gray, olive, cream and black.

I'll tie a trailing shuck of wood-duck or grizzly on most (you can always trim this off if the fish don't seem to like it). I'll tie them from 18-26.

The pattern is very simple - but it can take some patience in small sizes.


Body: Thread size 8/0, color to match natural (gray, black, olive, cream)
Wingpost: Gray, white or cream antron
Parachute Hackle: Grizzly is my favorite, but use what you have (brown, dun etc)
"Tail": sparse clump of wood-duck or mallard flank or grizzly hackle barbs to simulate trailing shuck. I make it about the length of the hook shank.

Also - fish won't often move very far when taking midges, so make sure your cast is in the "feeding-lane"

I'm sure there will be a bunch of other responses with many good patterns and advice.

Good luck!

 

[jayL]

Size 22-26 curved caddis style hook (you get a bigger gap on a smaller hook).

The body is a tuft of whatever color dubbing. Match it with a small clump of CDC comparadun style for the wing. Simple and effective.

 

[jkilroy]

The smallest I tied was a 22. I don't know if can tie a 24 or 26 with a parachute post. I really do like parachute dry flies. They are easier to tie than the traditional dries.

Do you use indicators or bright drys in front of them for strike indication?

 

[ezpickins]

I've tried using a larger dry as an "indicator" in the past, but lately I just watch the fish. It can be difficult to know where the size 26 fly is sometimes - but you get a feel for it. Just watch for the rise on top or the wink of the white mouth if you're subsurface and set the hook (carefully). Use a slip-set if you can remember to - usually I don't have the presence of mind to do this though.

I hate tying knots - so I usually just keep it simple and avoid the hassle of tandem rigs.

Plus there's the tangles and that extra hook dangling around when you land a fish.

As for indicators - I'm an anti-indicator guy. Not that they don't work sometimes, but they are not fail-safe, fish can take in and then spit out a fly without the indicator moving at all. More than that though I just want to keep it simple.

Oh - and by the way - I get snubbed by midging fish plenty often! I don't want to make the mistake of "expertizing" I just want to offer a few thoughts on things that have worked for me (sometimes).

Sometimes you just won't figure it out - but there's always next time.

Also jayL's pattern advise is great too (and very simple) don't leave home without some of those.

 

[jkilroy]

Is one CDC feather good?

 

[ryguyfi]

Yeah I bought some CDC this past year and had trouble tying with it. Just couldnt get it tied in and didn't look good. Any tips?

 

[jayL]

http://www.flyfisherman.com/ftb/hwcdc/

There are 4 types of cdc feathers. You need to be using the right types for different situations. With type 1 and 4, I like to strip and align the barbs, using a "stacking" method apparently pioneered by TCO. 2 and 3 make fine wings stock.

I also lightly wet my finger tips when working with it, then zap it with frogs fanny to see how the final product looks.

Depending on the feather type, one is usually fine for a midge. I would make some tiny loopwing emergers with it as well.

As is always the case with CDC, do not do not DO NOT use standard floatant on it. It traps bubbles and stays dry with its natural oils, and floatant will saturate it. It requires no floatant, and can be revived with frogs fanny or a shake bottle when soaked.

 

[jkilroy]

Do you stack them in a stacker like you would deer hair?

 

[jayL]

Nope. I'm not sure that would work. I just take the feather and hold the barbs in between my pointer finger and thumb. Strip them off, trying to keep the tips aligned. Turn the feather and repeat on side two. I have also experimented with holding the tips with scotch tape to keep them aligned.

It's a bear to stack the stuff, but the results are pleasant. It's certainly cheaper than buying the premium CDC.

 

[ezpickins]

I like using CDC that is marketed as "CDC puffs" for wings on small emergers. Which I think is the "Type 3" mentioned in the linked article Fly Fisherman article from the above post. I think that they are the easiest to work with for this application, because there's no prep- maybe pricier though. And as jayL discusses the others will work fine too.

For small flies another trick that I use is to tie in the CDC puff or "stacked barbs" in much longer than needed. Just take a couple of thread wraps to secure it - but not too tightly. Then you can pull the butt ends or the stem and shorten it to the desired length, it makes it easier than trying to tie in such a short wing. I just don't like trimming the cdc to shorten it, I like the natural tips - the fish probably don't care though.

 

[tomgamber]

I tie it in like I do mallard flank. I loosely wrap around the whole feather and then pull it thru until I have the right amount showing beyond the thread and clip the rest off. I buy whatever is cheaper and make due. $3 and $7 CDC, no contest.

 

[bam]

To keep it simple, try a greased "al's rat". If they're picky you can add a lighter thread rib or a couple turns of grizz hackle and clip the top and bottom so the fly lays flat in the film. That's about as creative as I'll get if I'm tying anything smaller than a size 20. I rarely fish very small flies, but when I do I limit my materials and try giving the trout something they can't refuse rather than getting creative w/ my flies to try and entice a strike.

Good luck

 

[jkilroy]

The midge pattern I bought from Bass Pro must have the premium puff. It looks fluffier than my tie. Guess I'll test mine to see if it floats.

 

[sandfly]

Yeah I bought some CDC this past year and had trouble tying with it. Just couldnt get it tied in and didn't look good. Any tips?

I use chick-a-bou instead, works better than cdc...more manageable.

 

[jayL]

Does it float like cdc?

 

[sandfly]

yes it does its coated with a permanent floatant

 

[jayL]

sandfly wrote:
yes it does its coated with a permanent floatant

Is that your doing?

Were they purchased that way?

Are they natural floaters like CDC?

 

[sandfly]

they need the xtra stuff as chicken butt is different than duck cdc. but tie the same and act the same.

 

[jayL]

Cool. Thanks.