On The Fly

"Fly tying is a school from which we never graduate"

TYING NEWS
The October meeting of the Southern Oregon Fly Tiers was held Thursday, October 28th at the Rogue River Library.There were ten members present along with our special guest, Rusty Randall, from Merlin. He demonstrated his favorite steelhead fly and his special brand of humor and teaching. Ron Metzger and Dick Bonamarte also shared new patterns and techniques. I demonstrated next month's exchange fly, the Doc Spratley. Members discussed our upcoming display in February at the RR Library. Possible contributions for exhibits will come from several members. Our next meeting will be on Thursday, December 2nd to accommodate the holidays. All tiers of any skill level from both clubs are invited to join us once a month for an evening of sharing the art.

Johnny Hale, Dick Bonamarte, and myself attended the Northern California Council FFF Conclave on October 15th & 16th in Redding, CA. It was a great weekend touring the vendor booths and watching a whole new group of tiers demonstrate their art. We also saw some familiar faces from Southern Oregon. Dave Roberts was one of the invited tiers and Bob Quigley and Mike Ireland had a booth showing their newest skills and patterns. Hopefully this will become an annual event -- it's definitely worth the trip south.

PATTERN OF THE MONTH - Freight Train Krystal Flash
Hook. Size 8 - 2 steelhead/salmon.
Thread. Black 6/0.
Tail. Purple hackle barbs.
Body, Rear ¼. Fluorescent red/orange floss.
Body, Second ¼. Fluorescent red floss.
Body, Front ½. Black chenille.
Rib. Fine oval silver tinsel.
Collar. Purple hackle.
Wing. Blue krystal flash over which is pearl krystal flash.

Tying Instructions:
1. Tie on in front and wrap thread base to just before the hook point.
2. Tie in a small bunch of purple hackle barbs ½ the body length, then tie in the tinsel.
3. Tie in the red/orange floss ¼ body length; the red floss ¼ body length; the remainder in black chenille.
4. Wind the tinsel forward 5 even turns and tie off.
5. Tie in the soft purple hackle 3 - 4 turns for a collar and wind back on barbs to achieve the proper angle.
6. Tie in a small bunch of blue krystal flash, then, on top of that, a small bunch of pearl krystal flash for the wing.
7. Form a small head, whip finish and cement.

The Freight Train was originated by Randall Kaufman in the late 70's and evolved in the early 80's when Randall was operating a fly fishing school on the Deschutes River in Central Oregon. The original sported a white calf tail wing. Later versions used flashabou and finally a krystal flash wing. Then Randall designed the Coal Car, a darker version of the Freight Train, a mostly black fly and most effective on dark overcast days or at dusk. This combination doesn't seem to spook fish but has enough color to grab their attention. In 1989 Randall Kaufman introduced his version of the Green Butt Skunk, the Flat Car. It too is most effective at dusk, shows a bulky silhouette and its fluorescent green stays effective in fading or low-light conditions. The last pattern in his "Railroad" series was the Signal Light, named for the colorful signal lights along the Deschutes River railroad tracks. This purple and black pattern again offers good visibility under low-light conditions and off-color water.

On all four of these patterns you can vary the size and dress according to conditions. Randall has suggested that flies be underdressed for summer steelhead, the rear section of the two-part body can be tied in as a tag with an under-wrap of tinsel for that glow when wet. I've also seen the series tied as great looking spey flies. Give them a try on the Rogue for steelhead this winter and let me know how they work.

Tying Tips - Wild Marabou
I just finished some marabou steelhead flies to restock my flybox. We all know that dampening these fluffy devils makes handling much easier. But keeping a bowl of water on the bench for dipping the fingers is an accident waiting to happen and licking your fingers repeatedly can be very unhealthy. I keep a small spray bottle of water on the bench (an emptied bottle of eyeglass lens cleaner works perfect for this task). It sprays a fine mist, it's refillable, and it's small and travels well in a portable kit. Give it a try.