Discuss this article at FlyTyingForum.com

All Night Hex
by Brent Drew

Materials You Will Need
Hook: Mustad 9672 Size 6
Tailing: Peccary Hair
Abdomen and Tailing: Deer Hair
Thorax: Dubbing, Estaz, Diamond Braid, Peacock, Ostrich, etc.
Wing: Deer Hair in a 28-gauge Brass wire dubbing loop

Step 1: Start by laying thread from just behing the eye of the hook all the way to the back. Form a small ball of thread to split the Peccary tailing or just use dubbing like I did in the picture.

Step 2: Wind the thread back toward the hook eye, stopping a little past half the hook shank. This is where we will be tying in the deer hair for the abdomen. Select a bunch of deer hair and remove the under-fur. The amount needed will vary with fly size and the thickness of the hair being used.

Stack the hair using a hair stacker. Once the hair is stacked, place the hair on the hook shank to see where to cut off any extra deer hair extending beyond the tie-in point (just past half the hook shank), then cut off the extra hair. Before tying in the hair, put a few drops of super glue on the cut end. We are tying in to keep things from spinning and slipping. When tying in the hair hold it at a angle away from you, and not even across the back of the hook. This will keep it from spinning around the hook shank as we start to attach the cut end to the hook.
I use soft turns of thread at first, and wrap harder as I work the thread back, making the sections in the abdomen. This will taper the abdomen.



Step 3: Cut a small piece of 28-gauge brass wire (sold in most craft stores) and tie the cut ends in on top of the hook shank towards the hook eye, then back toward the abdomen. Copper wire will not work here as it's too soft and will break when spinning the hair.



Step 4: Here we start dubbing the thorax and whip-finishing the head. Any material you choose can be used here (Herl, Estaz, etc.)

Step 5: Stack another bunch of deer hair and remove the under-fur. Again, we place the hair on the hook to see what extra will be cut off. Even the tips of the hairs where the tail starts and cut off the butt ends just past the wire loop.  Place the hair into the lower 1/4 - 3/8" of the loop and twist the wire until the hair starts to move. Now we can let go of the hair and twist the wire until the hair is nicely spun around, making a nice wing. No need to over-twist the wire once the wing looks even. Over-twisting will surely break the wire. I use a legg knot tying tool for twisting the wire. Depending on the hair thickness and amount of hair used some flies will need to be coated with a floatant.

The underside of the finished fly



I'm not the creator of this pattern but wish I was - LoL! Enjoy tying it as much as I do!

A few unique variations

Recent Articles