[Ben Dixon]

On the original topic ,i've received the Grey coloured Comparadun hair today, so BWO's here we come

Dude, do you like paying postage? 

[Sandy Nelson]

Dude, do you like paying postage? 

Cheaper than the petrol and much quicker than the last time

Sandy

[Ben Dixon]

Guys sit at a vice and “doodle”  with materials then give it some naff name like “The Cairngorm Killer”  or something equally daft.  

That doodling and thought processes that go along with it can be fun, Dave.  Tonight I've tied up something called the "Upper Deeside Execution, no footprint, dun". Away to doodle some more, very theraputic.

Cheers

Ben  

[Ben Dixon]

Cheaper than the petrol and much quicker than the last time

Sandy

If it's letterbox size it should be next day, if needing couriered  then quicker to get from Andover as something I send to you from Banchory goes via Birmingham  ??? Sorry for logging thread!

[Eddie Sinclair]

Aye, I've been hearing about your tying prowess so I know you will have well stocked boxes.

Iain

Someone is telling porkies, I only have a couple of hastily tied beasties to take with me as number one son has failed to return my fly boxes from his honeymoon, being an auld mannie I cannot tie as quickly as I once could.

Eddie

[Hamish Young]

Never feel the need to go smaller, in fact Hamish proved to me a long time ago that there were much better ways to get a trout to take, when they appear to be taking small stuff, It took a good bit of beating round the head but eventually he got me half canned and i gave in Funnily enough he was right and i've never really looked back and i tend to hook and land the buggers too.

As always there are a couple of exceptions

Sandy

  You'd better come up and try some of the waters up here bonnie lad  the DHE will serve you well... plus some old school stuff too 

H

[Sandy Nelson]

You'd better come up and try some of the waters up here bonnie lad 

Thats a definate Dude, just have to try and figure out when is good

Sandy

[Marc Fauvet]

in fact Hamish proved to me a long time ago that there were much better ways to get a trout to take, when they appear to be taking small stuff,

cough it up !!! (use code words if you feel the need to be secretive...  )

[Sandy Nelson]

Marc

I would but you can never get the grannoms back off them.

Sandy

[Eddie Sinclair]

Folks,
I tied a number of these on SLD's which hooks are you using that give the right shape xxx and profile and are light enough to allow best floating ability.

Eddie.

[Sandy Nelson]

Eddie

Im using B100's in 12-16 and the orvis hooks Ben mentioned in 18-20.
Although the 20 I photoed was on a different hook I think it was a 2487BL.

I like the B100 shape and the orvis hook is very similar, it lends itself to the pattern.

Sandy

[Eddie Sinclair]

Sandy,
Thanks. After fishing these a few times this year I am truly converted. I am going to fish a hares lug and pond olive version on the limestone waters up North next week.

Eddie

[dryfly]

Thanks for that Mike and for any confusion caused. 

[Bob Wyatt]

Hi Guys,

I've been reading through this thread and thought I might throw in a few remarks that might help sort out some of the tying and fishing issues for the DHE.

Floating:  these flies are meant to sink.  Or let's say fish in or under the surface, deeper than a Klinkhamer Special.  I think of them as floating nymphs, from the same kennel as old W H Lawrie's 'hatching nymph' series.  The wing is primarily a sighter.

Snowshoe Hare foot fur really does the job for me on smaller flies. It compresses so well and a wee tuft goes a long way. I never tie them as small as you guys are going, and rarely go below a 16.   

If it's genuine snowshoe hare foot fur, you should have no floating issues.  The stuff floats like a cork, and if treated with a dab of floatant will float for hours even after many trout. The natural undyed stuff is highly visible at great distances in low light.

Tying: I tie the DHE as shown in Hans Weilenmann's You Tube video, DHE 2.0. This makes for a nice slim abdomen. I no longer tie the wing in first and cover the  deer hair butts with the abdomen dubbing.  I tie the wing in after the abdomen and trim the butts at a steep angle (slightly more wedge shaped than in Hans' video).  I reckon this gives the wing strong support and keeps it upright.

I usually tie the wing in a semi-Comparadun fan shape.  But if you like the fly to ride a bit higher in the water, a Comparadun wing will help.  I like the fly body to be completely submerged, so a slim wing keeps the fly body running deeper. Just gink the wing.

I notice that a couple of you tyers aren't leaving much room for the thorax. There's no doubt they'll catch fish, but if the wing is set forward the fly will suspend like a shuttlecock pattern, if it floats at all.  Spiderman's ties are they way I like them.

A good summer hare pelt has less underfur, so you get plenty of glossy guard hair in the dubbing. The dark hare fur is from the New Zealand hare, just the European Brown hare, but of which there are millions.  I keep meaning to be at the head count at the annual Easter Bunny hunt at Alexandra on the South Island, but keep missing it. Lot of dubbing going to waste there each year.

Hope that helps. Tight lines.

Bob

[Sandy Nelson]

Welcome to the Forum Bob

Great to have an opinion straight from the source . I must admit having played with the small DHE's for a few weeks now , i've been finding fishing any smaller than a 16 is not ideal and a small klink or F-Fly works better. So i see where you are coming from. Still can't get happy with snowshoe though But the standard one tied with the Comparadun hair is doing the business so its not an issue. I've been using a wire rib too to help sink the body as i noticed if the body isn't hanging right in the water the fish ignore it until it does.

Cheers

Sandy

[Iain Cameron]

I notice that a couple of you tyers aren't leaving much room for the thorax. There's no doubt they'll catch fish, but if the wing is set forward the fly will suspend like a shuttlecock pattern, if it floats at all.  Spiderman's ties are they way I like them.

hi Bob

nice to see you on the forum - enjoyed both your books very much.

great to read your input on the DHE. I've a few with a very minimal thorax (probably 'cos I screwed up the positioning of the wing and didn't leave space) and will cheat by wrapping thread turns around the wing to stand it up - makes it more of a post than a shuttlecock. Not perfect, but does the  job.

I've also been tying them sort of the 2.0 way. 6-8 turns of thread, trim the tag end, dubbing down shank to bend, rib back up with tying thread, wing on top, trim the butts at 45' (ish!), dub in a bit of thorax and stop. 3-4 mins. Next!

cheers
iain

[Mike Barrio]

Welcome to the forum Bob

Best wishes
Mike

[Iain Goolager]

Hi Bob,

Ok, Ok I'll sort out my thoraxes. Thoraxi? 


Iain

[Allan Liddle]

Hi Bob
How you doin, hope all's well your end and the trout are respondin.
DHE is still my go to along with the Dirty Duster and I'm with you regarding size, rarely drop below s16.
These are much more versatile flies than simple dead drift semi submerged dries, and I'll often use them dead drift or ( in the case of DD) as a spider in difficult lies. Wet them, roll cast and if floating a quick pull and swing just sub surface, amazing how many trout will nail this.

DHE as a nymph, often use a two dry cast ( this has been done to death and many here will be throwing hands up in horror) with a standard DHE on bob and worn or clipped wing on tail ( ginked stumps so it swims just sub surface) works almost due style with takes showing on the bob fly, although to be honest you'll see them take the 'nymph' most times anyway.

Feel like I'm telling Granny how to suck eggs so I'll stop here, big thanks for a whole heap of fishin input Bob, left an impression with this simple angler I can tell you.

Cheers

Allan

PS Sandy I've never had much of a problem getting the fly to 'kick' right, especially if I use saliva on the body before applying gink to the wing and back of thorax. Sparse dubbed body and the amount of thread below should be enough weight and ensure minimal air present to stop it sitting right, in fact the only time I do get problems is when I've fecked up the gink and got it on the body as well.

[Bob Wyatt]

Sounds like you've got it sorted, Allan. 
The DHE should 'cock' upright with no weight needed.  The usual cause for the fly not riding right is a wing that's too long.  This will tend to make the fly go over on its side.  The other is as Allan says, getting floatant on the abdomen.

Years ago it became apparent that some people were having trouble getting the proportions right, primarily position and length of the deer hair wing.  Hans' DHE 2.0 tying sequence makes tying the fly a doddle.  It's a more conventional straight forward sequence with no tag as rib, or covering the butt ends of the wing.



Allan, I've also been surprised at how often fish will nail the DHE as it starts its swing at the end of a drift.  And not just small trout. I reckon it's that disturbance and wake, which is a pretty strong trigger. I've stopped thinking of it as a fluke and use it as a tactic, especially near dark on a couple of rivers where you have to cast really long and can't avoid drag anyway.

Sandy, I think you should give snowshoe hare foot fur another go.  Make sure it really is snowshoe hare, because rabbit and Brown hare feet don't have the same hair structure that the snowshoe does.  As you, like CDC it's the hair structure not the 'oil' or other property that makes it float. It beats the pants off CDC, IMO, and infinitely more durable. Keep the wing sparse because it doesn't take much to keep the fly at the surface and visible.  Great for those emergers under size 16.

Just FYI, This past season I conducted a little one-fly longitudinal study. Except for a couple of times nymphing the lake edges, I fished a 16 SHE (white wing, black/claret seals fur body) for three months straight, no matter what the fish were eating, including the willow grub. The tiny (size 18-24) willow grub is a real ball-breaker down here, but I caught as many WG feeders as I usually do, and as many or more than anyone I fished with this season.  Most people fish specific willow grub patterns from January to April, when the trout are supposedly locked in to these wee grubs. They drive anglers crazy.

Bob

[Sandy Nelson]

Well i re-visted your Book, Bob and applied the same attitude i did when trying to make progress with the DHE.(ie following the instructions )

So i kept it a bit more sparse and tied up a few in different sizes, today tried them out and i had a Snowshoe Hare Emerger on a size 16 doing the biz



The size 14's still sink but perhaps thats to be expected the Size 16 was a little belter and i fished only it with lots of success today during the BWO hatches.

A Happy addition to next years Flybox

Sandy