Thursday, August 27, 2026

Paul's September 2026 Fly of the Month

 Foam Pheasant Tail Emerger

Hook:  F-120 Klink or TMC 2487 Curved Emerger Hook Size #12 & #14. 

Thread:  Fluorescent Orange 8/0.

Tail:  4-5 strands Pheasant Tail Fibers.

Hot Spot: 

Rib:  Small Copper Wire.

Body:  4-5 Tips of Pheasant Tail Fibers.

Wing Case/Foam:  Brown or Yellow 3 mm Cylindrical Foam.

Thorax:  Strand of Peacock Hurl. 

Legs:  3-4 Strands of Pheasant Tail Fibers on each side.

Like everyone, I love fishing Pheasant Tail flies.  This pattern is a little different in that it’s floated high up in the surface film.  It’s a super fly and one of my go too’s!  It floats well and has a nice bright hot spot to entice trout to bite.  

To tie this fly, start your thread behind the eye of the hook.  After making securing wraps cut off your tag end. Wrap down the hook shank and create a bulbus bump for your fly ‘hot spot’.  Please note that some tyers like to tie in their tail of Pheasant Fibers first and then create the ‘hot spot’ after it.  I like to do it before affixing the tail fibers.  When I’m tying multiple flies, I can prepare the hooks with a UV Resin Cured ‘hot spot’ a head of time.  Back to tying the fly– Once you create a small bulbus ‘hot spot’, apply a small drop of UV Resin and cure it.  Next tie in your tail of 4-5 Pheasant Fibers.  The tail should be approximately a ‘hook gap’ in length. 

After cutting off the excess butt ends of your tail, tie in your Small Copper Wire for your ribbing.  Next tie in 4-5 additional Pheasant Tail Fibers by their tips.  With the fibers, wrap and create the body of your fly 2/3rds up the hook shank.  Tie the fibers off and cut off the butt ends.  Now counter rib your fly with your Copper Wire with evenly spaced wraps up the body.  Tie it off and helicopter off the excess wire.  

Next, tie in your Foam Cylinder.  I usually notch the front end before I tie it in.  Also, as an alternative, you can just cut and create a foam wing case by simply cutting a 3mm sized strip of closed cell foam.  Tie the Wing Case in and sweep it back rearward.  Tie in a strand of Peacock Hurl at your Wing Case tie in point.  Palmer it forward to create your Thorax.  Tie it off behind the eye.  Cut off the tag end.  On each side of the nymph, tie in 3 strands of Pheasant Tail Fibers for your legs.  The legs should extend about a ‘hook’ gap length on each side of the nymph.  Cut off the excess fibers.  Finally, bring your Foam Wing Case forward and tie it off in front of the eye.  Once secured lift the Foam Wing Case and take securing wraps in front of it.  Whip finish the fly.  Clip the foam to approximately the length of the Wing Case.  Your fly is complete and ready to fish.

Shota Jokhadze has a great video on how to tie this fly below:


If you have any questions about this fly or would like to submit a Fly of The Month I can be reached at pdinice@frontier.com .