Snake Fly

This is my first attempt to tie this fly, well actually second. I did a test one first to make sure I had it figured out. Several of you asked to see this fly in a step by step format so here it is! It is rather easy to tie, as you will see. The only thing that requires any tying skill is the spun deer hair head. Lou Tabory must have put a lot of thought into this guy for the end result has striped bass written all over it! A little research says that the most popular colors of this fly are black, white, chartreuse and olive. This fly can be fished either with an intermediate or fast sink line. On an intermediate it will slither in the top couple inches of the water column. Fished on a fast sink line it will hold off the bottom. I’m looking forward to trying Lou’s Snake Fly this season. I’m sure it will become one of my go to flies. See you out there….Jeff

Materials:

Hook: Mustad 34007 size 2/0 (Note) it appears this fly could be tied on a variety of hooks styles and brands.
Thread: Flat Waxed Nylon
Tail: A dozen strands of Ostrich Herl A dozen stands of flash of your choice. I used purple/black Holographic fiber. (extra limp)
Body: Two black marabou plumes
Head: Spun black deer hair

Step 1

Secure hook in vise and start the thread and the back of the hook. Tie in a dozen black ostrich herls. Top off with a dozen strands of extra limp holographic fibers. Tie them in with the folding technique.

Step 2

Select two black marabou plumes. You want the natural end of the plumes to reach about midway down the tail. Position one plume curved side down. Make two loose wraps on top of where you tied in the tail and cinch down. Make a half dozen more tight wraps and cut off excess stem that is protruding towards eye of hook. Do the same thing with the second plume moving just a short distance forward. You want to leave the front half of the hook bare for spinning the deer hair head. Add a drop of Zap a Gap once this second plume is tied in.

Step 3

Cut a pinch of black deer hair at the base of the hide. You want a clump that is about the diameter of a common pencil. Once cut hold the butt ends in your thumb and index finger. Take the index of your other hand and briskly fan the deer hair back and forth. Don’t be afraid to fan it hard!!! This will work out the under fur towards the tips. After about a dozen fanning strokes you should see some light dubbing forming. Pull this out and discard. This under fur prohibits the deer hair to spin effectively. You are now ready to tie this clump of hair in.

The fly has a collar and the natural tips of the deer hair flowing back over the marabou form this. Position the clump of hair directly over where you tied in the last plume. You want the butt ends towards the eye. Make two loose wraps around the hair so that there is about ¼ to 3/8" of hair protruding in front of the wraps. Slowly pull down and tight until these butt ends stand up. Use your thumb and press down on these wraps to slightly roll the hair off the top to slightly cover the sides. Make two more tight wraps then turn the fly over and repeat above procedure on bottom of hook. Make two more wraps through the deer hair so that the thread is now positioned in front of the hair on the bare shank.

Step 4

Take another pinch of hair the same size as you used before. Fan the clump exactly as you did in the previous step. Cut the natural tips off and position the hair in front of the hook shank as shown in the photo. Make two loose wraps to hold the hair and while you are still holding the hair pull the thread tighter until the hair flares and spins around the hook shank. Keep pulling until the hair stops spinning. You need to know the breaking strength of the thread you are using. This is why I like flat-waxed nylon for spinning hair. It is very strong and lies flat and will not cut through the hair like a finer diameter thread will. The hair should now be spun clear around the hook. Make a few more tight wraps through the deer hair as you did in the step above so that the thread is at the front of the clump on the bare shank.

Step 5

In order to get tightly packed dense spun deer hair heads you need to "pack" the hair. Take your thumb and index finger and tightly grasp the shank as shown. Shove the hair towards the back of the hook. You should feel it slip a tad and meet the clump behind it.

Step 6

Repeat steps 4 and 5 with as many clumps as it takes to reach the eye of the hook. The last clump may be smaller as needed. Remember to pack hair after each clump is tied in.

An easy way to tie off the thread is to coat the first inch of thread with a fine coating of zap a gap. Make half a dozen turns of this coated thread at the eye and then snip off.

Step 7

You are now ready to trim the head to shape. There are several ways to do it. The best way I have found it to use a curved pair or serrated edge scissors like the Thompson or Tiemco’s. You can also trim with the help of a two edged razor. Start at the nose and make the initial cuts to start the shape. Work your way around and back but be careful not to cut the natural tip hairs that are flowing over the wing. Take your time and make a nice smooth head. It is easier to take the fly out of the vise to trim.

Step 8

When your finished your ready to tie that bugger on your leader and head to the beach and catch a bigun!!!…;-))….Jeff

[HOME] [Fly Archive] [Flytying Tips] [Past Features] [Photo Gallery]
[Friends of FFSW] [Bulletin Board] [CHAT] [Links] [Weather & Tides]
[Contact Us]