How to tie the ULTIMATE midge pattern
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 29 ก.ย. 2024
- The France Midge is a pattern of mine that I came up with after the success I have had with the France Fly. The micro tubing used is perfect for making small, thin and realistic midges. The tubing comes in many colors so you can tailor the colors to match the midges that you encounter on the stream.
This has actually replaced the classic Zebra Midge for me. I know it sounds blasphemous, but it simply fishes better.
Tie some France Midges up...it's going to work for you!
Tight lines!
Cory
Recipe:
Hook: Dohiku 644 (size 20-18)
Bead: Inverted silver tungsten (2.0mm-2.5mm) (you can also use copper)
Thread: white Veevus GSP 30D
Body: Hareline Micro Tubing (Blood red, red, olive, black, brown-olive, or other colors in your stream)
Dubbing: Pine squirrel with Antron/Gray squirrel (SLF) for most colors. Black squirrel for a black midge. (Any thin dubbing. You can even try ice dub.)
#flytying #midge #trout #troutfishing #euronymphing #flytyingtutorial
Nicely tied, as all of your flies are. I use Semperfli's GSP for most of my flies. GSP is slippery as you pointed out. I touch Veniards Prepared Fly Tyers Wax to the thread and that prevents slippage. This doesn't add bulk to the fly.
Thanks so much, Schmoonkie. GSP is good stuff. Great tip on the wax, as well. Great thing about this sport is we can all learn from one another. Tight lines to you.
When you tie the black, do you also use silver wire?
Ron-I don’t use wire. Although I do tie black with a silver bead.
Using a Loctite super glue with a brush on the thread changed my fly tying! I always used Hansens or UV. glues and they always got unraveled.. No matter how many bulky wraps I make, the darn thing would unravel wile on the river. Then. I used small super glue dispensers, and they were single use, and hard to keep it off the hook eye. Now my flies are freakin awesome. Cory, thanks for sharing your knowledge!
Glad it is helpful! Appreciate you watching. Good luck and tight lines to you!
Just wanted to add that I did really well on this fly in black color on the Madison River this past Summer ( 2023 ). Super easy to tie and it's very effective. Thanks for sharing.
That' awesome to hear. It was good to me out there as well, in both black and olive brown. Appreciate you letting me know, Schmoonkie. Tight lines.
Great looking fly. I have been using holographic tinsel under the tubing for effect. I like the look of it but I haven't tried them yet.
Thanks! I’m sure yours will catch them. Good luck and tight lines!
Cory, it appears that size 20 Dohiku 644 hooks are either very hard to find or unavailable. Do you have a source or a substitute?
Alex, I use Tactical Fly Fisher, as they are pretty much the only ones that consistently have the size 20. If they are out of stock-they are pretty good at getting back to you with a timeline if you email them.
In the meantime....The Fulling Mill 5065 in a size 20 is not a bad substitute.
Just tied up a couple dozen. Love this pattern. Switched to that thread with all my France flys now great tip. I love how smooth the thread feels.
Glad to hear it, Jade. It’s been a great pattern for me. The France fly is a staple in my box as well and I do love how the GSP works with it. Thanks so much for watching.
Hi Cory, I see that you don’t add a tail to this France fly. Interesting that you don’t, as the majority of people do, is there a particular reason?
Jesse, at the beginning of the video I talk about how it came from the france fly. I used the same materials sans the tail and made a midge. To honor it, I called it the france midge. The fish will take it for a BWO as well. Appreciate you watching.
What about the approach of using black, red, olive and olive/brown thread and then using clear micro tubing? Any thoughts?
Jeff, that can work but it will add bulk to the smaller size flies (18s and 20s) because you can’t pull down on the thread too much. (It will break). You can see that the GSP allows you to really crank down and have minimal bulk. Hope this helps. Thanks for watching.
@@OldDominionTroutBum Thanks Cory. I appreciate you taking the time to reply and share your opinion and experience. Enjoy the day man.
@@justaman3333 Happy to help, Jeff. Tight lines to you.
Great looking pattern, thoughtful use of materials, as always. Thanks for putting it up. Given the inverting bead, do you fish this mainly as the anchor fly and as a larva (with a pupa pattern higher up)? Or does it do double duty as a pupa with the bead maybe giving the impression of the gas bubble? Cheers.
Thank you, David. If I am fishing shallow water, I may use it just as a single fly with the 2.5mm bead or with a dry-dropper. But on a 2 fly rig, I'll have it on my dropper. I tie them both with 2.5mm inverted and 2.0mm inverted beads (it just depends on how much weight I need). It's double duty, I do believe the silver bead gives it the gas bubble look.
Perfect, thanks Cory. Can't help observing that these inverting beads are such a game-changer for snag-free drifts along the bottom for your favorite hooks/patterns that otherwise ride point down. Like you, I also use multiple bead sizes/weights for one size of hook, for instance a range of 2.3 - 3.8mm beads on a #14 Walt's. Once you lock in your confidence patterns, it's really about the weight, I think. The fish don't seem to be bothered by the odd proportions, strangely.@@OldDominionTroutBum
Do you have any good Jig for Steealheads. Greetings, you are a real master
Appreciate it. I’m not a big Steelhead guy, but I would image trout jigs work the same for steelhead. My Honey Badger is a pretty darn good one. Any sculpin/leech type pattern, I’m sure would work as well. Hope this helps. Thanks for watching.
@@OldDominionTroutBum Yes, it is real. Thank you for answering.
The inverting bead -- is that to encourage the fly to ride upside-down, or to help with the narrow hook gap? I have trouble holding fish on scud hooks. I move to a scud hook, I start losing fish. I change back, I stop losing them. Even on the same pattern. I've done the experiment enough times to know it's not coincidence. Hence my question about the hook gap, with thought to how narrow the gap would be with a normal bead, given the upturned angle on the point. I do believe I'm going to sit down for an ODTB pattern session soon. Thank you for your enlightening work.
It's both, JP.
The hook I'm using is a Dohiku 644 and I love it. I caught a number of large fish on this hook in a size 20 in MT. Nice large gap and strong. Give this hook a try with the inverted beads...I think you will like it.
Hope those ODTB patterns are good to you! Appreciate you watching!
Hi Cory
Thank you for sharing your expertise !
Great video ! Keep them coming!
Appreciate you watching, Sead. I’ll keep ‘em coming!
Hey Cory! Nice pattern, I love the micro tubing but never thought of using white thread. Thanks for the video and the good info as always! Tightlines my friend!
Hey Dale! Appreciate it! Micro tubing is good stuff….has all those fish catching qualities. Great fishing just ahead. Tight lines, my friend!
Really cool fly! I like the red on this fly. I usually tie a trusty black zebra midge on a size 20 302 sp with a 2.3 bead. This has been a good switch up for certain situations!!
Glad you like it, Jesse! Thanks for watching and tight lines to you!
Cory, your vids are fantastic and much appreciated. Thank you.
Thanks so much, Rob! Glad they help. Appreciate you watching!
Great tip on the Veevus GSP 30 denier, going to definetly get a spool of that! Thanks! Very Nice way to tye the France Fly!
Thanks so much for watching, Tony. GSP is some good stuff. Tight lines to you!
Thanks for the video, Cory. I have been tying small france flies in 18 and 20 in black and olive. But now I’m going to add red to the box as well. These are very effective flies. Thanks for the tying video!
Appreciate it, Brian. If you have any blood midges-the trout are going to like the red. And you are right, super effective flies. Thanks for watching!
Nice instruction. With the inverted tungsten bead, do you have any preference on the type of knot used while fishing? Assume one fly rig. Thanks
Thanks, Enzo. I use a single Davy knot for attaching all my flies to tippet. Hope this helps. Appreciate you watching.
Howdy Cory. Nice variation going to twist some up peace✌️
It’s a good one, Fudd. Good luck with them and thanks for watching!
Thanks for the video. I assume these are very effective on the Little J and Spring creek. Any color you tend to reach for more often?
Gene, they will absolutely work on the Little J and Spring. I have done well on this bug in both places. I find the most success in Brown-olive with a gray hares ear or squirrel collar and Black with black squirrel collar. Both with a silver bead. Thanks for watching.
Great pattern and very simple. Will be trying these on some tailwaters. Thanks for sharing!
The trout are going to love it, James. Good luck with it and thanks for watching!
I will be adding another of your flies to my box. Thank You Cory
It will catch you some trout, James. Good luck to you!
Cory, what a great teaching video for a midge pattern. I am going to need to start fishing midges ever since you gave me the tips on that tailwater in VA.
Thank you, Mike. It’s a great one on that tailwater. The trout there are going to like it! Appreciate you watching.
Great Fly 🪰, awesome tips as usual 👍 Thank you for sharing your talents!!
Appreciate it and thank you for watching! Good luck to you.
I really enjoyed this tie!! I like and use the 644 too. Thanks a bunch!!
Thanks, Chadd. Love the 644. I’m sure your WV trout are going to like this bug. Tight lines!
Excellent tie Cory! I’ll definitely be tying some of those up. 👍
Thanks, Bill. It worked well on the J this past Oct. Good luck with it!
What if you tied on a no-bead midge as a dropper, and let the point fly take it down?
Larry, you can absolutely tie it and fish it that way. It will work for sure.
Very nice. Must give it a go 👍👍👍
Thanks so much. Give it a go-it will work for you!
The Devin Olsen version of the France Fly has been my number two fly and was the fly that I caught a 21+ inch (measured) brown on the Yellowstone River. I tied up a few of your France Midge pattern flies and have caught fish on three different rivers! Thanks for the new pattern, I plan on carrying a dozen of these at any given time!
Love hearing it! Glad it’s been working for you. It has been a heck of a bug for me. Here is to continued success to you….Tight lines!
@@OldDominionTroutBum Do you also tie this fly with a copper bead?
What size of tippet do you use on your size 20
Shane, I use 6x and 7x. Thanks for watching.
Another great video. Thanks
Appreciate it, Bob! Thanks for watching.
How do you approach tailwaters with euro nymphing? Do you use this pattern when they have the water on or off? Idk how you can euro nymph when the water is off because their is barley any current when only 1 turbine is running.
(I fish Lake Taneycomo below table rock dam)
What would be your go to tail water flies and how do you fish a tail water when the water gets up to 8 -10 feet? Do you just add split shot?
I know I asked alot of questions but all I fly fish is tailwaters. So your response would be greatly appreciated. 👍
Ruben, The tailwaters I fish are much more shallow than what yours sounds like. When they are generating, you'll get different flows-it's not all or nothing. There are times that I will not fish if it is generating too much because its too difficult to wade.
You always have to adjust your approach to the stream depending on the flows. Sometimes that calls for more weight to get your bugs down. So, in your case, you definitely need more weight in deep water like that. The problem is-you will be limited to fishing only under the rod. Deep water like that is good for throwing streamers or even putting an indicator on so you can cover more water.
If your flows are cut off, a dry dropper sounds like it could work.
I use a lot of the same flies everywhere I fish, it all depends on the bug activity. Clear water-I like less flash and smaller bugs. Higher water-I like bigger sizes that stand out more.
Hope this helps.
@@OldDominionTroutBum Thank you so much. Everyone here talks about scuds and midges. The thing is idk when midges are hatching and finding the right color or size for them. The local fly shops say to not go lower than a size 18 midge or scud.
But when the water is low I usually use a indicator because the water is moving so slow. But I was thinking a dry dropper rig. But, every time I use a dry dropper I feel like the dry fly always sinks in the water. 🤷♂️ even though I'm using a light dropper fly.
But, what you just said is true. When the water is up high. I'm euro nymphing right under my rod tip and adding split shot to get to the bottom. I do catch fish but it's really hard to distinguish between a bite or the bottom, so almost every other drift I'm setting hooks.
I also do not use a micro euro leader anymore because the fish here are to big and I've lost to many fish with a micro leader. So I went to a 11lb Cortland sighter, than straight 6lb seagur invisx. I still have sensitivity but the main thing is I'm not loosing flies like if I were to use a micro leader. Is this fine?
Thank you for spending your time and answering some questions I need help answering.
ty for sharing Cory,, nice vise
Appreciate you watching, Jon.
Been using that micro tubing for years on midges, real killer patterns. Try the Red and Black Orvis midge ! Another neat way is slide the tubing over the eye with the hook shank inside it and rib the tubing with small wire .
They sound like a winners, Ted! Thanks for it. Appreciate you watching!
@@OldDominionTroutBum try the midge tubing slipped over the eye , makes a great looking segmented body with the wire.
Looks good, Cory.
Thank you.
Thanks so much, Truth Seeker. Appreciate you watching.
excellent tie and thank you.
Thank you, Dennis. Good luck with it!
Great tie and Great tips!!
Thank you, Bob!
Thanks for sharing.
Appreciate you watching, James.
Good stuff as always!
Appreciate it, JB! Tie some up!!
Why not tie this fly on a jig hook with a slotted bead instead of using an inverted bead?
BP, you can absolutely tie it that way. I just prefer the 644 style for this pattern. The inverted bead gives more room on the hook, especially on small sizes. Hope this helps. Thanks for watching.
@@OldDominionTroutBum Thanks. I thought about the gap after I made the post.
@@OldDominionTroutBum Thanks for the great ideas, Cory. Could you tell me what you speculate the fish see the bead as? Midge larvae don't have heads nearly that big, but, then again, they don't have hooks coming out of their butts either.
Good to see you with a great video
Thank you, Kim. Appreciate you watching!