United Fly Tyers of Rhode Island, Inc.
Tarcher Nymph
Tied By: Burt Strom
Recipe for Tarcher Nymph
Hook: English bait style with a straight eye like a Mustad #37160, or Tiemco #205BL in sizes #10 to #20
Thread: Brown 6/0 to 8/0
Weight: Medium lead or lead-free wire
Tail: Brown partridge or bronze mallard fibers
Abdomen: Reddish brown dubbing
Ribbing: Copper or gold wire
Thorax: Reddish brown dubbing
Wingcase: Dark brown turkey tail
9 Brown partridge or furnace hackle wrapped around the thorax
Tying instructions
1. Start this fly by first placing the hook in the vice with the
point down (you will invert the hook shortly). Attach the
thread to the hook at the headspace, wind down the shank
and stop directly over rear of the straight section of the
hook point. Wind the lead wire about 6 to 10 turns at the
high point of the bend of the shank. Wrap over the lead wire
with your thread to anchor it in place and return the thread
to the end of the shank.
2. Tie in 4 to 8 fibers of tail material. The length of the tail
should be about 3/4 the length of the shank. Whip finish the
thread, remove the fly from the vice and reinsert it in the
jaws with the point up.
3. At the point where the tails were tied in, tie in the wire
ribbing on the lower back side of the hook shank. Apply
dubbing to the thread and wind forward about 1/2 the length
of the shank forming a neat, tapered abdomen. Wind the
wire ribbing 4 to 6 turns in the reverse direction of the body.
This will strengthen the body and add segmentation like the
actual insect.
4. Prepare a 1/8" to 1/4" wide by 1" long section of dark
brown turkey tail for the wingcase and tie it in flat and
pointing to the bend of the hook. You can coat the
wingcase with vinyl cement prior to tying it in to help keep
the fibers from separating. Stroke the barbs of the hackle
perpendicular to the stem and tie it in by the tip. Apply more
dubbing to the thread and wind the thorax making it a little
thicker than the abdomen
5. Wind the hackle forward 3 to 4 turns and tie it off. Trim
some of the hackle off the top side of the thorax and pull
the wingcase forward over the remaining hackle and thorax.
Tie off the wingcase at the headspace. Form a small head
with the thread and whip finish.
6. Apply some head cement and catch some trout with it!
