The FrankenBug



The FrankenBug, green

With Halloween right around the corner I thought this post might be appropriate.  I'm always scribbling down ideas for new variants of sakasa kebari.  Sometimes I start tying the image of the fly as I can picture it in my head but wind up giving up part way through due to the difficulties in tying the fly or the plain ugliness of it.  Sometimes, however, I think I hit upon a good idea.  Many of my best flies are actually combinations of the best features of other flies.  I think this fly fits that idea. I have tied two different versions (green and orange) and I call them "FrankenBugs."  Mary Shelley's classic monster was made of parts from other humans.  This fly is actually composed of three separate flies tied together.  The first part is clearly sakasa kebari with it's reverse hackled partridge feather.  The central part of the body is essentially a killer bug as the TenkaraBum Chris Stewart ties it.  The third and last part consists of green or orange antron fibers surrounding the killer bug body.  This is much like Gary LaFontaine would tie a Sparkle Pupa.

The FrankenBug, orange

What will trout think of it?  Who knows but with the trigger points such as the life-like hackle, the meaty protein rich-looking center body and the antron fibers creating air bubbles I might just catch a few fish with it.  With the season slowing down in many places, I may have to wait till next year to give this fly a full workout but when I do I hope to have good results to report .  For anyone interested I have posted the recipe for this fly below.

The FrankenBug

Hook: Mustad R50-98480 dry fly, size #14

Thread: Pearsall's gossamer silk thread, brown

Hackle: Hungarian partridge

Body: underbody of fine copper wire and Shetland's Spindrift wool (sand color)

colored with a prismicolor marker (sand color) This part is tied like a killer bug.

The overbody is a loose grouping of orange or green antron fibers tied in at the rear of the hook

and folded over to be tied in at the front of the hook.