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The Stain Remover – Tying Instructions

the stain remover - steelhead fly tying instructions
Stain free. Photos: Daniel Cope.

A while back our pal, Daniel Cope, gave us a great fly tying step by step on his go-to pattern for coastal steelhead; the Steelhead Phantam. For those who don’t know Daniel, he’s one heck of a fly tyer. He’s also a frequenter of our humble little blog, so naturally we were honored when he agreed to put together some step by step tying posts for us.

Today, Dan is back with tying instructions on another great pattern that’s not only easy and inexpensive to tie, but also draws off some of the most effective patterns for salmon and steelhead in the game. It’s called the ‘Stain Remover’ and we think you’d best spin up a few of your own.

See how below!

The Stain Remover – Tying Instructions

Charles St. Pierre’s Hoh Bo Spey is one of my all-time favorite flies.  The medium profile, simple construction, and combination of highly mobile materials is appealing not only to fly tyers and anglers of all skill levels, but pretty much every fish that’ll chase a swung fly in Alaska as well.

In an attempt to incorporate even more mobile materials and simplify construction further, I developed a pattern that not only works well as on its own, but lends itself to the versatility of stacking with the all hailed Hoh Bo Spey for a larger intruder style profile.  Building upon materials and methods presented on the Deneki blog by Stuart Foxall, old intruder standards like grizzly saddle hackle wings, and more contemporary materials like Hareline’s predator wrap for even more movement (it’s not just for composite loops!), the Stain Remover covers all the bases.

Materials

  • Tube:  1.5″ Small Clear HMH Tubing (can be tied on shanks as well).
  • Thread:  6/0 Uni-Thread, fluorescent orange.
  • Tag:  UTC Opal Mirage Tinsel, large.
  • Dubbing Ball:  Hareline 5/8″ Frizzle Chenille, fluorescent pink.
  • Flash:  Hareline Predator Wrap, speckled gold.
  • Shoulder:  Hareline Intruder Prop Hackle, shrimp pink.
  • Feelers:  Lady Amherst tail fibers, natural.
  • Wing:  Saddle hackles, grizzly orange.
  • Hackle:  Spey marabou, fluorescent pink.
the stain remover - steelhead fly tying instructions
Step 1: Prep your tube of choice by applying a thread base over approximately half of tube, leaving space at rear for junction tubing.
the stain remover - steelhead fly tying instructions
Step 2: Tie in tinsel and form 1/4″ to 3/8″ tag by wrapping forward, overlapping each turn.
the stain remover - steelhead fly tying instructions
Step 3: Tie in at least a 6″ length of frizzle chenille. The long tag end is necessary to control the material while wrapping.
the stain remover - steelhead fly tying instructions
Step 4: Remove twist from chenille by rotating in your fingers until fibers are aligned. Advance forward in 4 to 5 VERY tight touching turns. Stroke fibers back while wrapping. Tie off and brush chenille forward with a tooth brush to align fibers radially from tube.
the stain remover - steelhead fly tying instructions
Step 5: Cut a 3/8″ section of predator wrap from the hank and leave the braid attached. Tie in facing forward, distributing fibers around the tube. When satisfied, cut off the braid, fold fibers back against chenille shoulder and secure with only a couple thread wraps (too much thread build up against the dubbing ball will eliminate its effectiveness as a prop).
the stain remover - steelhead fly tying instructionsthe stain remover - steelhead fly tying instructions
Step 6: Remove fluff from bottom of an intruder prop feather (or extra large guinea feather if prop hackle isn’t available) and tie in tight to frizzle chenille. Wrap in two tight touching turns max! See explanation in previous step regarding pitfalls of too much material against the chenille ball.
the stain remover - steelhead fly tying instructions
Step 7: Select 6 to 8 fibers of natural amherst. Try to use fibers 1.5x longer than prop hackle (helps with taper). Hold on the tips of the feathers tightly and gently run thumb nail toward base of clump to separate fibers. Don’t press too hard or you’ll curl the fibers. Spin fibers between thumb and forefinger to randomize the fibers, if you don’t, you’ll end up with the fibers oriented like a propeller when they’re tied in.
the stain remover - steelhead fly tying instructions
Step 8: Tie in half of the amherst fibers on the top half of tube with a couple light (temporary) wraps. Repeat on the bottom. Once fibers are positioned to your liking, gently pinch all of the fibers to the tube with your free hand, back off all of the temporary wraps until all of the fibers are free, and then secure tight to the shoulder with a few tight thread wraps. Trim butt ends.
the stain remover - steelhead fly tying instructions
Step 9: Select a matched pair of saddle hackles. Length should be longer than the amherst but shorter than the predator wrap. Remove the fibers from approximately 1/2″ of stem at the tie in point on each feather. I like to cut all but and inch or so of the end of the feathers off leaving a tab of fibers to hold on to while manipulating the feathers into position.
the stain remover - steelhead fly tying instructions
Step 10: Lay the saddle hackles in on the top of the tube with stems crossing and secure with a couple loose thread wraps. Allow the weight of the bobbin to hold the feathers in place while being worked into position by holding the tip of the feather and the tab created in the previous step. Once you’re happy, apply a few more thread wraps, gradually increasing tension as you go. I prefer to tent the feathers rather than tie them in on opposite sides. The combination of tenting and crossing the stems seems to reduce the likelihood of the feathers spinning when tight thread wraps are eventually applied.
the stain remover - steelhead fly tying instructions
Step 11: Select a marabou feather with long fibers and thin stem. Prep the feather by removing the fluff from the base of the feather.
the stain remover - steelhead fly tying instructions
Step 12: Tie in marabou feather by the tip. I prefer to fold the tip back and secure with a few more wraps for added security. Wrap on 2 to 3 turns (MAX!) of the marabou in tight touching turns and then tie off with a few tight thread wraps.
the stain remover - steelhead fly tying instructions
Step 13: Form a neat head and apply head cement. Trim the tube and melt the tip with the hot (blue) part of the flame from a lighter.
the stain remover - steelhead fly tying instructions
Step 14: Taper the tips of the predator wrap with pair of scissors.

A few notes about weight and stacking.  I usually start with a longer tube than necessary in case I decide to add a cone or bead to the fly.  If I choose to leave the fly unweighted, I often leave a longer than necessary section of tube at the head in order to join two files together with a length of junction tubing in case I decide that I need a larger profile.

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