Fly Tying Inventory
Syl's Midge
Syl's Midge is a midge soft hackle from Sylvester Nemes, tied here in a purple variation with a dyed peacock body and a purple hen hackle. Fish it on the swing, on the rise, or cast to a pod of trout eating midges. Strikes can be subtle or hard. The purple and red versions also work on high mountain lakes during chironomid hatches when trout turn down surface patterns. Bleached and dyed peacock keeps its color better than peacock that is only dyed. Tied here on a size 16 hook.
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Materials
Hanak 200 BL Stillwater Hook, size 16
16
8/0 UNI-Thread Waxed Midge, purple (black for the standard version, red for the red version)
Purple · 8/0
Whiting Red Label Hen Cape, purple, for the soft hackle (Whiting Brahma Wing Soft Hackle Pair for the standard version, Whiting Red Label Hen Cape in white dyed fiery brown for the red version)
Purple
Nature's Spirit Dyed Peacock Sticks, bleached and dyed, purple (natural Peacock Eye Sticks for the standard version, red for the red version)
Purple
How to Tie the Syl's Midge
- 1
Step 1
Mount the hook in the vise and start the thread behind the eye.
- 2
Step 2
Tie in the hen hackle feather behind the eye and leave it pointing out over the eye, out of the way.
- 3
Step 3
Take the thread back along the shank to the rear of the body.
- 4
Step 4
Tie in several purple peacock herls at the rear of the body and trim the waste.
- 5
Step 5
Bring the thread forward to the hackle tie-in point.
- 6
Step 6
Twist the herl into a tight rope with a dubbing twister.
- 7
Step 7
Wrap the herl rope forward to form the body, stopping at the hackle.
- 8
Step 8
Tie off the rope with the thread and trim the excess.
- 9
Step 9
Brush the herl body with a small brush to tease out the fibers.
- 10
Step 10
Lift the hackle feather, clip hackle pliers to it, and wrap it at the front of the body.
- 11
Step 11
Tie off the hackle behind the eye and trim the excess.
- 12
Step 12
Whip finish behind the eye and trim the thread.
Watch Tying Tutorial
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sM5aAyRAqF4
Credit: Sylvester Nemes / Fly Fish Food