Fly Patterns - Bloody Black Disco Leech


                        Bloody Black Disco Leech

Materials:


Hook:

Any streamer hook. I prefer the Daiichi 1260, but a Tiemco 200R will work. Sizes: 6, 8, 10

Thread:

Black 6/0

Tail:

None needed—the yarn wrapped on for the body forms its own tail

Body:

Disco yarn—black strip and maroon strip twisted together (try different colors if you wish)

Head:

Cone head bead—this is optional, but I personally like it. Tie a few without the cone also.

Weight:

Lead wire or substitute—size to match hook size. Use 4 or 5 wraps behind cone to secure it in place.

 

Description


Ron English recently went to a fly tying conclave in Idaho. While there he observed a tyer using an unique yarn called “Disco Yarn” to tie various flies. Ron thought it would make a nice leech, so he tied some in black and maroon. The bass loved the results. Ron showed me the fly one afternoon at Greenstone, and told me that the yarn is available at Wal-Mart. Just what I need— more tying material!! So, off I went to Wal-Mart on a search-and-buy mission. I found it after receiving no help from a befuddled-looking clerk, and bought skeins of black and maroon (about $4.00 apiece). There are many other colors to choose from. My great-great grandkids will be tying with it—that’s how much there is in a skein.

 

I threw it into my tying bag for my Fall River trip, just for giggles. While there I had good luck on large fish using a fly called “Bloody Black Leech”, tied with STS Trilobal Dubbing in the bloody-black color. After losing the last of the leeches, I discovered I didn’t bring the STS dubbing. The Disco Yarn caught my eye and the wheels began to turn. What I ended up doing was twisting a black and a maroon piece together to intermix the colors. The result looked good — and it actually performed on trout and fished deeply for me and several others in our group. So, let’s tie this extremely simple fly since there are still a lot of spring bass to be caught.

 

Tying Instructions


1. Smash the hook barb. Place the cone onto the hook, place the hook in the vise, and wrap 4 or 5 turns of lead or substitute on the shank. Push it up directly behind the cone; this will hold the cone in place.

 

2. Secure the lead in place with thread wraps and then wrap back to the end of the shank, just above the back of the now-smashed barb.

 

 

 

 

3. At that same point, tie in strips of black and maroon Disco Yarn. Twist them together by weaving one around the other until you have a woven strip about 5” long. Using a dubbing comb or brush, gently brush the yarn downward to pull free any of the yarn that was caught in the twisting process. Move the thread forward to behind the cone.

 

 

4. Grab the ends of the yarn with a hackle plier and wrap forward to the cone, being careful not to place too many winds on the hook. It is best to tie leeches sparsely so they present a sleek profile. Leeches don’t look fat while they are swimming.

 

5. Tie the yarn off behind the cone and whip finish. Simple, eh?

 

 

Useful Tips for Fishing Leeches


 

 

1. In lakes it’s best to use an intermediate line to keep the leech high in the water column.

2. Your strips should be short and slow. If you have watched leeches swim, they generally don’t move fast; movement is achieved by contractions of the body, which then stretches out.

 

 

Tying Tips


1. When tying with any soft material with long “barbules,” such as soft bugger-type hackle or yarns such as Disco Yarn, sweep the material backward as you move toward the front of the fly.

2. Keep things as sparse as the pattern and/or its intended use will permit. I am a firm believer in “less is more” in this regard.

3. When putting beads or cones on hooks, place the hook in the vise so that the jaws grab the shank and the bend is down. This puts the point in a vertical position. Then, using a good pair of tying tweezers, pick up a bead or cone and slip it onto the hook, all the while holding your other hand under the hook to catch the bead or cone if you drop it.

 

You are going to like how Disco Yarn flies move in the water. When the fly is stripped, the material lays flat against the shank; when it pauses, the material splays out enticingly. With the cone and weight, it also dips and rises with the retrieve.

 

 

                              

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