| Pat's perverse preferences for producing parachutes 1. I use Tiemco 101 straight eye hooks. Compared to the standard old Mustad 94840 dry fly hooks they're lighter and slightly longer (but more expensive). I've tried other hooks and they all work, so don't go out and buy them thar Tiemco's on my say-so. 2. For my clumsy hands a size 8/0 thread is practical. Some manufacturers actually specify the colors by the colors of the fly. If you like collecting threads like I do, then go buy them. 3. I think the tail fibers should be fanned out some. That way they'll give extra support on the water. The stonefly tails should be split in a V. 4. Quills don't work very well on parachutes so stick to dubbing for the body material. My preference in the type of dubbing is a hares-ear/antron blend, or an extra fine/superfine material. Anyway, don't look now but I take my scissors and trim any stray fibers. 5. For me the hackle size on a para is not as important as it is on a standard dry fly. Mine are usually slightly oversize (1 1/2 to 2 times the hook gap). Quality is important. Quality hackles wrap better, provide better support on the water, and last longer. 6. The wingpost on all my paras is white poly. I've tried red, purple, black, green, gray and yellow, and the only one of these that helped me see the fly was purple (don't ask me why). So, save yourself some money and stick to white. Plus, if you want, you can color it with waterproof markers. 7. Now don't read this next bit if you're a 'purist'. Manipulating a whip finish tool around all those hackles is beyond me so I use a half hitch tool to tie off ! |
 Using scissors, I trim the hackle further up one side than the other. That way I don't crush the barbules on the first wind around the wingpost.  Tie on a long wingpost. Mount the hackle on the farside of the post with the trimmed stem on top of the hook towards the bend. Tie in the tail material.  Dub the body up to just a couple of turns beyond the wingpost. Wind the hackle and tie off. Finish dubbing the body and tie off. Push the quill down where it is wound around the post and stroke the barbules outwards and down between thumb and forefinger. Trim the height of the wingpost to between 1 to 2 times the hook gap. Apply head cement to the base of the post.  To wing or not to wing? Well, I do on the larger stoneflies, but I cheat and use pre-cut wings. An alternative and good source of material is Wapsi's Thin Skin. It comes in 23 colours, including mottled. Make sure the wing lies flat along the body of the stonefly. Sometimes I'll do this by using a thread rib and winding it over the wing. |