Deer Hair Emerger

[lnelson20]

Not yet tied or used this pattern :oops: but i was reading on another site if you don't get the tying right this fly is sometimes prone to lying on its side on the surface,any tip's on the tying,hooks how much deer hair etc.Cheers Chris.
Keep tying lads.
Look north.
Chris.

[rabbitangler]

There are a couple of articles in FF&FT showing the correct tying, if you tie the wing fairly sparsely in a wide vee above the hook it should work ok. Better still get a snowshoe rabbit foot and tie in a bunch of that, its finer, easier to tie and floats better than deer, IMHO.

Peter

[lnelson20]

Thanks lads,work and kids take up a lot of time :roll: Time at the tying bench is few and far beetween,dont want to spend time knocking up a few of these and then find out they are not up to the task.Thanks again.
Keep tying lads.
Look north.
Chris.

[Wildfisher]

Try only ginking the wing and make sure the gink does not bleed onto the abdomen  or thorax. Also make sure you wet the abdomen  thoroughly before you start to fish it. That all helps. Allan reckons rabbit hair is better for the body, that makes sense as it is likely  to absorb water better since its softer. Bob Wyatt told  me his ?dirty duster?  is just as good, far easier to tie and more robust. They always seem to float the right way up.

[Bob Wyatt]

That's good advice Fred.  

Getting gink on the body is the main reason the DHE lays on its side.  Sometimes the wing is over long, but usually its because the body is floating, which means the fly has to go over on its side.

I use hare fur for the body, or a mix of seal and hare.  I ALWAYS wet the abdomen in my mouth before I gink the wing.  Avoid getting floatant on the thorax too.  The whole idea is a very low riding fly, more floating nymph than a dry fly.

The Dirty Duster is, as you say, very easy to tie and always rides upright.  It rides a bit higher than the DHE, so they do different jobs.



Dirty Duster (Hans Weilenmann Photo)

[Wildfisher]

Bob,

I take a lot more care now when   preparing the cast and the fly at the waters edge. Both with your  DHE and with Stan Headleys ? hogs  and my own easy tie variants  of it. First thing I do is use the  fullers-earth ? detergent mix sinking agent on  the entire cast and the body of the fly ( I made a ton of this stuff using ground cat litter, glycerine and washing up liquid ? messy but it works), wetting the body first and really rubbing the concoction  into it, avoiding  the wing. Then I very carefully gink the wing, making sure no gink gets  on the cast or any other part of the fly. Then I fan the wing out to optimum shape and test it on the water. This takes few minutes but it is most definitely worth while as the fly always sits right way up.

You say the DHE and the Dirty duster do different jobs. Could you elaborate?

[rabbitangler]

Jeez I hope thats fresh cat litter your using there Fred!

[Wildfisher]

Jeez I hope thats fresh cat litter your using there Fred!

Cat urine is  a great degreasing agent.  :lol:

It also helps to keep other anglers out of your favourite spots!  :lol:

[lnelson20]

Must have moved a dozen fish to the deer hair emerger yesterday without hooking any :oops: everything ok with the preparation.well degreased,ginked and sitting correctly offers ranged from very quite affairs to slashes,can only think the emerger was to big,had only tied them in size twelve :oops: Any ideas :?
All the best lads
Chris.

[lnelson20]

Maybe too big Chris or maybe it was simply a case of them not being on Olives and probably Grannom instead.
Still next time try a size 14 or even a 16, either Deer hair style or (especially good in the smaller sizes 'cause it cuts down the bulk) the 'dirty Duster' hackle type.
For the grannon try a size 16 Hares Ear type of emerger best tied on a striaght hook with a clipped hackle or no hackle and a poly yarn wing.

Allan.

Cheer's Allan,going to the vice to try some of your suggestion's Maybe take a wee trip up to the loch's later and try them out,nothing is certain as we know,but could possibly have taken these fish with small hopper's as i have done before,but trying to get to grip's with this deer hair emerger style
Thank's again
Chris.