Tying Grubs by Fred Hannie

Articles, Fly Patterns, Step-by-Step Tutorials — By Alex Cerveniak on February 23, 2010 8:37 am

Here is a simple yet realistic looking pattern that should be equally effective for trout as well as bluegills. With this pattern my attempt was to create a fly that would mimic in appearance the larval stage of any number of beetle species . Commonly called grubs , these beetles in their larval stage , often become easy meals for any number of animals . Grubs are most often found in loose composting soil or leaf litter and can be deposited in ponds and streams carried by runoff after a rain . By altering the coloration in this pattern you can have an effective wax worm pattern as well.

Materials

Hook : #12 streamer or nymph
Thread: Danville’s .006 fine mono thread
Body: 40 lb monofilament
Legs: 6 lb monofilament
Sharpie Markers: Red , Amber, Black
Head Cement: Sally Hansen’s Hard as Nails

1. After securing your hook in the vise slightly bend the hook downward just before the eye.

2. Tie on your thread as with any other fly.

3. Cut four pieces of 40 lb mono , one inch long and with a flame fuse them together at one end. This will form the head of our grub.

4. Tie the four pieces of fused mono to the top of the hook as shown. Be careful not to crowd the eye of the hook.

5. Trim the pieces of mono at the start of the hook bend.

6. Tie down the mono with smooth thread wraps.

7. With a black Sharpie permanent marker darken 1/3 of a piece of 40 lb mono that is the length of the hook shaft.

8. This piece is to be tied in under the hook with the colored section nearest the hook bend.

9. Now we can finalize the grubs shape by adding smooth thread wraps or add even further realism by wrapping segmentation into the length of the body.

10.Adding the legs is easy . We will tie in three pieces of 6 lb mono underneath the last 1/3 of the grub nearest the head. Use figure “8” wraps .

11. Notice I used long pieces when tying them on. It is easier to work with longer pieces and trim them later .

12. With a heated bodkin (warmed with the flame of a lighter) heat kink the mono legs straight down and cut them to their final length (about 5mm) .Color the legs at this time with the red marker.

13. Now heat kink the legs at a ninety degree angle toward the eye of the hook . Make the bend at the mid point of the leg.

14. Now finish the coloration with an amber marker for the head and finally coat the entire fly with Hard as Nails clear finger nail polish.

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Check out Fred’s website, www.realisticflytying.net, where Fred shares a wealth of information on realistic fly tying.

Tying Grubs by Fred Hannie, 9.9 out of 10 based on 11 ratings Tags: Beginner, Black, Danville, Fly Tying, Fred Hannie, Hatches, Intermediate, Nymph, Realistic, Streamer, Trout