A fly I have developed, which I originally called the “Ancient Chinese Secret” is my favorite new fly. I combined a few of my favorite flies, the Yong Special, the Mercury patterns of Pat Dorsey, and Rim Chung’s Plebby. Then, I stripped them down to their essential essence of what I believe makes them each so effective.
It is an Andy Kim Yong Special combined with a Pat Dorsey Mercury bead head. It’s very simple to tie and it’s killing it on the stream. Rim Chung, a close fishing friend of mine, also devised somewhat of a similar pattern in his Plebby, which features a tail made from the thread, together with a peacock colored bead and a wire ribbing.
My Calgon fly is tied in Coats and Clark thread, summer brown, olive, cream, chartreuse and medium grey and charcoal grey, with an extra-small glass bead, mercury colored. Currently the medium grey is my favorite, the same grey color that Andy Kim uses for his Yong JR.
I always fish these Calgon flies in a two fly rig, with the other fly being a Rim Chung RS2, in a variety of sizes and colors.
Calgon-Ancient Chinese Secret
Materials needed
- • Hook: Tiemco 101 in sizes 18-24
- • Bead: Mercury clear and silver glass bead, Extra Small
- • Thread: Coats & Clark, Dual Duty Plus, in Summer Brown or
Charcoal (available at any Wal-Mart in the sewing aisle)
Tying instructions
- • Put a Mercury clear extra small bead on the 101 hook.
- • Start wrapping the thread right behind the bead.
- • Make a few wraps toward hook bend and remove tag end of thread.
- Once reaching the bend, twist thread clockwise about 30 spins of the bobbin, to form a single cord rope of the two fibers. Then, wrap thread back evenly all the way to the bead.
- • Build a bit of a thorax as you whip finish.
- • Trim thread and head cement.
Stay tuned for upcoming flies: iWonder, diletante, enlightenment, and enigma flies. Just kidding, but those would be catchy fly names wouldn’t they?
