Tying with Deer Hair

A quick primer on the tools, techniques and materials used when spinning deer hair.
A family-oriented fly-fishing club covering the Port Macquarie Hastings region, NSW.
A family-oriented fly-fishing club covering the Port Macquarie Hastings region, NSW.

A quick primer on the tools, techniques and materials used when spinning deer hair.

Clark’s Cicada Created by Hans Weilenmann, and inspired by Clark Reid’s “Clark’s Cicada“, the C-13, or Cicada 13, is a simple cicada pattern that has the characteristics to imitate this insect. It combines the the typical plop when it lands…

Most tying problems stem from two things: Failure to properly plan the fly, and not knowing how to work with deer hair. Both of these are easy to remedy.

First designed to imitate a small bottom-dwelling fish, Muddlers are now tied as general attractor patterns and to imitate anything from caddis flies to grasshoppers.
While each Muddler may differ in colour and profile, all have the same basis in their construction: the spinning and clipping of deer hair to create a buoyant head and body.