Rocky River Trout Unlimited

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      • Wet Fly Patterns >
        • Black Gnat
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  • Rocky River TU
    • RRTU Events >
      • Monthly Meetings
      • Streamside Day Trips
      • Alarka Trips
      • Fly Tying Classes >
        • Instructional Tyers
    • Davidson River HEP
    • Conservation >
      • Conservation Partners >
        • NC Camo Coalition
    • Diversity >
      • WOMEN ON THE FLY
      • BSA Merit Badge
    • We welcome your feedback!
    • Become a TU Member
    • Mission and Brief History
  • FORR
  • Programs
    • Trout In The Classroom
    • RiverCourse Fly Fishing Youth Camp
    • Casting Carolinas
    • Wilson Creek Adopt-A-Stream and Stream Watch
    • South Mountain Adopt-A-Park
    • Stone Mountain State Park
  • Resources
    • Fly of the Month Patterns >
      • DRY FLY PATTERNS >
        • Adams Variant
        • Asher
        • Atherton No 5
        • Baigent's Variant
        • Blue Quill
        • BWO
        • BWO Catskill
        • BWO CDC Emerger
        • BWO Sparkle Dun
        • BWO Spinner
        • Carolina Wulff
        • CDC Biot Comparadun
        • CDL Comparadun
        • Coachman Variant
        • Conner's October Caddis
        • Crackleback
        • Dragonfly Dry
        • Dry Pheasant Tail Variant
        • Dun Fly, August Fly,Wasp Fly
        • Early Nelson
        • Egg Laying Caddis
        • Troth Elk Hair Caddis FFI
        • Elk Hair Caddis
        • EZ Caddis
        • Female Adams
        • Fluttering Caddis
        • Ginger Quill
        • Gray Fox Variant
        • Grey Hackle Yellow Dry
        • Griffith's Gnat
        • Hazel Creek
        • Hendrickson
        • H & L Variant
        • Hopper Juan
        • Infallible
        • Japanese Beetle
        • Jassid
        • Jim Charley
        • Klinkhamer
        • Lacewing
        • Light Cahill Catskill
        • Little Green and Little Yellow Stonefly
        • Mr. Rapidan
        • North Carolina Yellow Sally
        • FFI Parachute Adams
        • Parachute Adams
        • Pheasant Tail Dry Fly.Skues
        • Puff Diddy
        • October Caddis
        • Orange Forked Tail
        • Rattler
        • Red Headed Caddis
        • Smoky Mountian Candy
        • Sunkist
        • Trude
        • Rusty Spinner
        • Sulphurs Part 1
        • Sulphur Part 2
        • Yellow Palmer
      • Dry Attractor
      • Midges >
        • Grey Goose Midge Emerger
        • Morgan's Midge
      • Nymphs >
        • Brassie
        • Chironimid
        • Copper John
        • Crossover Nymph
        • Crow Fly
        • Damsel Fly Nymph
        • Deep Sparkle Caddis Pupa
        • Devil's Doorstop
        • Girdle Bug
        • Gold Ribbed Hare's Ear
        • Guinea
        • Hare's Ear Nymph FFI
        • Hot Creek Special
        • Mr. Rapidan
        • Peridgon Nymph
        • BH Prince Nymph FFI
        • BH Prince Nymph
        • Realistic Stonefly
        • Royal Prince
        • Secret Weapon
        • Scud
        • Egan's Tasmanian Devil
        • Tups Indespensible
      • Pupae/Larva
      • Scud >
        • UV Scud
      • Soft Hackles >
        • Center Bead Soft Hackle
        • Grey Hackle Soft hackle
        • Orange Partridge Soft Hackle
      • Terrestrials >
        • Amy's Ant
        • Alen's Cow Killer
        • Cricket
        • Inchworm
        • Jack Cabe Hopper
        • Little River Ant
        • Moth
        • Murray's Flying Beetle
        • Parachute Ant
        • Texas Piss Ant
      • Wet Fly Patterns >
        • Black Gnat
        • Blue Charm FFI
        • Breadcrust
        • Coachman
        • Cock-y-Bundhu
        • Cooper Bug
        • Grizzly King
        • Ibis
        • Parmacheene Belle
        • Orange and Partridge Soft Hackle FFIFFI
        • Red Ass Soft Hackle
        • Tups Indespensible
    • Fly Patterns
    • RRTU Class Recipes
    • NC General Hatch Charts
    • Fly Shops, Outfitters and Guides
    • Fly Fishing >
      • RRTU Reference Fly Tying >
        • Entomology Basics
        • More Entomology Basics
      • More Fly Fishing Basics
      • Fly Fishing Tips
      • Trout Fishing & Trout Fishing Stories
    • Fly Casting
    • History, Reading, References >
      • S. Appalachian & Smoky Mtn History >
        • Archive History >
          • Archive History
          • FORR Campaign >
            • FORR 2020
    • Calendar Copy
  • RRTU Store
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Picture
Rusty Spinner
Rusty Spinner
Fly of the Month 11.14


The mayfly is an aquatic insect that has been studied by anglers for centuries. The classic imitations are the dry fly which represents the adult, imago or dun stage of the insects life cycle and the wet fly which represents the rising, shucking nymph emerger. These imitations have the longest, well proven history of use by anglers beginning in England and now throughout the world where year-round cold water exists and trout thrive. A more recent stage of the mayfly has a good deal of historical use, the nymph stage which is found on the stream bottom or in the water column drifting free with the current. However, there is a less known but sometimes very important stage to imitate, the spent stage.

Rusty Spinner

The Rusty spinner is named due to the rusty colored body used to tie the fly pattern. As it turns out, the spent mayfly of a number of species turns a rusty color regardless of the original body color. Thus, the Rusty Spinner imitates a number of mayfly species. For example, the spinner fall that I have fished the most is the Sulphur spinner fall on the South Holston River Tailrace in the upper 2 miles below the weir. The spinners are a very dull yellow to rusty brown. A dull yellow spinner will work equally well as a rusty spinner fly pattern. The abundant Blue Wing Olive (BWO) spinner fall is a dull olive to rusty brown as well. I have not fished that spinner fall as it mostly occurs sparsely during the afternoons on overcast, almost drizzly days when nymphing is more successful.

The key to imitating the spent stage of a mayfly is to tie a fly pattern that lies well in the surface film, not rising above the film much and not sinking below the film much. The spent wings are tied perpendicular to the body and flat as possible. Wings of any thickness are not desirable. Sparseness does not necessarily allow for a good flat float so some spinner fly patterns are tied with a double or even a triple spent wing.

The tail of most spinner patterns are split or tied sparsely as three much like the adult mayfly. Hackle is tied around the spent wings but clipped on top and bottom to allow the fly pattern to float flat in the surface film.


RUSTY SPINNER

HOOK :  Standard Dry Fly – Tiemco 100 or equivalent.  Sizes : 24,22,20,18,16
Thread : UTC 70, rusty brown
Tail : Micro fibetts
Abdomen : Tying thread
Thorax : Rusty Spinner dry fly dubbing
Hackle :  Ginger Rooster
Wing : Poly Yarn, dry , white

Directions :
  1. Debarb hook.  Tie in thread at hook above the hook point.  Let the bobbin hang.
  2. Choose three micro fibetts for the tail and align the tips.  Measure the length of the tail against the hook so that they are slightly longer than the hook shank.  Tie in the tail with loose wraps, taking the thread toward the bend and keeping the tail on top of the shank.  After reaching the end of the straight section of shank, the tail is tied in and needs to be split into three evenly spaced tails.  Use the thread to divide the tail closest to you with one wrap between a tail and the other two.  This will make that tail stand at an angle to the shank.  Repeat on the other side and advance the thread three or four turns.  You can adjust the tails with you fingers or bodkin until they are divided equally
  3. Wrap the thread forward in tight touching wraps to the thorax.  Return the thread back to the tail and forward again to the thorax.  This will form the abdomen.  At the thorax, let the bobbin hang.
  4. Select a two inch section of poly yarn and cut from the bundle.  This section is too thick for the wings and generally about one third to one half is sufficient.  Separate the poly and set aside the extra for later flies.  Tie in the poly in the middle of the thorax using an “x” pattern of wraps.  The wing should remain flat and at right angles to the hook.  Return the thread to the back of the thorax and let the bobbin hang.
  5. Choose a small length of dub and twist on the thread to form a noodle about two inches long.  Begin wrapping the noodle at the back of the thorax and move to in front of the wing and continue wrapping to the back of the thorax again.  One wrap, at a minimum, should go over the “x” tie in at the wing. If necessary, add another small noodle of thread to form a proper thorax profile and finish the dubbing wraps at the eye.  Whip finish. 
  6. Lift the wings straight up and back toward the tail to establish the proper length.  They should be the length of the hook shank.  While holding them together, in position over the shank, trim with scissors and the fly is complete.




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