Well I guess it didn't take me that long to find the time to put together a tutorial after all, DFD...I give you the down and dirty version of "Fifi". The name derives from the fact that the originator of this fly up in Stanley, Idaho thought his finished product looked like a trimmed poodle dog. The story goes that he thought of the pattern while he was knee deep in the Salmon River fishing for B-runs, went back to the lodge and tied up half a dozen, went back to the same hole and had the day of his life. I fished with him last April and he says that's all hogwash.
So here we go...pick your favorite brand of #4 red octopus hooks. For the first steps I like to use ordinary red 3/0 tying thread which is started at the bend near the eye of the hook.
Next I use my needlenose pliers to snip off two beads from a chain to be used for the "eyes"...I then tie those in at the bend where I've started the thread using whatever criss-cross or figure-8 method you like. Then I tie a secure knot behind the eyes, trim the thread, and super glue whole thing.
Now I switch to Kevlar thread which is significantly stronger (and way more expensive and not available in very many colors). IT IS CRITICAL TO USE KEVLAR OR ANOTHER INCREDIBLY STRONG THREAD IN THE FINAL STEPS. After I have started the new thread behind the eyes, I tie in some flashabou. I like red holographic stuff, but any flash will work fine.
Now I begin the process of adding globug yarn by trimming several inch-and-a-half pieces. I used chartreuse here both because it shows up good in digitial pictures, but also because it is a very popular color with summer runs. I pull each piece into two smaller strands...I use three half-pieces total for the down and dirty type. Place one strand up under the thread, another on top, and the last on the front of the hook.
Here's where it gets tricky...make one really loose wrap up and over the yarn and back to where you started. When everything is looking good, yank the thread as hard as you can to cinch it deep into the yarn which causes all the fibers to stick straight out. It's a mess at this point, and it'll take practice to get the feeling of it. Make one more super-tight wrap over the first one, and without letting up on the tension pull the fibers back with your free hand and make some tight wraps on the hook right behind the eyes. Make a good knot behind the eyes and snip the thread.
Pick apart the fibers of yarn to make a big ugly, gnarly looking wad of stuff, then pull all those fibers straight up and hard. You'll notice I'm using a different pair of scissors now...one piece of advice is to invest in a good pair of curled, super-sharp one for tying globugs only. Once you have all the yarn together in a nice straight up fashion, simply cut it as shown and like magic it becomes an egg.
Believe it or not, I didn't even have to trim this one to clean it up, but most of the time a little haircut is called for. So here she is, "Fifi".
