Comments for Beginners... fly tying.  2018- 2019

                        How to tie the Jumping Jack Flash

As said, this is an easy fly to tie.  There is only one material needed besides the hook.  You can tie the Jumping Jack Flash in as many different sizes  as you like and can put a bead on it if you want.  Here is how all of this happened.  Our RRTU fly tying class for beginners starts at 9:00 AM in the morning and finishes at 3:00 PM.  This a long day for beginners so I wanted to lighten it up and give them a very easy fly to tie.

photo of  Jumping Jack Flash

Place a straight shank size 10 standard hook hook in the vice and select about 12 strands of Orvis Pink Pearl Flashaboo.   The tail is approximately the distance from the hook eye to point of the hook, and tie the tail in with red thread.  I like to use Floresent Glow Brite #3 but any red thread will work.
 

Leave a little hot spot at the rear of the fly and wrap all strands around the shank of the hook to the front of the hook securing the Pink Pearl one eye length back from the hook.

Then fold over the Pink Pearl and leave a small space from the behind the hook eye and  secure all the fibers.  I used several whip finishes, but half hitches will work.  In the fly above I used a little UV resin to the threads behind the eye to hold things in place and add a little shine to the fly.

If you tie it this way, you might want to use lead weight on the tippet to get the fly deeper, but I prefer to use Tungsten beads.  I have used this hook to catch  large Perch on the Rappahannock River, catfish, bream, an ocean fish called a Downlooker.  I am told that it works well on trout too.   An unweighted Jumping Jack Flash about a #16 hook should work well as the dropper on a Euro Nymphing or Mono rig in clear water.

If you tie the Jumping Jack Flash, let me know what other species of fish you catch so that I can add that to my list of fish caught.

Thanks for taking the time to look.

Jack McNeary   jmcneary@gmail.com