Palmered Dry Flies

[Rabmax]

Hello all. . I have been having quite a bit of success the last 10 days or so using a new pattern (well new to me anyway)Anyone out there fish with palmered hackle dry flies.

(Spinner Pattern)


Been using them in Dark cdc ,Olive & Orange Cdc.The orange works best but when it's not the others normally do.I have been using Silver Badger with all the flies & just change the body colour.Have tried a few tied with sparser hackle & neater profile.The neat ones just don't seem to work as good on both rivers i have tried .I am hooking as many trout as i do with other good patterns like Cdc & Elks among others.But i am landing more fish & hardy loosing any fish.For some reason they don't miss the fly as often & spit it out as fast as other patterns i use.Cheers

[angus.milton12]

They look deadly. Really like the style, simple but effective.

[Fishtales]

My mate was hammering fish the past two years May trips using a palmered pheasant tail.

[Harpo]

They look great Rabmax, what size are they?

I have found in these months that small flies trapped in the surface have done me well
I usually use a griffiths gnat which has a palmers body, caught my biggest trout on one of those

[Rabmax]

They look great Rabmax, what size are they?

I have found in these months that small flies trapped in the surface have done me well
I usually use a griffiths gnat which has a palmers body, caught my biggest trout on one of those

I have found it very challenging at times this past month.Often been very low water & very bright conditions.I was trowing everything at them including griffits gnats before i started using these .I have changed my whole approach to dry fly fishing this year.I will fish with the wind instead of trying to fight against a strong down stream wind.
The things i like about this pattern is.

Sits low as the hackle is trimmed on bottom.
Skates well when skating is needed.
Its fairly visible on the water.
Hooks well fished down across .Might be something to do with the hackle being trimmed & fairly soft materials used in the pattern.
They try to swallow it instead of spitting it out almost instantly unlike most other patterns i use.Almost always have to use the forceps to retrieve my fly.
I fish a couple of different rivers & it seems to be working on all of them so far.

I have them tied from size 12-20 & been using size 14 mostly.When i have covered a rise i very rarely get a refusal especially when using the spinner pattern.If it doesn't get a response first drift a little twitch as it enters its window normally does the trick.Cheers

[Rabmax]

My mate was hammering fish the past two years May trips using a palmered pheasant tail.

Tied a PT one but used an old Indian Badger Cape i have had for years instead of my expensive Whiting.

Fishtales
Can you remember what colour hackle your mate used with his palmered PT.I might order a few different Indian Capes to use for this type pattern.I need to buy a cheap Indian Grizzle Cape anyway.Save my expensive capes & saddles for other things.Cheers All

[Fishtales]

It is just a pheasant tail body and brown tail whisks and hackle. I suppose any ginger, red, brown or furnace hackle would do. There was no wing.

[Rabmax]

I have tied a couple of Hewitt's  Brown Bivisibles to try out.He reckoned dark colours stand out better to trout.I like to try out old forgoten patterns.Especially if they are easy to tie & robust. Cheers All

[bibio1]

Sandy,

That's my best loch fly as well. Deadly. Tied as dark as possible.

Cheers

Paul

[Fishtales]

Sandy,

That's my best loch fly as well. Deadly. Tied as dark as possible.

Cheers

Paul

I better not tell George that Paul, he thinks it was his idea. He based it on a Murragh which is his other favourite fly