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A bit of stacker education and stacker philosophy is due, so here it is: quite a lot of information about hair stackers

... and then there's deer hair. And it can be many different things. It is not at all that easy to find the right kind for the many patterns with this fantastic material

It’s hard not to like a completely free e-book with detailed descriptions on how how to tie 12 (and then some) different variations of the Humpy. 80 pages of knowledge, tips and inspiration on a single pattern!

The CDC&Elk is a famous and efficient Caddis dry fly. This variation works for Baltic sea trout... and was actually inspired by the bonefish version of the fly

This little beetle imitation is amazingly lifelike. Using few and ordinary materials, Russian tyer Dmitri Tseliaritski makes it quick and easy to tie.

This is my entry from the first ever Illustrated Pattern Swap in 1996. No idea what an Illustrated Pattern Swap is? Well read on and learn.

Mastering the Humpy and learning a lot about material, sizing and tying technique

The original Muddler Minnow was tied by Don Gapen of Anoka, Minnesota back in 1937 specially developed to catch brook trout in Ontario, Canada

In this chapter of our series we look at what to look for when buying deer hair for fly tying. Get the right material whether you are going to use it for caddis wings or for spinning bass bugs.

Lead dumbbell eyes, a bit of flash, marabou and some deer hair and and you have a deadly fly for fish prowling the flats for shrimp and crabs. It's the Redfish Puff, and it catches more than redfish.

This is a muddler design type of fly that is more or less a derived idea based on something that has been copied many times, but never the less an efficient fly that has caught the author many fish.

This is the lazy man's muddler, the sloppy tier's muddler, the beginner's muddler.
It's actually quite close in style to some of the first Muddler Minnows tied by Don Gapen back in the 30's.

There is always a reason to try to improve on the best, and many people have taken the CDC&Elk - if not higher levels - then at least other levels

Kelly Galloup's Zoo Cougar is a pattern with some years on its back, but Martin recently discovered and started tying this staple big trout streamer. Large fly, goudy colors, deer hair! Just his kind of fly.

These were the first Thunder Creek streamers I have ever tied. A couple weeks ago I was rummaging through a stack of Fly Tyer magazines and tripped across a profile of Keith Fulsher. "That's it", I said. "Another itch that needs to be scratched".

Tied my first Clouser Minnows ever a few minutes ago. What a fly!

Al Grombacher has shared with us one of the most effective patterns for the Bow River in Alberta, Canada, famed for its excellent fishing for rainbow trout.

Yep! It's yet another one of that Danish madman's muddlers. This time with an even longer name: The Short Heavy Chicago-Zürich-Copenhagen Delayed Nutria Tube Muddler or SHCZCDNTM for easier remembering!

This article should rightly be subtitled "what to do when you don't have the right material that a pattern calls for?"

A conehead muddler/zonker

A small muddler

The most important step in preparation is getting the right kind of hair. Buy your hair at a reliable source. Good spinning hair patches are dense and have little underfur. The single natural hair should be dull and light at the base, slightly waved at the root, and have a short tapered tan/black tip section.

Kieth Fulsher was particularly concerned with the size of the head and the eyes. He didn't feel that thread heads with painted eyes or jungle cock eyes appropriately represented the large head of a minnow.

A bottom seeking fly for pike, bass, cod, pike perch, sea trout - even bonefish and many other fish.

Chris Helm tying at the International Fly Tyers Symposium in New Jersey in 1996.

Chris Helm is one of the world's premier capacities on tying with hair - especially deer hair. Chris has tied on numerous shows and classes all over the world and has taught people to tie deer hair flies both live, in books, and on videos.

Hans Weilenmann's classical contemporary sedge fly.

This fly is in a way my 'signature fly'. It's a beautiful fly (in my own humble opinion), and even though it's heavy - very heavy, actually - it's a good fishing fly, that dives deep and overcomes current and turbulence.