Michigan Flies

Flies / Nymph

Scud

A

Scuds #18 are the Muskegon's January to April staple beside midges, and Current Works lists scuds and sowbugs first for the Big Manistee below Tippy Dam. Supinski's winter steelhead list includes scuds. Fish an olive or gray scud dead-drift in weedy tailwater runs year-round, and orange for dead or molting scuds.

#14–18OliveGrayOrangeTanclear water
What the pattern looks like
Reference photos of the Scud tied by others, shared by their photographers. Not our flies; our own product photos replace these as they are shot.

Photo © Quinn for Fly Deal Flies, used with permission · Olive Scud - Nymph

  • Photo © Quinn for Fly Deal Flies, used with permission · Gray Scud - Nymph

  • Photo © Quinn for Fly Deal Flies, used with permission · Pink Scud

Season
Months this pattern is in play across Michigan, derived from what it imitates.
  1. Jan
  2. Feb
  3. Mar
  4. Apr
  5. May
  6. Jun
  7. Jul
  8. Aug
  9. Sep
  10. Oct
  11. Nov
  12. Dec
Imitates

Forage

  • Scud (freshwater shrimp)
Fish it for
Brown troutRainbow trout (resident)SteelheadPink salmon

Setups

  • Indicator nymphing
  • Euro / tight-line nymphing
How it's tied
A
Plain Old Scud. A curved-hook freshwater shrimp with a shellback, ribbed segments and picked-out legs; a year-round food in Michigan's dam tailwaters and spring creeks. Our own write-up of the standard tie, checked against the sources below. Recipe by Charlie Craven, Charlie's Fly Box (2022).

Materials

Hook
TMC 2487 or 2457 curved scud hook, sizes 12-20 (Craven); Dai-Riki 125 12-18 (Orvis)
Weightoptional
.010 lead wire, 8-12 wraps over the middle of the shank
Thread
Olive dun 8/0 UNI or light olive 70 denier UTC; fluorescent orange 6/0 on Nomad's Michigan tie
Tail and antennae
A few fibres of olive-dyed mallard flank at the bend (Craven); or a wisp of dubbing (Orvis)
Rib
6X monofilament (Craven) or small gold or silver Ultra Wire
Shellback
Swiss Straw in olive-grey; Thin Skin, scud back or pearl sheeting (flashback) are the alternatives
Body
Sow Scud dubbing, smoky olive; tan, gray and orange for the other coloursOrange suggests a dead scud and is worth a slot in the box.
Head cementoptional
Head cement on the whip finish

Steps

  1. 1.Debarb the hook. For a weighted scud, wrap 8-12 turns of .010 lead over the middle of the shank and cover it with thread.
  2. 2.Start the thread behind the eye and run it back into the bend.
  3. 3.Tie in a short, sparse bunch of olive mallard flank at the bend for tail and antennae, about half a gape long.
  4. 4.Tie in the mono rib and then a strip of Swiss Straw about a gape wide, both at the bend and both trailing off the back.
  5. 5.Dub a loose, tapering noodle and wrap a plump body, thickest around the middle of the shank, up to just behind the eye.
  6. 6.Pull the shellback forward over the top of the body, keep it centred, tie it down behind the eye and trim the excess.
  7. 7.Wind the rib forward in five to seven even turns, seating it firmly into the dubbing so the segments show through the shellback; tie off and trim.
  8. 8.Build a small head, whip finish and cement.
  9. 9.Pick the dubbing out along the underside with a bodkin or velcro to make legs, and trim any fuzz poking through the back.

From the tier

  • Charlie Craven calls it the Plain Old Scud because nothing about it is fancy; he weights most of his so they reach fish quickly, adds pearl sheeting for a flashback or a bead if he wants one, and says to match the natural as closely as you can, remembering dead scuds turn orange.
  • Orvis/Flagler: tie the Simple Scud in olive, tan and gray to match your stream, and tease out the legs with a velcro brush.
  • Michigan: Nomad Anglers notes trout eat lots of scuds all year, especially on tailwaters like the Muskegon and Manistee, and that a realistic profile pays in clear winter water; their Klinkhammer Scud runs grey-olive Scud Dub in a dubbing loop under a Kiley's Scud Skin ribbed with fine silver wire, on a Daiichi 1167 size 14 with fluorescent orange thread.

Scud Fly Tying Video Steps summarize the Orvis Simple Scud sequence applied to Craven's material list (his page gives materials and commentary; the steps are in his video). Unconfirmed: Nothing material; the Michigan note rests on one shop page (Nomad Anglers). Also checked against Orvis Learning Center (Tightline Productions), Simple Scud Pattern & Tying Instructions and Nomad Anglers, Michigan (2018), Klinkhammer Scud.

Materials to buy
Everything one Scud takes, each item once: 6 items, plus 2 optional. Quantities are for a single fly. We do not sell components yet; when we do, these will link to them.

Hook and hardware

  • Curved scud hooks1 pack of 25

    sizes 14-18 · TMC 2457 or Dai-Riki 125

    Hook

  • Tippet spool 6Xabout 6 in per fly

    Rib

    Or small gold Ultra Wire.

Feathers and fur

  • Mallard flank, dyed olive1 pack

    Tail and antennae

Synthetics, flash and legs

  • Swiss Straw1 pack

    olive-grey

    Shellback

  • Sow Scud dubbing1 pack each

    smoky olive, tan, gray, orange · Hareline

    Body

Thread and finish

  • Thread1 spool

    olive dun 8/0 or light olive 70 denier · UNI or UTC

    Thread

  • Head cementoptional1 bottle

    Head cement

Other

  • Lead wireoptional1 spool

    .010

    Weight

Sources