20 Incher

Materials

Hook

TMC 200R, sizes 4-12; Nomad Anglers uses a Daiichi 1760 #8 for steelhead

Beadoptional

Brass, tungsten or copper Cyclops bead sized to the hook1/8 in on a #8.

Weight

Lead wire sized to the hook10-20 turns, or 8 turns of .025, pushed into the back of the bead.

Thread

UTC 70 denier or Uni 6/0, black

Tail

Two goose biots, dark brown (tan on the Nomad version)Splayed over a small ball of dubbing.

Rib

Two strands of tan rayon floss twisted together, or gold oval tinselCraven ribs with floss; Nomad uses large gold French oval tinsel.

Underbodyoptional

Any dark dubbingA tapered underbody on large sizes so the peacock does not have to do all the work.

Abdomen

Strung peacock herl, 8-10 herls; peacock Ice Dub on the Nomad version

Wingcase

Slip of mottled turkey tail, cut a little narrower than the hook gap

Legs

Hungarian partridge body feather, natural or brownTied in by the tip and folded forward over the thorax; Nomad ties a pair for more visible legs.

Thorax

Natural hare's mask dubbing, or Krystal Dub in hare's earAbout half again as thick as the front of the abdomen.

Collar

A wisp of the thorax dubbing behind the bead to hide the wingcase butts

Steps

1. 1.Slide the bead onto the hook, wrap lead over the front of the shank and shove the wraps into the back of the bead. Start the thread behind the lead, build a taper down to the shank and run it to the bend.
2. 2.Put a tiny ball of dubbing at the bend, then tie one biot on each side of it so the tails splay apart, about one hook gap long. Bind the butts forward and trim.
3. 3.Tie in the rib at the midpoint of the shank and bind it back to the tails. For larger sizes dub a thin tapered underbody over the rear three quarters of the shank and bring the thread back to the tail.
4. 4.Tie in 8-10 peacock herls by the tips at the tail, move the thread to the 75 percent point and wrap the herl forward as a rope to make a fat abdomen. Tie off and clip.
5. 5.Twist the floss strands together and spiral the rib forward through the herl in the opposite direction; tie off at the front of the abdomen.
6. 6.Cut a turkey tail slip a little narrower than the gap, tie it in by the tip at the front of the abdomen with the dull side up, and bind it down to the halfway point of the shank.
7. 7.Prepare a partridge feather with barbs about half a shank long, strip the fluff, and tie it in by the tip at the same spot with the inside of the feather facing up, tips pointing back.
8. 8.Dub the thorax from the midpoint to the back of the bead, making it clearly thicker than the abdomen. Keep the thorax at least half the shank; a stubby thorax is the most common mistake.
9. 9.Pull the partridge feather forward over the top of the thorax and tie it down behind the bead so the barbs sweep back along both sides as legs.
10. 10.Pull the turkey slip forward over the partridge and thorax, tie it off behind the bead and clip the stubs.
11. 11.Dub a short collar behind the bead to cover the butts, whip finish so the thread rolls off the back edge of the bead, and add a drop of cement.

From the tier

• Craven's rule of thumb: the thorax plus the bead should take up half the shank, and the partridge legs are the fiddly part, so read the tie-in step twice.
• Nomad Anglers calls it the undisputed champ of versatility and ties it on a heavy Daiichi 1760 #8 with an oval tinsel rib and Ice Dub body for Michigan steelhead.
• On bigger sizes a dubbed underbody gives the taper without a fistful of peacock; on small sizes skip it and let the herl do the work.

Hook and hardware

• Curved nymph hook1

  size 4-12 · Tiemco 200R or Daiichi 1760

  Hook

  1

Feathers and fur

• Goose biots2 biots

  dark brown or tan

  Tail

  2 biots

• Strung peacock herl8-10 herls

  natural

  Abdomen

  8-10 herls

• Mottled turkey tail1 feather

  cinnamon tip

  Wingcase

  1 feather

• Hungarian partridge skin or feathers1-2 feathers

  natural or brown

  Legs

  1-2 feathers

• Hare's mask dubbinga pinch

  natural or hare's ear Krystal Dub

  UnderbodyThoraxCollar

  a pinch

Thread and finish

• Tying thread1 spool

  70 denier or 6/0 black · UTC or Uni

  Thread

  1 spool

• Head cementoptional1

  Collar

  1

Other

• Beadoptional1

  brass, tungsten or copper sized to hook

  Bead

  1

• Lead wireabout 6 in

  .020-.025

  Weight

  about 6 in

• Rayon floss or oval tinselabout 8 in

  tan floss (2 strands) or large gold oval

  Rib

  about 8 in