Fly Tying a Deer Hair Frog (Bass Fly Pattern)

A slight variant of Dave Whitlock's deer hair bass bug, this pattern can be an effective fly wherever big bass swim. While it's not a difficult pattern, it does take some time to tie.
Hook: #2-6 long shank
Thread: Green, brown or black, 210 denier
Legs: Green, brown or black rubber
Body: Deer hair, spun
This pattern can be found in Dick Stewart's "Bass Flies" available at: amzn.to/3ztGLF6
** Some of the other popular books used on this channel: **
Dave Hughes, "Essential Trout Flies," 2017, amzn.to/3lbCZYX
Dave Hughes, "Wet Flies," 2015, amzn.to/33ac3lQ
John Shewey, "Classic Steelhead Flies," 2015, amzn.to/2RywHcP
David Klausmeyer's "Favorite Flies," 2020, amzn.to/3oeSNMa
Morgan Lyle's "Simple Flies," 2015, amzn.to/3qB1zW1
Fly Pattern Encyclopedia: amzn.to/34U0rUe
Mike Valla's "Tying the Founding Flies," 2015, amzn.to/354oSir
Mike Valla's "Classic Streamer Fly Box," 2020, amzn.to/3n3Vakf
Randle Scott Stetzer's "Flies, the Best One Thousand," 1992, amzn.to/34Q15mp
Terry Hellekson's "Popular Fly Patterns," 1976, amzn.to/2L4IyvS
Dick Stewart's, "Flies for Bass and Panfish," 1992, amzn.to/3aGpFs1
Fly Pattern Encyclopedia: amzn.to/34U0rUe
Savage Flies is a project with the mission of encouraging and teaching fly tying to as many people as possible. The channel is named after one of my western Maryland homewaters, the Savage River. I've been uploading three new tying videos a week, with the occasional extra video on other days.
Thanks for stopping by. Please let me know in the comments if you have any tying tips you would like to share or if you have any patterns you would like to see tied here.

[@mikeking453]

Hair bugs are a blast to tie, I like mixing colors you never know how it's going to turn out no two are alike

[@SavageFlies]

That's a fun way to look at it Mike! I might have to pick up some more funky deer hair colors and try some other combinations. :-)

[@lamothe87]

I love spun deer hair. For pushing the hairs back I have a metal straw I just put over the eye of the hook and it works like a charm. No need to buy what you already have on hand.

[@SavageFlies]

Great tip Cole! One of the other commenters mentioned using a plastic cap from a soda bottle with a hold drilled in it. I think I'm going to try that too. :-)

[@jamesvatter5729]

That'll fool a bass, Matt. Saw a young tier at an event once that was an absolutely amazing deer hair spinner. I've done it with "mediocre success," but I certainly appreciate those who make it a fine art. That Stonfo tool is the real deal!

[@SavageFlies]

Thanks Jim, and yeah watching a great tier spin deer hair is almost therapeutic. I'll make a deer hair bug about three times a year so it's going to take a lot more practice before I consider myself proficient in it. :-)

[@jeffreystone7327]

I love the frog 🐸. The deer hair spinning is one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen. Can’t wait to the day I can master that technique. I’m looking for the very beginners flies for Smallmouth and Panfish as well as beginning Trout flies. Very impressive video and tying skills. Thank you Matt.

[@easttnflyfreak2870]

spinning deer hair is the hardest flys ive tried to tye . Thanks Matt you made it look easy !

[@SavageFlies]

Thanks James! But believe me, I've made plenty of clunkers out of deer hair. :-)

[@sallysanderson3627]

Love this frog pattern! We are big into bass fly fishing! Going to be trying this one! My goal this winter is to master deer hair tying!!!

[@richarddemeza7195]

Good job. It’s hard to make a deer hair fly tying video short because it is time consuming. There’s so many ways to spin deer hair. Thanks

[@SavageFlies]

You got that right Richard! Thanks for the note my friend. :-)

[@stevetrybalski3082]

Matt, that frog will fool Mr. Bass. Nice job. If would to spun deer hair flies taken to another level check out fly tier Pat Cohen. I watched him tie up several flies at a fly tying show several years ago. He is absolutely on another plane with his creations. Have a great day and stay safe.

[@SavageFlies]

Thanks Steve; I'll definitely check him out!

[@barbaraemerich1921]

Cool frog!

[@markmartinak2089]

Nice looking frog 🐸 you did a good job I hate spinning deer it makes me crazy lol

[@bigdaddy99929]

Hey. Nice job. Yes it can be difficult. Cool looking frog Matt. Thx!🙂

[@SavageFlies]

Appreciate it Clyde! I just might have to try a deer hair mouse soon. :-)

[@mikesflies5005]

Haha. I was wondering where your beard went. Great fly!!

[@SavageFlies]

Yeah, I can usually keep a beard for about a month before it starts driving me crazy. :-)

[@mhanson4972]

Nice one, Matt! 👍🏻

[@SavageFlies]

Appreciate it Mark!

[@Jd-yc3gw]

Now that was fun to watch. We don’t have a lot of bass up here but that looked like it would be fun to play with. That hair cutting tool works pretty slick. Another thing to add to my list. This video has me thinking about what I could create. Take care Matt and have a great week.

[@SavageFlies]

Appreciate it John! And yeah, that Stonfo tool is pretty convenient to have if you tie a lot of hair bugs. For years I just took a double edged razor blade and put electrical tape on one side to keep from cutting my fingers. :-)

[@jimholland1592]

Good morning Matt,☕️☕️ Time to sit back and learn, school is in👍

[@SavageFlies]

Appreciate it Jim! Coffee time is over, now it's pizza time at my house. :-)

[@jimholland1592]

@@SavageFlies oh my gosh, I love pizza enjoy and have fun with the family 👍

[@marksleeper3752]

nice job as always

[@SavageFlies]

Thanks Mark! Always appreciate it my friend. :-)

[@hardyschlegel1048]

Love the deer hair flies, Green machine is very popular here on East coast, will have to give this one a try, thanks for sharing Matt.

[@SavageFlies]

I've never heard of the Green Machine Hardy but just checked it out. Barry Ord Clarke has one... looks like a big salmon dry fly! Very cool looking. I've seen a couple other flies with palmered hackle through spun deer hair. I can't remember what they're called but I always thought they were sharp. Thanks for the note!

[@hardyschlegel1048]

Yes it is a Salmon fly but the Bass love it too!

[@toddslichter7831]

Spinning hair it a great time. Nice job, Matt. You have inspired me to tie up some mice...they are not just for bass...big browns like them as well. Have a great day, Mr O'Neal.

[@SavageFlies]

Oh yeah, now you've got me to thinking about trying a new mouse pattern! I've only tied them out of foam and zonker strips. I think a nice deer hair mouse might be a lot of fun. :-)

[@edwardchavez5627]

Good Morning Sir Matt, Really super excited about this fly. A true go getter here in Texas.... My problem is I have to get with J. Stockard and order some Dyed deer hair for spinning. other than that I can't wait to give this one a try. Thank You so much Matt.

[@SavageFlies]

Thanks Edward! And you know, I'll bet you could tie a frog out of gray or even natural deer hair and it could still work. I think the profile is what will attract the fish. The fancy colors might just attract us fishermen. :-)

[@jackreeves3001]

Thanks for sharing your time and talent! KANSAS

[@SavageFlies]

Appreciate it Jack! And as always thanks for watching my friend. :-)

[@laytonmarvin3790]

Nicely done Matt, that will surely catch fish. I'm thinking of tying a few mice for the big browns. Thanks for sharing 👍

[@SavageFlies]

Thanks Layton! I've had a few other people mention mice in these comments so I'm thinking I'll try one here pretty soon. Mousing for big browns is some big league fishing! I remember reading the story of Joe Humphreys' PA state record brown. I can't remember if he was mousing but he was definitely fishing at night.

[@niwelezlusch9610]

Uff that’s crazy man!

[@davehall2160]

That is a cool looking frog 🐸 Will definitely have to try this one Change the color and add a tail it could be a mouse Thanks for the video Matt

[@SavageFlies]

Thanks Dave! And funny you mentioned that... I'm thinking about doing a deer hair mouse soon as well. :-)

[@michaelpeterson6413]

I’m not really into bass fishing, but that frog looks awesome. Good job Matt. Maybe I’ll try to tie one up for my son, he likes to bass fish.

[@SavageFlies]

It was definitely fun Michael, but it's also one of those flies that will break your heart if you lose it since each one takes about a half hour to tie!

[@johnnylightning1491]

There are folks that will hate you for asking them to stack deer hair. Personally I don't find it that hard. I'm wondering if you could get a white/yellow belly by stacking the hair on the top and bottom instead of spinning it. Keep the good stuff coming.

[@SavageFlies]

Yes, you actually can do that. Joe Messinger Sr. had a frog pattern tied like that years ago. I think his son still ties it but it's a fairly tough one to pull off. I've never tried it anyway. :-)

[@leemowers9395]

nice cork, that will probably work better than the hook I suspended under the 1/2 inch chartreuse float(though I got a 2lb bass). the frog looks good. I have to tie a few deer hair flies before my fingers remember how to tie them.

[@SavageFlies]

I'm sure it'll come back to you Lee. Now that 2-lb bass is nothing to scoff at!

[@huntingmissouri5420]

Good tie Matt!! Deer hair is fun, but I'm not very good at it! Thanks for sharing!@

[@SavageFlies]

But Franky you've been tying for 25 years so you better be good at it! Ha ha... I'm with you. A good deer hair body or feather wing streamers are two of the hardest tactics for me to get too. :-)

[@huntingmissouri5420]

@@SavageFlies yeah it takes a lot of patience lol

[@RyanAshley419]

I was going to suggest you do a pattern like this. I have trouble making this types of flies that look like Koosh balls. I never can get them to look right. Never thought of using a razor. Always did them with scissors. This was helpful. I may try this type again.

[@SavageFlies]

Definitely give it another shot Ryan. I've learned that getting the packing right makes all the difference. :-)

[@cchasselynch2173]

Cool man!!! I always wanderd how deer hair flies were made

[@SavageFlies]

Well there you go my friend. They're actually not as difficult as I always thought. :-)

[@thehoosierangler6823]

I actually have that book. It has some pretty cool patterns

[@SavageFlies]

Indeed it does my friend! Thanks for watching. :-)

[@thehoosierangler6823]

@@SavageFlies You’re welcome. I always love your methodical explanations. It makes everything super simple.

[@rayditzenberger9517]

I would like to see a Messinger Frog tied and a Tapps tips deer hair popper tied.

[@mikeking453]

Josh Varner has a KZbin channel on fly tying and a great video on tying deer hair heads. If you plan on tying much deer hair it's worth watching

[@SavageFlies]

Thanks Mike! I've watched plenty of Josh's videos... he's much more of a streamer guy than me, but I'll definitely check out his one on deer hair heads. Thanks for the note. :-)

[@JohnHernandez-mc8kk]

Wow . I see how the Razer trimmer is lil intimidating 😮 for the first tyer

[@FlyTyer1948]

I’ve always packed the hair using my fingertips, but after packing multiple flies in series, my fingers always got very sore. Thus, I’ve been thinking about getting one of the brass hair packers that you showed here. However, after your comment that it cut some of the hair, I’ve dropped that idea. Now I’m looking for an alternative. Suggestions? I’m wondering if drilling out the center of some plastic soda bottle tops with different with different size holes would work. Other ideas?

[@SavageFlies]

Bob- this is an amazing idea! I'm going to do exactly that... take a plastic cap from a standard soda bottle, drill a hole and see how it works. As for this brass hair packer, yeah I was a little disappointed in it. It definitely cut a few of the deer hairs but one thing it works okay for is pulling hackle back to let you get a whip finish if your hackle is clobbering the eye. Now thanks for the soda cap idea. I'll be sure to show how it works in my next deer hair video. :-)

[@hughiegraves8901]

Have you tied any delberg divers or poppers they are fun to tie.👍

[@SavageFlies]

I have not Hugh, but those flies are in so many books I might have to give it a shot soon. :-)

[@brianbochow]

Wow!!! Greetings from Australia...I love that razor tool where can I buy one of those from??? As for the deer hair are you using the belly hair or the tail base hair to make the flair??? I love the whole tie...Thankyou for sharing...

[@SavageFlies]

Brian, sorry I just saw this comment! I think the deer hair commonly sold for spinning is flank or side hair. I guess it could be belly hair but that might be harder to spin. The razor holder is from Stonfo. I got it from J. Stockard but someone down your way might carry it. You can see it here: www.jsflyfishing.com/stonfo-razor-holder-for-trimming Thanks for the note! Cheers. -Matt

[@kalikasurf]

If you saw my caddis flies…….you’d know I can tie this frog like a champ!!! 😂

[@SavageFlies]

Ha, thanks Eddie! Send me a picture of it if you do tie a frog. :-)

[@kalikasurf]

@@SavageFlies will do!!!

[@alc609]

Matt, I have question. With deer season approaching, which part of deer has best hair for stacking, for wings, etc?

[@SavageFlies]

Al- Marty Bartholomew has a great chapter on this in his "Tying Flies Like a Pro." He says fine hair doesn't flair as much, and is better for winging smaller dry flies. He says this hair is found on the "very top of the back of a whitetail." He also says medium hair will flair about 30-45 degrees, and this is found from the body hair from the sides of a deer. He says belly hair is too coarse and will flair too much to be used for wings. But this is the best hair for spinning. It's pretty spongy (and a little more hollow feeling) and will flair almost 90 degrees when wrapped tightly.

[@alc609]

@@SavageFlies thank you!

[@brianfeeney9493]

When You’re ready for a Career -Change Brother Matt ...... “ BARBER - MATT !!! “ 🪒 🎣 🪒

[@SavageFlies]

Well Brian, I do cut my own hair. :-)

[@brianfeeney9493]

Yes Indeed You Do Matt .... that is Why ..... Ypu Killed - IT ..... on the Hair Frog 🐸 !!!!!! ✨ 🎣 💫

[@tacosauce1948]

Nice tie. The problem with hair bugs is they make such a mess. What happened with the book giveaway? I'll have to tie some up later. Thanks!

[@SavageFlies]

Oh you're not kidding about the mess! I tied two of these last night and had hair everywhere. About the book, Gary from Ohio won it. Any time I have a book giveaway, check the comments after the drawing. I'll usually announce the winner there and pin that comment to the top.

[@joeduca8582]

Freaking awesome frog Matt! I watched bass/pike tying videos all night waiting for this one ;o) Those legs look great. That razor holder is pretty slick, I thought of getting one but they're kinda pricey. I bought a Fiskars curved scissors for trimming along with my straight blade ones. The hardest thing for me is to STOP the hair cut! I know you're not a nit picker but those head lice combs, especially metal ones, work great for taking out the underfur. At least a flea comb would suffice. I always used a mustache comb then one of those unbreakable hair combs. Okay, your hooks always look great, whose are they? Second, whose pattern was that I thought looked like Gartside's Wet Mouse or Soft Hackle Steamer? Thanks Matt!

[@SavageFlies]

Thanks Joe! And man, I couldn't tell you how many flies I've screwed up by trimming too much. Great tip regarding a lice or mustache comb. I did just order the Stonfo brush/comb in my last order but the tines don't look quite that close together. I'll let you know how it works. The hooks: these are actually pretty inexpensive ones. This was J. Stockard's J2 Model 430 "Multi-use curved." But I tell you, I use a lot from their J2 line and they're really pretty solid. Now for the mouse- I'm looking at the book right now and none of these six are by Gartside. One, the top left is called The Creature and was tied by Gary LaFontaine. The one on the bottom right was Dave Whitlock's Mouserat. The others were from tiers I didn't recognize.

[@joeduca8582]

@@SavageFlies Thanks for looking. Those hooks always look good in your videos, I'll have to get some, but I always procrastinate when they have their sales, I'm even on their mailing list. I guess it's a diet for my wallet ;o) Hey, I've been reading that J. Zimmerman Bass book, I think it's awesome. Good instruction, each pattern has variants The patterns are gear fishing equivalents. It's a fun read too. Okay, the Creature, I just looked it up. Zonker wrapped over a basal under body on an up eye salmon hook (he liked those hooks). Similar in profile to the Assam Dragon and Wet Mouse, all have the material wrapped up the hook. Nondescript fly that looks like food, genius. This was fun, you're the best Matt, thanks!

[@michaelmerlino6753]

Always loved doing deer hair.One of my mentors taught me to use Messinger’s style of working with it.No spinning only stacking,you can get great color blending using it.I also modify a Bic pen tube to use as a tool to tighten the hair,try one some time.

[@SavageFlies]

Oh yeah Michael, I've seen the Messinger frog in many books. I haven't tried it yet as it looks crazy hard. If you get it right it does look great in the end though. :-)

[@michaelmerlino6753]

@@SavageFlies It’s not as difficult as it looks.The hair wants to spin but once you get the hang of keeping it in place it ‘s not too bad.Like anything else in life,just practice and you’ll get it.You may not go back to spinning as often,I don’t.

[@SavageFlies]

I just watched a video of Joe Messinger Jr tying the Irresistible on Tim Cammisa's channel. That thing still looks hard to me! I might have to give it a shot though. Thanks for the note!

[@epsieblaine7968]

Nothing like spinning deer hair.

[@SavageFlies]

You got that right Ken! Tell Linda that J. Stockard said they should be shipping the vise this week. :-)

[@cpf383]

It happens to me every time. I either have a great hair spinning session, then cut off too much hair or have a bad spin and a good haircut.

[@SavageFlies]

Oh yeah Chris. And sometimes I have bad spinning AND bad trimming. :-)

[@ghart91]

You can spend eternity trimming!

[@SavageFlies]

No kidding Gary! This video may have been 18 minutes, but this thing took me at least a half hour. :-)