Fly Tying the Wooly Bugger with Barry Ord Clarke

[@barbaraemerich1921]

This is by far the best video on a woolly bugger. I’ve seen!! Thank you so much! I’m going to be tying up some of these today!

[@Thefeatherbender]

Good luck Barbara...

[@barbaraemerich1921]

@@Thefeatherbender I did tie up a bunch in black and some in white thank you!!

[@BuckyBuck1000]

Really appreciated this demonstration. I can say that I learned a lot. Will make one for my box and my son’s. Thank you.

[@Thefeatherbender]

Thank you. Glad it was helpful, Raoul.

[@ipod1978]

One of the best WB’s I’ve seen to date. Cracking video

[@JLPryce]

Two snaps and a click! The straw is the bomb. Thanks much. Lp

[@randellgribben9772]

in the 50 years of fly fishing * started when i was about 10 years old ^ i have never caught a fish on a wooly bugger...lol...but very nice tie. and tips on this one

[@Thefeatherbender]

Oh wow! If you don't fish with it you won't catch with it Randell!

[@simon40607]

Superb tying 👍🏻 thanks for sharing

[@Thefeatherbender]

Thank you, a pleasure...

[@paulsangster9153]

Nice. That looks awesome Bender!

[@Thefeatherbender]

Thanks Paul.

[@paulbacallo4739]

Excellent Video thank you sir..

[@Thefeatherbender]

Thanks Paul.

[@GuillermoToniniSiPescoMejor]

Espectacular Felicitaciones. Felicidades y saludos desde Argentina!!!

[@3000waterman]

Terrific, as usual. I've had great success palmering buggers/damsel nymphs with chartreuse organza. It's a pain to have to peel out most of the longitudinal (warp) threads all the way to the selvedge, but the resulting cable of flashing, dancing strands is mesmeric in the water. Lately, I've been palmering through turns of Veniard magic glass. The stripped-out strands of organza can be added to marabou tails. If twitched back slowly, the trout cause bow waves as they chase these things. They tend to hang up occasionally, so they might be even better tied USD - as Goddard would have suggested.

[@Thefeatherbender]

Hi D, thanks. Yeah Organza is a good material especially if you can get your hands on the real deal, made for Japanese wedding dresses! I don't know is you have seen this one: kzbin.info/www/bejne/iaWsialjpMSaiq8

[@3000waterman]

Good morning Barry. Yes, I've seen that vid of yours. Wonderful. The main advantage of my palmering organza in-between the fairly rigid (plastic) turns, is that it makes the organza threads stand out at 90 degrees, rather than lie alongside the body. Maybe you've done that before. They dance brilliantly under water. I think my rolls of organza are Chinese. It costs pennies. The iridescent green is amazing, especially when used in a confection with olive marabou. How do I get a photograph to you?

[@kirkshammett94]

That’s the best looking woolly bigger I have seen

[@Thefeatherbender]

Thanks Troy.

[@bruceacphoto5240]

Picked up a good idea here Thank You

[@Thefeatherbender]

Hi Bruce, good, I hope it works out.

[@bigron8346]

That's gotta be one of the best buggers I've ever seen tied!!

[@Thefeatherbender]

Thanks Big Ron.

[@jsboyle3459]

Nice fly👍🏻

[@Thefeatherbender]

Thanks J.

[@perduk1]

It is a beautiful fly, I hate to be naysayer but I've found that tying a long tail on a Wooly Bugger encourages short strikes. Also, using a high quality rooster hackle like Whiting makes your fly corkscrew through the water.

[@Thefeatherbender]

Hi, No always good with others views. I agree, you can get tail naps occasionally, but the benefits of animation with a longer tail outweigh the short strikes, IMHO. If you are getting a cork screwing effect from wrapping a quality hackle on your buggers, it's probably because its wound too tight and too many turns of hackle.

[@FlyTyer1948]

A really neatly precise looking Bugger. In this video, you mentioned UV & fluorescent materials. I’m just getting back to tying after a long absence. I stopped tying when I could no longer fish. However, I missed tying & recently learned that I could donate flies to a charity that offers free fly fishing lessons as a form of therapy. Now that my flies have a purpose, I’m getting back to tying. UV & most fluorescent materials weren’t in use when I fished & could test flies myself. Do you find that they make a real difference in a fly’s fish catching ability?

[@Thefeatherbender]

Hi, thats really great! Well there are mixed feelings about the effectiveness of UV & Fluorescent materials, but research has shown that they are more effective/attractive in salt water. When they are the same price as regular materials and look the same to us, why not use them and see for yourself! Spirit River are the big UV material supplier.

[@FlyTyer1948]

@@Thefeatherbender Thank you for the reply. I suspected the UV materials might not have clear results, but it does make sense to try them since fish can see in a wider spectrum. Once the pandemic is over & the charity starts running their programs again, maybe they can give me some feedback. Although fluorescent is not the same as UV, I did feel that it made saltwater flies more effective.

[@h31212]

Awesome video as always! Just tied a couple of those following your instructions, they don't look as great as yours but they'll do! I was wondering: is there a reason why the crystal flash is added before the chenille? I feel like it could give a very nice flashy lateral line to the bugger if it was added after the chenille.

[@Thefeatherbender]

Hi, thanks. You can add the crystal flash after the chenille if you wish but then it becomes a flashy bugger, another variation of the same.

[@h31212]

@@Thefeatherbender Oh so that's a thing! Should've guessed I'm not the first one to think about it, thanks!

[@davidreed7718]

What size straw? I like that idea

[@Thefeatherbender]

Hi David, just a regular drinking straw thats not too tight around the fly.

[@almoschetti5503]

Great tie Barry and I really like the hackle pliers. What are they and where did you get them. They look easy to use and very versatile. Thanks for sharing

[@Thefeatherbender]

Hi Al, the hackle pliers are Tiemco rotary hackle pliers they are all I use. If you search on my channel for a video 'improving your hackle pliers' it may also be of interest to you.

[@catonfarm9757]

Have you ever made a video on your tools you use?

[@Thefeatherbender]

Hi, no I haven't, I have done videos on individual tools.

[@Freddo4J]

Great tie - thanks! How do you prep your chenille so it doesn’t appear as if it was just unwrapped off the card it’s typically wrapped around when packaged? Yours looks “smoother” and more full across its length!

[@paulorobertogeraci6850]

Muito bom parabéns 👍

[@Thefeatherbender]

Gracias Paulo.

[@anderste4649]

Could it look neat with an extra hackle for the front, for extra bush? Or is that not typically done on WBs? This fly is perfect but I found mine ended up a bit thin at the front.

[@Thefeatherbender]

Hi Anders, then your hackle was too short.

[@handcannon1388]

Nice tips for tying an established classic pattern. Your method of tying the hackle does seem like it would be easier and stronger than tying the hackle in just in front of the tail by its tip and winding forward. For me, the traditional method often results in a twisted hackle stem and uneven wraps, with hackle fibers canted in every direction. As an aside, aren't you a contributor to Fly Tyer magazine? I didn't see that mentioned on your channel's page.

[@Thefeatherbender]

Thanks H, It's a secure method for making the fly more robust and it does result in a much nicer hackle. But if you intend tying this way you must use Dyneema tying thread or GSP thread.

[@fredwelsford3977]

The feather bender i

[@fredwelsford3977]

Nice job on the hackle.

[@rayfoster8198]

beautiful tie! please forgive the rookie question but exactly what kind of saddle hackle are you using? Chinese? hen? schlaupen? does this particular hackle tend to float or sink? thank you for showing a beautifully done wb.

[@Thefeatherbender]

Hi Ray, and thanks! It's a rooster saddle hackle from Whiting but many other suppliers have good reasonably priced saddle also. Saddle hackles are mostly used for wet and streamer patterns but there is also super dry fly saddle available but these are very expensive and are not used for this application.

[@michaellewis7758]

Really nice tie, but would you fish it with a bead? I’d usually fish streamers on a small leader off a versi-tip type sinking leader. Agree on the tail, too long and you’ll get nips, really annoying. Never fished it in the UK, it is deadly on rivers like the Tongariro though.

[@Thefeatherbender]

Hi Michael, yes absolutely!! The correct size (weight) of bead creates that killer swimming action that is very attractive to predatory fish...

[@andrefujita9981]

That's a beautiful job! Congratulations. I have this rookie question though. What's the product you use before dressing the fly with a straw? Thank you. Cheers

[@Thefeatherbender]

Hi, it's the tying thread. It's a special tying thread called DYNEEMA that is available from Veniard stockists.

[@andrefujita9981]

Oh.. I meant that kind of liquid you use in your fingers

[@Thefeatherbender]

Thats just water...Nothing else.

[@andrefujita9981]

hahaha awesome! I can find that here in Brazil! Thank you! Best regards

[@louisaziz1235]

Thank you for a beautiful instructional video. Only recently (two years) involved in fly tying and fly fishing at seventy one years young. A question, if you don't mind... I have been taught to add weight to a wooly bugger but you did not. Can I ask for your thout on that, please?

[@Thefeatherbender]

Thanks Louis, Your correct! If you add weight to the pattern it will sink and have a sort of jigging action which is very attractive to predatory fish. But if you would like the pattern not to fish so deep, just a heavy bead head will do the trick. Tie up both and see for yourself!

[@theawkwardoutdoorsman8329]

Awesome tie! I have a quick question, when I use that technique to secure the hackle it results in a ugly flat spot between the tail and the end of the chenille. is that caused by my thread (im using 6/0) or am I taking to many wraps of thread? Thanks!

[@Thefeatherbender]

Sorry TRL, I just got this question from you now! Your correct way too many wraps of tying thread, less is more!

[@Cohen-Fishing]

I think it's because your thread is to big but plus to many wraps but I could be wrong

[@TheTwispAngler]

Well what's a white wooly bugger for? Is it a white leech or something. Now in Alaska I saw them ugly and white and large like this in the belly of the trout - or so I though - in various stages and stuff. So does it work in Alaska or when ice fishing or what? : )

[@Thefeatherbender]

It can be a fish or just an attractor...It works anyway!

[@neomatrix3612]

Nice, what decent fly tying vice do you recommend?

[@Thefeatherbender]

Hi Neo, it depends on a few factors, how many flies do you intend to tie, what sizes & how much money you would like to spend?

[@neomatrix3612]

@@Thefeatherbender Not a lot of flies, it will just be for myself. I'm trying to find somewhere in my area I can start fishing again. Maybe £100?

[@matthewnuttall2667]

So you don’t use head cement at the end of your flies ?

[@Thefeatherbender]

Hi Mathew, yes I do but find such an elementary task as applying varnish to the head of a fly unnecessary to show unless its a special technique.

[@brianstevens3858]

If this is a WB, I have a question. I have been tying a fly Grandad taught me 40+ years back, we always called the Wooly Bugger , Dry fly hook, long shank, Stiff black {or red} short hackle clippings for tail, body, alternating black and brown wrapped hackle over dun fine chenile, Can you tell me the proper name?

[@Thefeatherbender]

Hi Brian, from you'r description I can't be 100% but it sounds like a wooly worm. Like WB they are tied in a whole load of colour combinations, but unlike WB they are also fished dry.

[@brianstevens3858]

@@Thefeatherbender TY {I can tell you they are great drifted on top along wooded stream/river banks} lol

[@meteamca]

wow...

[@ugsisr]

Now that last step was OCD....LOL....Beautiful...

[@bobjohnson7207]

There's a derby winner.

[@Thefeatherbender]

Thanks Bob.

[@zacharywood2582]

Noice!!

[@michaelkane4729]

No head cement?

[@Thefeatherbender]

Hi, I feel that I don't need to varnish the head in every video, we all know how to do that.

[@michaelkane4729]

Sir, your instructions then, are incomplete. How do you know what a beginning fly tier does or doesn't know?

[@Thefeatherbender]

Sorry, for new beginners I have a full 25 stage course that is free on my blog that covers everything that you should need to know when starting out. If you would like to know how to varnish a bead head fly kzbin.info/www/bejne/qWLagJ-obdaqY9k Hope this helps.

[@seanearnest]

@@michaelkane4729 Instead of whinging for somebody to hold your hand through the entire process, maybe try watching a variety of videos and learn for yourself. Remember that this is a free offering, you're entitled to precisely nothing.

[@michaelkane4729]

@@seanearnest Fuck off.

[@ИринаБаранова-п8р]

Klass!!!

[@netrich143]

💣

[@Thefeatherbender]

Thanks

[@armjamal1]

why u counting during chenilling?

[@Thefeatherbender]

OCD

[@АлександрПлахотный-е4у]

Класс!👍🤝🇰🇿

[@Thefeatherbender]

Thanks

[@Hockeyfan9884]

I tied and tried this fly. If you don't use some saliva spit and your toothbrush to comb this fly, the results may not be that great. Great video however and thanks for sharing.

[@Thefeatherbender]

Hi Steve, thanks, yes you are correct it takes a little time to get them perfect.

[@lriques1]

Very good, mas voce precisando tomar uma cachaça, ta tremendo de mais ! Rsrsrs.

[@cachi-7878]

Debatable whether this is a betta bugga. 😉. Nice job though.

[@Thefeatherbender]

Thanks Cachi, what ever floats your boat!

[@elkhunter3349]

Is the wooly bugger for you or the fish? Fish don't care about the flies being pretty.

[@Thefeatherbender]

Mostly for me, fish don't care but I do! It's my OCD.

[@cachi-7878]

You’ve obviously never tied flies. Of course you want to tie fishable flies but for the vast majority of tiers, they also tie for themselves as it is their craft, hobby and pride.