Tying (and fishing) the Mark One Mod Zero Mayfly

I call this generic mayfly pattern the MK 1 Mod 0 Mayfly. It can be tied in any size with any color combination to imitate almost any mayfly.
Hook: #12-18 dry fly
Thread: Any color
Tail: Hackle barbs, any color
Body: Synthetic dubbing, any color
Hackle: Dry fly hackle, any color
** Some of the popular books used on this channel: **
Fly Pattern Encyclopedia: amzn.to/34U0rUe
Mike Valla's "Tying the Founding Flies," 2015, amzn.to/354oSir
Valla's "Tying and Fishing Bucktails..." 2016, amzn.to/3Jg2Mys
Valla's "Tying Catskill-Style Dry Flies," 2020, amzn.to/3DmYOjJ
Valla's "Classic Streamer Fly Box," 2020, amzn.to/3n3Vakf
Dave Hughes, "Essential Trout Flies," 2017, amzn.to/3lbCZYX
Hughes, "Nymphs for Streams and Stillwaters," amzn.to/3HC2jpc
Hughes, "Wet Flies," 2015, amzn.to/33ac3lQ
David Klausmeyer's "Favorite Flies," 2020, amzn.to/3oeSNMa
Randle Scott Stetzer's "Flies, the Best One Thousand," 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
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. Thanks for stopping by.

[@keithr4224]

If all you need is to trick’m for a nanosecond, this fly makes sense. Love your teachings. Been watching many years. Thanks

[@SavageFlies]

Well thank you Keith! I really appreciate it and that means a lot to hear my friend. :-)

[@tomt5176]

G’morning Matt. Love the simplicity of this fly and your no nonsense approach to tying and teaching. Always nice seeing your posts. Thanks Matt.

[@SavageFlies]

Well thank you Tom! I appreciate the kind words my friend. :-)

[@ZacharyBobbie1611]

Finally, a video before breakfast! Thank you so much for sharing, Matt! I always appreciate the video as always! Tight lines! 😎🎣

[@ybarrajc]

My type of fly not a lot of materials, quick and easy and productive. Thanks for sharing Matt. Have a blessed day, my friend.

[@jimholland1592]

Good morning Matt☕️☕️ Nice bug, and you always find fishy water 😉

[@Jd-yc3gw]

Good morning Matt. ☕️ Nice simple fly today. Enjoyed the river footage too. Take care and have a great weekend.

[@SavageFlies]

Appreciate it John! I did have a nice long weekend at the farm. Only one morning on the Savage, and one great fish (on another simple caddis dry fly), but man oh man, I didn't have the GoPro pointed right and the footage wasn't usable. I'll get 'em next time! Hope you're doing well. :-)

[@tompeterson559]

I often think complicated flies are tied for the tier and simple flies are tied for the fish. Enjoyed seeing you on the water, as usual! Thank you!

[@SavageFlies]

Right on Tom! I think 95% of the flies I've used this spring/summer have been simple ones. The few exceptions might be the big hoppers I've been using. They're not usually complicated patterns, but often have a lot going on and aren't quick ties. But these simple little mayflies and nymphs have been my go-to flies all year. :-)

[@jeffreystone7327]

Good morning Matt. Nice little dry fly. Thank you for sharing. That fly seemed to do the job for you. Again you have shown us beautiful fish in a gorgeous stream. Man, that area would have been tough fishing for me. I would have been spending more time looking out for “Bigfoot”. 😂 Have a great week buddy.

[@SavageFlies]

Haha! I didn't see any bigfoot, but I did have three deer sneak up on me and cross the river about ten feet downstream of me. Gave me quite a startle, and then I moved and startled them. :-)

[@jeffreystone7327]

@@SavageFlies Turn about is fair play 😂. Well it definitely was a beautiful area.

[@jeffreystone7327]

Quick question Matt. Have you ever seen Ted’s Brook Trout Streamer? From Ted Kraimer, a guide out of Michigan. Nice looking fly. Looks like a nice fall pattern to use this time of year. If you get some spare time take a look and see what you think? Thank you Sir.

[@edwardmlotkiewicz2343]

The Rapidan is a great stream. That, the Middle (Conway) and the South were right near where my son used to live in Greene County. We fished them often. And, great Mod. 0 fly. Quick and easy. Thanks,Matt.

[@SavageFlies]

Cool to hear Ed! I wanted to go to the Conway but the road to it was closed so I hit the Rapidan a second time. The others were the Robinson and Rose. And of course the Shenandoah River. :-)

[@garyproctor6123]

Simple flies have their own beauty and place in our fly boxes. Take Care

[@SavageFlies]

You got that right Gary! I think I've fished these simple flies 90% of the time this summer. And I've had a few good days on the water. :-)

[@jiefrog]

Love your videos Matt you got me tying my own flies :) can you talk us through your choice of tools as someone new to tying silly things like choosing the right bobbin holder, scissors and hair stacker and what not can be quite daunting , I have learned so much from your videos and now have a really decent collection of book you have talked about on your channel as well as a add on to a hobby I already loved , Thanks again I look forward to following you videos for years to come 🎣

[@SavageFlies]

Wow, thank you for this great comment! I have talked about some of the things you mention here over the last couple of years. I've got a couple of playlists that might help. One is a general tool review that has some vises, and bobbins and such. Now some of these videos are old, but the content is still pretty relevant. kzbin.info/aero/PLKgBFFHhdX5YkBTsLl0MUUgO0kAVwMCMX Another playlist has some general how-to and DIY stuff. kzbin.info/aero/PLKgBFFHhdX5YoLl6ind_eQpEYFjyDEaYE Now I don't think I've ever reviewed a hair stacker, but I can tell you that I like the heavier ones best. Umpqua dreamstream has one that I use a lot (it's kind of blue and silver), and Dr. Slick makes a solid brass one that I like a lot too. I hope this helps some. Thanks again for the kind words!

[@charlieboutin3341]

Awesome Matt! Beautiful place and fish. Thanks for taking us along..and for the fly pattern also. I love simple stuff that works. 🙂👍👌🎣

[@SavageFlies]

Well thank you Charlie! Now that I think about it, I don't think I've used any complex patterns all year. Maybe that one funky crawdad a few months ago, but I've been keeping it simple all summer. :-)

[@glenndotter5065]

Love those Brookies! So much fun. Who needs monster trout..right..

[@SavageFlies]

Exactly Glenn! I did get back to the Savage last weekend and managed one nice chunky brown. Unfortunately my GoPro was pointing up in the trees and the footage was terrible. :-(

[@davidveilleux4688]

I just love simple flies . Brooktrout are my favorite. Thanks for sharing..

[@SavageFlies]

They can be a ton of fun David! And on some of these tiny waters, half the battle is just figuring out how to get a fly in front of them. :-)

[@DarrellOlson]

Great simple fly. I'm currently in the White Mountains of NH and plan a day for some brookies in some small streams.

[@melchurch3019]

That stream in the Shenandoahs looks perfect for tenkara. Thanks for showing the fishing possibilities along with your tying.

[@SavageFlies]

You're most welcome Mel! I appreciate the note my friend. :-)

[@leemowers9395]

Thanks Matt for sharing, a great day fishing for these little brookies, i love the generic mayfly, some of the little mayflies I see have tales up to twice the body length. Great little fly, thanks my friend.

[@SavageFlies]

Well thank you Lee! I appreciate the kind comment my friend. :-)

[@joeduca8582]

Nice 🪰 fly Matt. You were in the pink fishing that MOMZ! Beautiful creek too. Thanks.

[@SavageFlies]

Haha! You got it Joe. You should have seen me this last weekend. The Savage was high and off colored, but I managed one trophy sized brown. And my GoPro was pointing at the trees. Man, what a bummer! Tomorrow's video was going to be awesome. Oh well. I'll get 'em next time. :-) Hope you're doing well.

[@paulenglish1741]

Wow, Matt, Love the matching pink shirt!

[@SavageFlies]

Haha! I didn't even think of that but now that you mention it... :-)

[@yvonpoitras916]

Love it Matt when you show us some fishing videos 😊

[@SavageFlies]

Appreciate it! I almost had some fishing footage from last weekend but totally messed up the camera angle!

[@AlAraujo-zr2nh]

Nice fly, enjoyed the fishing video. Have a great day!

[@burtonbrocious171]

Nice simple fly matt good break from more intricate patterns tks 😊

[@BakerVidz]

Great bug! Thanks for talking through your strategy when approaching a hole. You have a knack for giving just enough info with being pedantic about it. Thanks.

[@markfritch3168]

Great fun in the sun! I like the material you used for the body in that fly. Will need to pick some up. Have a great week and thanks for sharing.

[@SavageFlies]

Well thank you Mark! I appreciate the kind words my friend. :-)

[@draco1157]

Hi Matt, nice pattern. Next time I will give it a try. We'll see. Tight lines.

[@briangoddard9791]

matt great fly! Beautiful location, I might add you threw me off on the tying portion with no music. Thanks for sharing

[@SavageFlies]

Thanks Brian! I totally forgot about the music on this one until after I was done editing. :-)

[@BeyerOutdoors]

Thank you for the instructions & fishing video.

[@bigdaddy99929]

Great little dry fly. Thx Matt! 😊

[@SavageFlies]

Appreciate it Clyde!

[@davehall2160]

Love easy flies Thanks for the video Matt

[@SavageFlies]

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

[@mindfungus]

Looks like a good one to learn as a beginner. Thank you.

[@SavageFlies]

You're most welcome my friend! Thanks for the note. :-)

[@DB-iu8yl]

Great little box filler. That looks like a good one for me to try in size 18 to get some practice in that small. The Matt for another great fly.

[@SavageFlies]

You got that right Dru! Simple flies like this are the easiest to get down to an 18 or 20. I couldn't even envision trying to tie something like a Royal Coachman on an 18. :-)

[@edwardchavez5627]

How are you doing Sir Matt? Nice footage nice looking fly as well. Thank you for always sharing.

[@SavageFlies]

Well thank you Edward! I hope you're doing well my friend. And I hope that Texas heat is finally letting up for you. :-)

[@TERRYBIGGENDEN]

Nce practcal pattern and delightful fishing.:-)

[@SavageFlies]

Well thank you Terry! I appreciate the note my friend. :-)

[@crowdaddy8355]

Hey Matt. Sorry I haven’t commented in a while. I’m going through major back issues right now. I love the color choices it will be great on my home waters.

[@SavageFlies]

No worries Chad! I'm not going anywhere my friend. :-) Back issues are no joke. Best of luck getting through that!

[@wayneandrews1278]

Great video ty

[@EdwardLawton-jm1gt]

Did you say you lost a fly in a tree?? I thought I was the only one who did that consistently 😂

[@benperchalski4825]

When is your book coming out or did you already put one out and I missed it? "Matt's favorite flies from history" Do it in an old fashion way of diagrams

[@SavageFlies]

Ha! I have been so busy this year, it's not even started yet! But man, I think about it all the time. One idea, is "Fifty Flies in the Fifty States." Maybe the most popular, or most unique fly from each state. I just have to start making the time to actually get it started. Thanks for the note and the gentle reminder that I need to get busy!

[@benperchalski4825]

@@SavageFlies I like the sounds of that. Hopefully you are able to make that happen at some point.ive only been tying a year as of May this passed and I follow several great tying folks but I watch you the most out of everyone because of the history lessons you bring and because I'm next door in Delaware so a lot of the flies you tie translate very well for the general region. Downside is Delaware doesn't have much in the means of easily accessible areas for fly fishing or fly fishing friendly spots around me due to ugly waters and or vegetation plus I took an injury last year at work. Keep it up though it's a great style you use in your videos

[@FlyTyer1948]

Basic fly & lovely water. Great combination with a wonderful sound track from the burbling stream. I am a bit suspicious about that pink dubbing. Since you aren’t sure about the dubbing ingredients, I wonder if some came from an indispensable source? (Pun intended). Sorry. ;-)

[@SavageFlies]

Haha! I didn't even think of the Tups when making this thing. Now get this... I pulled another great wild brown out of the Savage this weekend. I was going all out and filmed the tying intro on the river, had some great b-roll, and even did an outro when I was done fishing. Then when I got home and looked at the footage, the GoPro was pointing up in the trees. You could hear me talking about the great fish, battling it and finally getting it to the net. But you couldn't even see the water. What a bummer! That's only happened a few times, but it's never happened when I had a great catch. (You would like the pattern I was using too. Another caddis dry fly. Similar to tomorrow's video, of the elk hair variety, but slightly different from Troth's original.)

[@FlyTyer1948]

@@SavageFlies ouch! :-0

[@chasselynch5733]

Simple =success