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Muddler Minnow
Muddler Minnow
Tying Instructions
1. Mash down the barb and attach the thread to the 3/4 position of the shank. You want to keep this front 1/4 section clean for subsequent hair spinning. Wrap back to the bend of the which will be your tail tie-in position.
2. Clip to Mottled Turkey Wing segments that are matching for the tail. Place the segments so they face each other by the dull side. The tail length should be about 1/4 the shank length from the end of the bend. You need to secure the segments by bringing a loose thread loop over the segments and pinch wrapping the feather fibers together with a tight wrap. A few more tight wraps to secure.
3. Anchor the butt sections of the turkey wing feather with some wraps going forward to the 3/4 position.
4. Trim the remaining butt sections off and secure with a few more wraps. Now anchor a piece of flat gold tinsel at the 3/4 position. You’ll need about 6 inches of material.
5. Wrap the tinsel back to the tail and then back again to the 3/4 position keeping the body smooth and level.
6. Clip a small clump of Gray Squirrel Tail Hair. Clean the underfur and even the tips. Place the clump so that the tips reach the midsection of the tail and anchor this clump at the 3/4 position with some thread wraps.
7. Clip off the butts of the hair wing and secure with some additional wraps with a tapered, smooth thread base.
8. Clip two Mottled Turkey wing segments that are larger that the tail pieces. The length of this wing should be the same as the squirrel hair. Again, place the matching segments face of face with the dull sides on the inside and the point of the segments down towards the tail. A pinch wrap is used, compressing the fibers equally to the top of the shank on each side of the squirrel hair clump.
9. Clip off the butts and secure the ends with smooth thread wraps
10. Clip a clump of Gray Coastal Deer Hair. Clean the underfur and even the tips in a stacker. Measure the tips so that the do not exceed half of the Turkey wing from the tie-in position in front of the wing. To properly spin, place three wraps around the clump not too tightly. The second and third wraps will flare the material while the third wrap is pulled tighter to enable the material to spin around the shank. Once spun, apply 3 more wraps to secure the hair.
11. Wrap the thread forward through the hair to the front of the bundle. With your thumb and finger, push the hair material towards the wing to compress the hair and provide room for another spun clump.
12. Clip another small bundle of deer hair and trim the tips off. Attach the hair the same way as before and compact the hair tightly to the previous bundle.
13. Bring the thread through the hair to just behind the eye for a whip finish. It you still have sufficient roomand you desire a tightly spun head, add another clump of deer hair .
14. Trim the head hair into the shape you prefer. Often a cone shape is preferred to get a streamlined appearance.
| Materials
to Order Material, click the link |
|
|---|---|
| Hook | TMC 9395 #4-8 |
| Thread | Danville Black 6/0 |
| Head | Premo Deer Hair , clipped |
| Tail | Small bunch of Mottled Oak Turkey Quill |
| Body | Flat Gold Tinsel |
| Underwing | Grey Squirrel Tail |
| Wing | Small bunch of Mottled Oak Turkey Quill |
The Muddler Minnow
Don Gapen designed the Muddler Minnow in 1936 to imitate a sculpin, known as the Cockatush Minnow, to catch large Brook Trout on the Nipigon River in Ontario, Canada. He lived in Orillia, Ontario before moving to Anoka , Minnesota. His inspiration for this pattern came from watching Ojibway Indian guides using dead minnows caught along the river for bait. Bringing one of these minnows back to camp, Don tied up a dozen flies as an imitation.
Original Pattern
The original pattern of the Muddler Minnow had a tail of brown mottled turkey wing and a wing of Gray squirrel tail hair with mottled turkey wing segments on each side of it. The length of the wing was even to the tail. The collar was a clump of gray deer body hair that reached the bend of the hook. And, it also had a head of gray deer body hair that was flared yet somewhat sparse and untrimmed, with some hair butts extending beyond the hook eye. The combination of high floating deer hair and the mottled colorations gave this fly a unique imitation of many bottom dwelling baitfish. It became one of the most popular flies for imitating sculpin but, today, is also used to imitate minnows, grasshoppers, stoneflies, and crickets.
Modifications
The pattern has been modified with different materials for the underwing such as calf tail and synthetic fibers. The deer hair is substituted by dyed colors, elk, or antelope hair. The head is also much denser than the original pattern and modified by clipping to either float or sink the fly. With these different modifications, the Muddler Minnow could be used as a dry fly, streamer, nymph, or terrestrial. Many of these modifications can actually be attributed to Don Gapen, himself, during the 1940’s and 50’s.
Dan Bailey, of Livingston, Montana, marketed the fly and was instrumental in achieving it’s popularity. Dan also made some modifications to the fly to enhance its ability with the large Browns of Yellowstone. He replaced the turkey wing with marabou and and the squirrel underwing with calf tail. This became the Marabou Muddler.
Target fish
The Muddler Minnow can be used for both trout and bass. Small muddlers can also be used for crappies and sunfish. Applying some floatant to the fly on a floating line in a freestone stream and you will have an excellent grasshopper imitation. For bass, you can float it on the surface like an injured baitfish or use a sinking line so that it drifts over the weed bed and rock piles. Even though the pattern is an older one, the fly still catches fish as evidenced by being the 1986 winner of the Jackson Hole’s One-Fly Tournament.
Variations
Fishskull Helmet Mini Sculpin, Olive
| Hook | TMC 9395 #4-8 |
| Thread | Danville Black 6/0 |
| Head | Black Dyed Deer Hair , clipped |
| Collar | Black Dyed Deer Hair |
| Tail | Small bunch of Barred Mallard Flank Fibers |
| Ribbing | Small bunch of Oval Silver Tinsel |
| Body | Black Uni-Yarn |
| Underwing | Grey Squirrel Tail |
| Wing | Small bunch of Black Dyed Turkey Quill |