The Flashback Pheasant Tail
Effective in small mountain streams and large rivers alike, be sure to stay well-supplied with a variety of sizes of the Flashback Pheasant Tail, with bead heads and without.
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1. About The Flashback Pheasant Tail
The FPT is a simple variant on the already effective, natural looking Pheasant Tail nymph. It simply adds a strip of flashabou, to garner more attention when conditions warrent, such as spring flows when water is deeper and murkier.
2. When and How To Fish It
Use mostly with a bead head for more attraction and weight, but use without a bead head as a dropper or to fish higher in the water column. If you rig a double nymph, use a less noticeable fly behind this one (attractor used to bring trout closer to see a more natural pattern), on a slightly thinner tippet.
Fish the Flashback exactly as you would a natural nymph imitation using the following techniques:
- Under conditions where more attraction is needed to get the trout’s attention – such as spring flows
- Dead drift by itself, or ideally as a dropper off a Wooly Bugger or large dry such as a Chubby Chernobyl
- Use as a “searching fly” to locate fish when you are fishing a new or unfamiliar water
- Be sure to try different sizes and with/without flash to ascertain what they are taking
- Use a tungsten bead variant as an effective Euro-nymphing fly
3. Tie It, or Buy It?
For fly tying, this is an-intermediate level fly. As a smaller fly, it has less room for error than the larger attractors and streamers. It requires a range of skills and several different materials, so for beginners is a good one to challenge yourself to move to intermediate level. For experts, there are a few variations to consider, but this fly is mostly one to tie a bunch in different sizes to be ready for stream-side and save yourself a little money instead of purchasing.
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.4. Basic Flashback Pheasant Tail Fly Tying Recipe Card
There are many variations on the CC, here’s one of our favorites, or substitute your own colors and materials:
- Hook: use a standard nymph hook, or dry is OK as well, from sizes #14-20, such as the Tiemco 200R
- Thread: use brown or orange, such as UTC 70
- Tail & Body: pheasant tail fibers
- Wire: narrow to medium thickness wire, copper or gold, to fit size of fly
- Wing Case: mylar in flat pearl, or alternatively Flashabou
- Thorax: peacock herl
- Legs: any soft fibers such as hen back, partridge, or other soft fibers (such as for a soft hackle fly)
5. How To Tie The Flashback Pheasant Tail
We think that this video by TightLineVideos gives a great, detailed and close up breakdown of this fly.
Flashback Pheasant Tail
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