Ultimate dry

[greenie58]

Its not a trick question, what materials would you use to create the ultimate dry fly, a dry that requires the least amount of maintenance and floats like a cork, and which hook? please no foam in the materials

[shpeil]

Sedgehog? Kamasan B160 or B170, deer hair, seals fur, rib, and treat the wing: I've tied them on a size 10 B160 and had them keep up 16 feet of fluro and two flies on the droppers. Just needs a very slow figure of eight to keep the leader fairly straight and high in the water.

[3lbgrayling]

I'd add a G&H sedge to the sedgehog as being pretty robust, High floating dry.

Jim

[falsecast]

I'd add a Griffiths Gnat to the G&H sedge and the sedgehog

Tim

[mikgee]

My ultimate dry might not pass the "floats like a cork criteria" but it accounts for nearly all my dry fly fishing and fish, in fact it never fails to amaze me how good it is.

Pheasant Tail Klink.

I use a Partridge 15BNX Klink-hamer Extreme Size 16, PT body with copper wire rib, Claret SLF thorax, Light brown hackle and an orange post.

I always use mucilin to treat it (no it does not clogg up) and it floats very well in fast flowing water, you can see it miles away (orange post (that does not appear to bother the fish). Works well fished static and on slow moving glides also.

I am not the best fly tier in the world but the trout love it all season.

[richardw]

Originally Posted by greenie58

Its not a trick question, what materials would you use to create the ultimate dry fly, a dry that requires the least amount of maintenance and floats like a cork, and which hook? please no foam in the materials

That title caught my attention because over the last few seasons I have been working on the ultimate fly for fish eating Sherry Spinners. The result is a fly that is so deadly that it almost becomes boring to use it. Fish eating Sherry Spinners always take this fly if it is presented correctly and they take it with the exact calm and innocent, unhurried way that they are eating the naturals. The materials are seal's fur for the body, silk tying thread and TMC Aero wing for the wings. There is no hackle. This concoction is slim, as per the real thing, but is still capable of keeping afloat even when tied on a Drennan Super Specialist hook, a very strong and quite heavy hook. I use Supa Float to start with and after each fish a shake in the Top Ride cannister to keep it in fluffed up order.

richard

[shuck raider]

Only two materials required - CDC and Elk

[black knight]

G & H sedge on a size 10 Kamasan B170.

BK

[Spider]

My ultimate dry is my CDC and Herl, which I have mentioned here before, certainly for rivers.

I would also second the Griffiths Gnat, and the brilliant CDC and Elk hair caddis by Hans W.

I dont rate the Klink as much as some...its brilliant for the NZ style, but gets more refusals than many flies in my opinion.

Finally ( so much for one fly!!! ) I have used a small Elk Hair and Hares ear from Bob Wyatt's DVD this year and its been very impressive. He claims to use it 80% of the time, even for spinners, and i have found it great.

[maharg]

Originally Posted by greenie58

Its not a trick question, what materials would you use to create the ultimate dry fly, a dry that requires the least amount of maintenance and floats like a cork, and which hook? please no foam in the materials

Try this one out. Not the ultimate dry but meets your criteria.

YouTube - ‪DavieMcPhail's Channel‬‏

YouTube - ‪DavieMcPhail's Channel‬‏