Parachute vs. CDC

[dwiltshire]

For more turbulent water:



Hook: 15BNX #20
Thread: Sheer 14/0, tan
Abdomen: Orvis Spectrablend, light olive
Rib: Tying thread darkened with perm. marker
Thorax: Orvis Spectrablend, peacock
Wing post: Funky Fibre, green
Hackle: Silver Badger

For smooth, glassy glides, and picky fish:



Hook: 15BNX #20
Thread: Sheer 14/0, tan
Abdomen: Orvis Spectrablend, light olive
Rib: Tying thread darkened with perm. marker
Thorax: Orvis Spectrablend, peacock
Loop Wing: CDC, natural

[wcb]

Some sweet flies there Dave.

That Orvis spectrablend dubbing in Peacock is superb dubbing and gets used a lot in this household.

WCB

[tigermoth]

Dave... stunning as always. What is the rationale behind the greater suitability of the latter pattern for the slicks and smooth water? Footprint?

[dwiltshire]

Thanks both

Originally Posted by wcb

Some sweet flies there Dave.

That Orvis spectrablend dubbing in Peacock is superb dubbing and gets used a lot in this household.

WCB

I think spectrablend is one of the nicest dubbings for small dries and nymphs. It has a certain 'je ne sais quoi'.....

Originally Posted by tigermoth

Dave... stunning as always. What is the rationale behind the greater suitability of the latter pattern for the slicks and smooth water? Footprint?

Exactly Dave. Sits low with a nice footprint. Sometimes in turblent water a small CDC loop like this will be drowned. IMO a hackled fly is better in these situations. However, on very smooth water, the footprint is smaller and neater with the CDC loop and will only sink when the fish decides it's time Confidence & preference too I guess

[mayflyjunky]

Originally Posted by dwiltshire

Sits low with a nice footprint. Sometimes in turblent water a small CDC loop like this will be drowned. IMO a hackled fly is better in these situations. However, on very smooth water, the footprint is smaller and neater with the CDC loop and will only sink when the fish decides it's time Confidence & preference too I guess

Great bit of info there Dave

Believe it or not I wasn't aware of that

Tidy looking flies Mate

[dwiltshire]

Originally Posted by mayflyjunky

Great bit of info there Dave

Believe it or not I wasn't aware of that

Tidy looking flies Mate

To be honest, you could fish with parachutes all day and still catch fish. However, I found that the number of takes I managed increased with a change to CDC when presented with the smoother water. In faster water, the footprint is somewhat ruined and therefore, a well hackled parachute is the best option. As I said it's also for picky fish. If you're fishing a para and getting takes - don't change... but when they're a bit more fussy, I find a CDC emerger often imporves chances.

The CDC is a little more delicate. The other option is a para-CDC or a the CDC spray I posted a while back. Also for a very delicate presentation, albeit a 'larger' foortprint:

Spray:


Para-CDC (in this case a dun pattern... but eaily tied as an emerger):




~Dave

[mayflyjunky]

Thanks Mate

That para CDC, is it tied in as you would a normal hackle around the post???

[dwiltshire]

Originally Posted by mayflyjunky

Thanks Mate

That para CDC, is it tied in as you would a normal hackle around the post???

Para-CDC is tied with the fibres in a split thread. Then woun wind the thread around the post.

I think Mark (Buzz) may have an SBS somewhere... I'll take a look. I'm not sue if he does it the same as me... but the result will be the same.

[maharg]

Lovely tapered bodies there mate

[dwiltshire]

Thanks maharg

A more heavily hackled version here too:



Cheers,
Dave.