How to Tie a Peanut Butter Fly

The peanut butter fly, aptly named for the peanut bunker prey that striped bass and other fish species hunt, was created by Enrico Puglisi in 1991 to imitate the look of the bunker. The fly is made for durability by using synthetic fiber instead of all natural fibers like marabou, hackle or bucktail. Some fly fishing purists believe flies made of natural fibers look more "alive" than synthetic ones -- a trait that may require synthetic flies to be tied with a closer attention to detail.

Things You'll Need

  • Vise
  • Scissors
  • Pencil-point soldering iron
  • Gamakatsu SC15 No. 1 to 5/0 hook
  • .004 mono thread fishing line
  • Gray, pink and white EP body fibers
  • Pearl Magic and Holographic Silver EP sparkle fibers
  • Red EP silky fibers
  • 6mm Blue Pearl EP plastic eyes
  • Zap-CA and Zap-A-Dap-A-Goo II glue
  • 20-pound hard mono (optional for weed guard)
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Instructions

    • 1

      Place the hook in the vise, wrap six turns of the clear mono before the curve of the hook, wrap 2 turns of Pearl colored sparkle fiber over the spot where you've wrapped the mono thread. Bunch a small amount of red fiber before the bend of the hook to imitate the gills, cutting the red fiber to roughly a quarter inch.

    • 2

      Bunch an amount of gray fibers as thick as the hook shank when compressed, and wrap them around the hook shank with three turns. Cut the fibers to six inches. The key here is to ensure half the fibers point towards the front on the hook while the other half points towards the back.

    • 3

      Fold the forward facing gray fibers towards the back and wrap them around the hook shank another three times. At this point, the gray fibers should make a general oblong shape, beginning to take the shape of a small Bunker fish.

    • 4

      Cut two lengths of pink fiber to five inches, half the thickness of the gray fibers. Tie both sections over the center of the hook shank where the mono thread is wrapped, allowing the pink streamers to run down the middle of each side on the fly. Your fly should now have the oblong shape with gray/ white fibers split by pink on either side.

    • 5

      Lay a small bunch of Holographic Silver fiber around the hook shank, wrap two times and pull the silver fibers towards the back of the fly. Apply a small dab of the Zap-CA glue to secure the fibers together and repeat the silver fiber laying process four times, gluing between layers.

    • 6

      Comb the fly fibers together, backwards, to blend the fiber elements. Shape the fly into a squashed oval, like the shape of a small minnow, using scissors.

    • 7

      Burn eye holes through the fibers, near the hook's eye, on both sides of the hook shank using a pencil-point soldering iron.

    • 8

      Cut the plastic stem from the back of each eye, leaving only a small nub for the glue to attach to. Place a dab of Zap-A-Dap-A-Goo II glue in each eye hole and place each eye in its hole. Cut away any loose fiber from around the eyes. Finally, press the eyes together against the shank of the hook.

    • 9

      Allow the fly to dry overnight and you'll be ready to use your new Peanut Butter fly.