Proper Way to Tie a Muddler

Muddlers are deer hair flies that are effective when going for trout when used as a dry fly and for steelhead when used as a wake fly. Muddlers are a basic fly and need to be heavy on tans and browns. Basic muddler design allows for different hook sizes, depending on the average size of fish you go for. Use a larger hook for areas with a larger average fish size and smaller hooks when the average size is smaller.

Things You'll Need

  • Needle nose grips
  • Clippers
  • Brown or tan thread
  • 1-12 longshank hook
  • 3 brindle turkey tail feathers
  • Gold or copper coil
  • Deer hair
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Instructions

    • 1

      Grip your hook with the vise grips and point the hook barb up and in toward the tool. Wrap the shank of the hook with the thread, beginning one-third down from the eye of the hook. Wrap down to the beginning of the hook curve.

    • 2

      Place two of the turkey feathers so they butterfly out at the end of the wrap near the hook curve. Wrap the feathers to the shank so they remain feathered out like wings from the shank.

    • 3

      Wrap the feather bodies to the shank, closing in the wings, leaving the turkey feathers secure against the shank and pointing back from the curve.

    • 4

      Coil the wire around the shank so it is spaced out by 1 mm between coil wraps.

    • 5

      Wrap a feather at the top of the rap near the eye. Feather it down and push deer hair over the feather so it forms a cone around the hook shank, near the eye.

    • 6

      Spin the deer hair around the shank so it fluffs up and forms a larger cone. Trim the hair so the cone is equal in diameter around the shank. Remove from the grips.