Getting Wired

by Mike S. Ropter

When Troth gave us the Elk Hair Caddis, he also gave us a technique that is now, alas, often forgotten or omitted.  Most tyers of the Elk Hair Caddis don't even think about a wire rib (too much trouble) and simply tie in a hackle at the butt, which is palmered forward toward the eye of the hook.  Troth's gold wire rib was not meant to add flash or body segmentation, which it actually does in both cases, but rather to protect the delicate hackle stem against those big toothy critters which ate often his fly.  Troth's innovative technique was rather to tie in the hackle at the eye and palmer it to the butt, where two or three wraps of the gold wire captured the hackle tip, which wire was then counter wound through the hackle to the eye.  When you do this, be sure the dull side hackle faces forward producing nice forward thrusting hackle points, which make for a good skate.  Also note well that the rearward palmered hackle will be wound counter to forward wound wire, thus making for a very durable fly.

The technique has widespread application, but none greater than in tying the ubiquitous wooly bugger and its many progeny.  Here, however, when the hackle is tied in at the eye, shinny side faces forward so that the hackle sweeps nicely back.  Be sure to take a couple collar hackle turns at the eye before the rearward palmer is started. The hackle tip is again trapped with a couple of turns of wire, which wire, in Troth fashion, is wound forward through the hackle to the hook eye.  The hackle tip, as well as the wire rib, can be either snipped or broken off.  Read the flip side of your Whiting bugger pack if there are any questions.

The real challenge for counter wound wire ribbing comes in tying Spey flies, except when they're headed for the shadow box, not the stream.  Unless the local Great Blue Herron has been surreptitiously put down or your soul sold to Mephisto for a Blue Eared Pheasant, constant battle is waged against the thick stems of corn fed pheasant rump or the four buck pack of burnt spey hackle.  No matter how well soaked, split, or prepared, the spey hackle stem often inopportunely seems to either split (if tied in by its butt) or break off (if tied in by its tip) just as you've started to palmer it forward over that great looking Dallas Fly body upon which you so meticulously labored getting just right.  Not to worry, tie in a new spey hackle at the head and using the Troth technique take it back to be caught in the waiting arms of the wire rib. Again note, the front mounted spey hackle can be palmered back either along the existing tinsel or floss ribbing or counter thereto, but the Troth wire rib must be wrapped counter to whichever road is taken by the spey hackle.

Horror of horrors, the wire rib at the rear snaps!!  Again not to worry, tie in a wire rib at the fore and bury it alongside the existing ribbing as it's wound back, to be held at the rear again awaiting the also rearward palmered spey hackle, which is again trapped as the wire rib is wrapped forward videlicet Troth.  In this scenario, the spey hackle must also be wrapped rearwards in the direction of the existing ribs because the wire rib must be be counter wrapped from its rear position.

Confusing?? You bet!! Read, or just look at the pictures, in Shewey on tying Speys and Dees for a better understanding.  Veverka must be shadow boxing because he neglects the counter rib necessary for a fishing fly.  Getting the counter rib through the spey hackle presents a separate challenge which can be met with a rotary vice, bodkin and lots of experience, but makes for a real durable fishable fly.  Use your flies for fishing; get wired a la Troth!!