The Leggy Blond - Hawaiian Bonefish Fly (step-by-step)

Well I'm a month and a bit back from Hawaii now, and before I put away the saltwater tying materials I thought I would share the "killer fly" I used in Kona--the Leggy Blond.

I don't suppose it should be called a killer fly as almost all the big bruisers I hooked managed to shake off, break off or open the hooks I used. Still, it was the fly and sometimes the only fly that worked all over the west coast of the island (bottom permitting). It's loosely based on the "90%" fly developed by noted Oahu guide Oliver Owens, and other crazy charlie style patterns I've used on the islands.

Like most of my flies the construction is fairly simple: six materials including thread and hourglass eyes. I took my time on the one below, but you can crank them out fairly quickly with an in-line rotary if you're in a hurry.

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Leggy Blond

(step-by-step)

Recipe:

• Hook: #6-4 Mustad 3407, 34007, TMC811s, T800s or similar
• Thread: White or tan 12/0 or 8/0, or invisible mending thread
• Eyes: Gold medium hourglass w/ painted red or yellow eyes
• Legs: Pearl perfect rubber (or medium to large rubber legs depending on fly size)
• Body: Tan rayon 4-strand floss (two stands) or similar
• Underwing: 4 Strands of rootbeer midge flash doubled
• Wing: Ginger rabbit cut from zonker strip
• Head: Thread coloured with permanent marker (optional)
• Leg Markings: Brown permanent marker and red nail polish
• Other: Superglue 

 Step 1: Tie-in thread

Step 2: Tie-in hourglass eyes and secure with a drop of superglue. They should be "gold"--alternate colours can be used but I generally felt that the gold was key. The eye colour probably isn't as important as the metal, but I generally used red or yellow.

Step 3: Turn the hook over, bring the thread forward and tie-in the rubber leg material. I tie it along the far top first before folding it back, securing it on the near-top such that the leg material doesn't overlap (as shown).

Step 4: Secure the legs along the body, stopping just before the bend. Return the thread ahead of the eyes. Do not trim the legs at this point--it is easier to do this at the end.

Step 5: Tie-in tan floss at the front of the body and wrap around the eyes and along the shank in two layers, returning to the front of the fly to tie-off. Depending on your timing you can coat the floss with brushable superglue.

 

Step 6: Tie-in the flash underwing as per the leg material, folding the four strands to make eight for the completed wing. Trim to length.

Step 7: Trim a bunch of ginger rabbit fur from the zonker strip and tie-in the wing. I like the mobility of rabbit, but getting long enough fur can be tricky in the larger sizes. Owens uses arctic fox.

 

Step 8: Neatly finish the head and (optionally) colour it with an appropriate coloured permanent marker (rootbeer in this case).

Step 9: Colour barring on the legs with a brown permanent marker, trim to the desired length and "paint" the tips with red nail polish.

fin

*nb: You can enlarge any of the above shots by clicking on the image.