Tubesicle
By Travis Johnson
Like all good fishing flies, the Tubesicle was invented out of necessity - we needed a fly that kept a large sihouette when swinging, yet was not so bulky as to make the fly impossible for a mortal angler to cast. Since tube flies have been regaining popularity steadily over the past ten years, we took some of the styles of modern Atlanitc salmon tiers and simplified the process by keeping the body simple. The big twist in the tubesicle is that it utilizes not one, but two turbo cones in the front end - this helps the fly retain a neutral density in the water (it is not head heavy nor hook heavy - but balanced just right.)
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Step 1
In the European style of tying tube flies, we start with two angle cut pieces of plastic tubing. One piece is black medium sized Frodin (FITS) tubing (and the second piece is orange extra small sized Frodin tubing - each piece is cut to approximately 1.5 inches. You can use other brands of plastic tubing such as Eumer or HMH, in many different color combinations - just be certain that the sizes that you choose are meant to fit snugly together.
Slide the smaller tubing into the larger tubing approximately 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch. Then place the joined tubes onto the mandrill and then into the tube fly vise as shown (larger tube toward vise).
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Step 2
Using 6/0 black Uni thread, I now start tying at the tubing junction on the bigger tube but as close as possible to the end of the angled cut. I am now going to make some very tight wraps with the thread on the angled cut section of the black tubing (5-7 tight wraps). I do this in three different places along the overlapping tubes (see Image 1 in this step).
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Step 3
With the thread on the larger tube (not on the overlapping section), I now tie in a size 12 strand of danville flat mylar tinsel with the silver side showing. I wrap the mylar down the tube about 3/4 of an inch and then back up the tube to the thread to tie it down. After I trim the mylar, I am now going to add a dubbing ball to the tube. Using Hareline Custom Blend Black Stone dubbing I will twist some dubbing onto the thread (if needed you could use dubbing wax) and wrap in one spot until you build up a fat little ball of dubbing. Be sure that you are leaving about 1/8 of an inch of space between the dubbing ball and the overlapping section of the joined tubes. The purpose of this dubbing ball is to create bulk and mass. The dubbing ball will keep the ingredients we tie in from this point forward fluffed up and flowing when they are swinging through the water column. Tease the dubbing with a dubbing brush or comb and don't be shy with the teaser - we want some bulk here.
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Step 4
We are now going to take a nice stiff saddle hackle and make 4-5 wraps in front of the dubbing ball. As you can see, I prefer to tie the hackle in by the tip. The color of hackle in this case matches the color of the first wing layer. The importance of this hackle is that it will add a lot of bulk to the body of the fly without adding weight.
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Step 5
Whip finish your thread right now and cut it off. You must now take the tubing off the mandrill and place an Extra Small FITS Turbo Cone on the XS tubing section and slide it half way down the tube. Very carefully place one small drop of super glue on the tubing just in front of the hackle and slide the turbo cone the rest of the way down the tube until it is firmly pushing against the body of the fly. Wait a few seconds to let the super glue dry.
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Step 6
Place the fly back on the mandrill and put it back in the vise. Start your thread wraps on the XS orange tubing directly in front of the turbo cone. Wrap the thread down securely (maybe 1/8 inch of wraps going forward on the orange tubing, then wrap the thread back upon itself until it is touching the turbo cone.
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Step 7
I am now going to start tying in my wing. THe first layer of wing material should always be the lightest color - since most critters in the wild have light bellies and darker tops. In this example I will be tying in a piece of Kingfisher Blue Finn Raccoon as the first layer. I start by pulling out the guard hairs and tie the Finn Raccoon in so that the tips of the fibers reach about 1/4 inch past the point where the mylar tinsel body ends. This piece of Finn Raccoon will make up the majority of the bulk of the wing.
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Step 8
The next step is to tie in a little bit of sparkle and flash. I use Angel Hair which matches the color of the underwing, but you can be creative in your choice of Angal Hair colors. Angel Hair is a great flash material because it is very fine and very limp. As I tie in the Angel Hair, I do so at an angle and length which matches the angle and the length of the wing. I tie the Angel Hair in on my side of the tube first, wrap it down with three wraps of thread, and I then fold the excess flash over to the other side of the tube and tie it down with a few more wraps of thread. Make sure that the flash is just about the length of the wing and tilted at the same angle. It is very important that you keep your thread wraps to a minimum and that you use the finest possible size thread that you can manage without breaking it. This will keep the thread bulk down. The more cleanly you are able to trim the butts of the wing material, the better your thread head will turn out in the end.
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Step 9
I am now going to add the next secion of wing material. I have chosen Purple Temple Dog to be the over wing for this fly because it is very soft and light and has excellent movement in the water. I have not found a better material for the job. I will first measure the lenght of the Temple Dog Hair against the length of the exisiting Finn Raccoon wing and will make the Temple Dog wing piece about 1/2 inch longer than the Finn Raccoon underwing. I will use about 30% less hair for this wing than I used with the Finn Raccoon wing. Tie the Temple Dog in with 5 to 7 good hard wraps. After the overwing is secured, tie in a few strands of Angel Hair as you did along the underwing.
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Step 10
I am now going to finish the wing with one final layer. For the final top wing I am again going to use the Temple Dog material. Since I want the top layer to be the darkest, I will use Black Temple Dog for the top layer of the wing. I will measure the wing against the two other layers because I want this top wing to be 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch longer than the layer below it. I will reduce the bulk of material used for the top wing so I am only using about 50% the amount of material that I used on the middle wing. I will tie in the Black Temple Dog with 7 to 10 good tight clean wraps and trim the butt ends down as cleanly as possible.
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Step 11
I am now going to add a hackle to the fly to ensure the most lifelike flowing fly possible. I am using a Kingfisher Blue Spey Plume for the front hackle (which is basically a small ostrich feather). Tie the plume in by the tip and make 2 1/2 wraps, pulling the fibers back with your fingers as you make the wraps. Tie the plume off with a few good solid wraps of thread. Take note: I massage the fibers in order to get them to flow back along side and around the wing. They sometimes need help to make them flow backwards, in which case I may place two or three thread wraps back over the last wrap of the hackle by 1/16 of an inch. This helps direct the fibers towards the back of the fly.
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Step 12
My next layer of front hackle is Black Schlappen. I tie the Schlappen in by the tip and make 2-3 wraps before tying it off and trimming it cleanly. Whew...almost finished. For a nice dressy touch I will now tie in two matching jungle cock eyes on either side of the fly. The Jungle Cock Eyes should be roughly as long as the fibers of the Schlappen. To tie the JC in cleanly, I prepare the feather by stripping the stem just behind the point where I am tying it in (do this after you measure it but before you tie it in). I tie the JC feather in at a slight downward angle (5 to 10 degrees downward from the level side of the tube) using only 3-4 wraps of thread to tie it in. It is then critical to fold the stem of the Jungle Cock eye back towards the rear of the fly and secure it with 2-3 more turns of thread. This process of folding the stem back will keep the JC eye secure no matter what kind of abuse the fly takes in the future. Repeat the process of tying in the Jungle Cock eye on the other side of the tube to match. Whip finish the thread and cut it.
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Step 13
Remove the fly from the vise and pull it off the mandrill. Place a Small Black or Gunmetal FITS Turbo cone onto the XS tubing and slide it half way down the XS tubing that remains. Place a small drop of super glue (does this sound familiar?) on the tube just in fron tof the Jungle Cock Eyes. Pull the cone down tight and as far as you can get it against the hackle. Wait a second for the super glue to dry.
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Step 14
Holding the fly in your hand with the XS orange tubing pointing upward, use very sharp scissors to cut the XS tubing so that there is about 1/8 of an inch of tubing remaining out in front of the final Turbo Cone. While the fly is pointed at the ceiling, use a lighter to burn the stub of XS orange tubing. THe tubing will melt down against the cone and this will help tightly secure it to the fly. The XS cone will mushroom as it melts, leaving a small hole through which you will be able to push your leader material. Let the melted plastic cool for a few seconds - resist the urge to touch it while it is hot! You will now cut the extra medium black tubing from the back of the flyso that you have 1/4 to 1/8 of an inch of medium tubing remaining behind the end of the mylar body. Your fly is now ready to fish! Enjoy! This particular color combination Tubesicle fly is called "Shades of Winter" and it is just one of a hundred different possible color combinations that one could tie for steelhead or salmon. Deschutes Angler has a huge selection of Temple Dog Colors, Finn Raccoon colors, and tube sizes and colors.
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