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Fire Tiger Whistler

Originally this pattern was designed by Dan Blanton for saltwater use, but over the years it has been adopted by freshwater anglers for its versatility and effectiveness. This pattern is one of the must-have flies that will work in various colors for various species – if it is a predator, it will eat the Whistler.

Beyond pike and musky, I have found various sizes and colors to work well for trout, bass and salmon. The color choices are endless and this particular scheme is a favorite of salmon when they first are in the river. Anglers using lures for these fresh salmon have an affinity for Storm Thunderstick lures in Fire Tiger and it’s effectiveness has led me to tying this fly pattern in a similar color scheme. Make sure your fly box is filled with yellow/red, white/red, chart./olive, olive/yellow, orange/olive, and gray/white to be
equipped and ready for various species in various situations.

Assortment of Colors for an Assortment of Species

Like the name suggests, there is a liberal amount of flash tied into the tail that not only provides flash, but also action.

The bead-chain eyes “whistle” as you cast the fly through the air. The physical weight of this pattern makes it easy to cast and it retains little water helping to keep it light weight. The thin profile of this pattern causes it to sink slowly which is ideal for shallow water and floating lines while it allows for decent penetration of the water column when fished with sink-tips. Further, you can mitigate the bead chain eyes with other, heavy sinking eyes if you are looking to get the fly even deeper.

Recipe:

Hook: Gamakatsu B10S, TMC 811S, 600SP; Size: 3/0 – 6
Thread: Fly Master + or Uni 3/0 – Chartreuse
Tail: Flashabou – A mix of Kelly Green, Green Glow-in-the-dark, and Chartreuse
Body: Bucktail – Flo. Orange, Kelly Green and Black
Wing: Chartruese Grizzly Saddle hackle. Krystal Flash – Chartreuse
Throat: Red Dubbing (I like Pseudo Seal, Angora Goat or Simi-Seal) or Red Chenille
Collar: Highlander Green Schlappen
Eyes: X-Large Bead Chain – Stainless Steel

Tying Instructions

Step 1. Wrap a thread base to above the hook point and take thread back to
behind the hook and tie in bead-chain eyes on the underside of the hook.

Step 2. Tie in Flashabou tail – 3 times hook shank length. [The pictured fly’s
tail is a little shorter which was done for photographing reasons]

Step 3. Invert hook and tie in orange bucktail so tips extend one hook shank length behind the bend
of the hook. Trim excess and wrap in between butts to get a good purchase and secure.

Step 4. Return hook to normal position. Tie in top bucktail to same length as
bottom section, but slightly denser to ensure the fly swims right side up. Majority
of the top color is Kelly Green with some black on top to match the color scheme.
Trim excess and secure. Tie in a few strands of Krystal Flash on each side.

Step 5. Prepare saddle hackle by trimming some of the fibers, but leaving the butts to
allow for a secure mount. Pinch the stem of the feather flat with smooth faced hemostats or
pliers to keep the feather from rotating when mounted. Mount on each side of the fly with
natural feather curves bending in. The tips should be the same length as the bucktail. Tie in
additional Krystal Flash over the hackle wings extending aprox. the same length as the hackle.

Step 6. Loosely dub over the thread wraps with some red dubbing. This not only helps to protect the
materials, but also gives an appearance of gills. The original pattern was tied with red chenille, but I
prefer the low profile of dubbing which also makes for a textured surface to tie in the schlappen feathers.

Step 7. Tie in 2 or 3 large Schlappen feathers by their tips between the dubbing and eyes. Be sure
to tie schlappen in where fibers are long enough (aprox. just larger than a hook gape).

Step 8. Wind all the feathers together forward to just behind the eyes and tie down. Whip finish and tie off.

Optional: When fishing, try using a Wiggle Fin Action Disc on the line in front of the fly. This plastic
dish creates a unique wobble and imparts a lot of action when pulled slowly. The resulting wiggle/motion
of the fly and the flashabou tail is seductive. Click here for the Wiggle Fin website.

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The typical material for tying Glo Bugs is Glo Bug Yarn or Egg Yarn and many, including myself have found tying nice, round looking egg flies is difficult when using this material. In the mid-1990’s a new material, McFly Foam yarn, hit the market and tying nice, round eggs has been easier ever since. It’s available in huge array of colors and anglers can mix them up or incorporate dots very easily for a custom combination.

An advantage to tying these flies is most of the material sits above the hook shank without impeding the hook gape allowing you to use a little smaller hook while keeping the egg the focal point hiding the hook.

The primary reason why McFly material works so well is its amount of elasticity. The texture, however, is very “clingy” so if you have dry hands, dead skin and/or rough edges on your fingers you are about to learn the meaning of frustration. Try using a pumice stone to smooth those fingertips and you’ll find it’s easier to handle this material – especially when tying a couple dozen McFly Foam eggs.

There is pretty much every color variation available in McFly Foam to match the egg pattern you desire. Try mixing a few similar colors to achieve a mottled, but realistic egg imitation to accommodate the classic primary color with a dot.

McFly Foam Egg Recipe

Hook:           TMC 105 #6-10, TMC 2457 #8-12 (Scud Hook) or Gamakatsu C14S
Thread:         Danville Flymaster Plus – color to match main yarn color
Yarn:            McFly Foam – Oregon Cheese and Dark Red

Tying Instructions

Step 1. Insert hook into vise and make a thread wrap working from the hook eye
back to the hook point and the midway between the hook point and the hook eye.

Step 2. Cut egg yarn about 1 ½ inches long. The primary color should be a little less than the diameter
of a hot dog. If you don’t use enough yarn the fly won’t be as round as it should be. Use too
much and it will look a bit obtuse. The second color should be a little less than the diameter of a pencil.

Step 3. Lay the McFly Foam parallel on top of the hook with the secondary color on top and
wrap down with a few loose wraps midway on the yarn. Tighten the wraps and pull firmly with a
few more wraps being sure to wrap on top of one another. This is why we use a strong, flat thread.

Step 4. Pull the yarn upward and horizontally wrap the base of the yarn like
you would a post on a parachute dry fly. Make about 4 or five, tight wraps.

Step 5. Advance the thread to just in front of the yarn and whip finish.

Step 6. Trim the excess foam by pulling up on the yarn (not pictured) and then cut. This step
is crucial to the appearance of the fly and with a little experience you should be able to determine
the proper length. Try cutting the foam no more than half of the distance of the hook gape.

Step 7. After cutting, the foam looks domed not round. Take your
fingers and roll the material which will give you a rounded appearance.

Step 8. Your finished McFly Foam egg.

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Salmon

Flashtail Whistler – Fire Tiger

Recipe:

Tying Instructions

McFly Foam Egg

McFly Foam Egg Recipe

Tying Instructions

Ted Kraimer • Current Works, LLC • PO Box 333 • Traverse City, Michigan 49685 • (231) 883-8156