From Skip Morris' book, "The Art of Tying the Nymph, 1993"
The Brassie can be tied in a wide range of sizes, but because it is so simple - just a bit of wire and a bit of dubbing - it makes an especially good tiny fly. Besides, the Brassie looks like a chironomid larva, and these are usually tiny.
There isn't a lot of metal in this pattern, but there isn't much to add buoyancy or bulk, so the Brassie sinks well regardless of hook size.The Brassie also resembles some case-building caddis larvae, some small, some large.
The Brassie was created by Gene Lynch. Fish it well down, usually in streams.
BRASSIE
HOOK: Heavy wire, regular shank, 1X long, or 2X long, sizes 20 to 10 (the hook shown is an Eagle Claw D57)
THREAD: Black 8/0 or 6/0
ABDOMEN: Copper wire, size is dependant upon hook size
THORAX: Muskrat fur with guard hairs
Need tools? Check out some of the
fly-tying tools available in our online fly shop.
1. Start the thread about one-quarter down the shank from the eye. Secure one end of some copper wire at the threads starting point with tight thread turns. Lift the wire slightly above the shank and spiral the thread down both to the bend. The thickness of the wire will determine both the fly's sink rate and the thickness of its abdomen, so chose with this in mind.
2. Advance the thread to its starting point; wind the wire in close tight turns to that point and secure it with tight thread turns. Trim the wire closely.
3. Draw back the fibers from the sides of a partridge-flank feather leaving the tip exposed. For a sparse soft-hackle fly, strip the fibers from one side of the feather. Shown are two feathers with their fibers drawn back, ready to be tied in; on the left is a whole feather and on the right, a feather with one side stripped.
4. Using the light turn, tie in the feather about 1/8" behind the eye. Ideally, the feather should be on its edge, cupped surface facing back, its tip towards you and forward, its bulk away from you and slanting back.
5. Trim off the tip of the feather. Advance the thread forward to just behind the eye. Wrap the feather forward two turns (three at the most for either a whole feather or a half-stripped feather). Draw back the fibers using the triangle, build, whip finish, and add head cement to a thread head.