All serious fly tiers experiment with patterns and different materials with the aim of inventing that magical fly that would never fail them. I hate to tell you this, this fly doesn’t exist. However, we can sometimes get close to it. This is my holy grail of flies, I think. The Disco Shrimp.
It came about, around seven years ago, when I was frustrated with shrimp patterns. I had so many variations in my boxes, however, none of them filled me with confidence when putting them on. I felt that I wasn’t catching enough fish on them. Especially as on the vast majority of rivers that I fish it makes up a huge proportion of our fish’s diets. What was wrong?
I set about trying to tie a shrimp pattern that I could put on with confidence, fish with confidence and hopefully catch more fish than I know what to do with.
“Check out our Tactical Nymph Fly Range“
After many failed attempts, clouds of dubbing, reams of different shrimp backs the disco shrimp was born. It looks very different out of the water than it does when its wet. When it is used a bit some of the colouring comes off the back and the dubbing teases out a bit more, it just keeps getting better.
It does work all year round but comes into its own for grayling through the winter months. It is rare when targeting grayling that I don’t have one of these attached to my line, and I know there are a fair few fishermen out there that are the same as me in this department. There are times when this is the only fly on the cast I can even get a take on.
Of all the flies I have come up with, this is far and away the one I am most proud of.
Tying instructions
Hook: Czech Nymph Hook size 10-16
Thread: Orange 8/0
Weight: Three layers of flat lead built up into a body
Dubbing: Hareline UV shrimp pink 70%, Hareline UV callibaetis 30%
Back: 3mm translucent nymph skin coloured with a brown Sharpie
Rib: Leaf green medium wire
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