Nick Thomas comes up with an interesting alternative to the excellent IOBO fly pattern
The original pattern of the IOBO uses just a hook and a single CDC feather which is wound back along the shank to form the body and then folded forward to create the back and wing. This gives the fly the advantage of being quick and easy to tie. It also confers the disadvantage of being even quicker and easier for trout teeth to destroy. At least you still have the hook to start the process all over again.
Those of you who read my previous article in ESF will recall that I’ve rather taken against natural materials due to a case of ‘fly-tiers itch’. In the past year or so this has resulted in me examining many of the fly patterns in my regular arsenal of imitations with a view to substituting a synthetic variant. The Poly-IOBO is one such fly. I used to have an entire row of CDC IOBOs in my dry fly box. On a good day I might use up to half a dozen of them, chomped to tatters by fish. On a really good day with hectic action I might use up more. The excitement of casting to avidly rising fish tends to play havoc with my attention to my back cast and the hooking ratio of trees to fish can be somewhat elevated. Tying a synthetic version doesn’t decrease arboreal losses, but they do survive fish far longer than the CDC version. What’s that you say? Do they work as well? Well yes, they do.
Hook: Hends BL554 size 14-16 (or whatever you’ve got)
Thread: Veevus 12/0 olive
Rib: Stripped organza ribbon
Body & Wing: EP Trigger Point fibres and Cream Semperfli Poly Yarn
Thorax: Fasna squirrel dubbing
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Run on the tying thread behind the eye and take back around the bend in touching turns.
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Cut a 1-2mm wide strip from the edge of a length of organza ribbon and strip out the long fibres. Cut the short fibres from 1cm at one end to form a tag and tie in. Bind down the tag and return the thread to just behind the eye.
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Cut some EP and Poly Yarn fibres about 4 times the hook length, mix together and tie in on top of the shank just behind the eye, with a quarter of the length projecting forward. Secure with a few tight wraps over the fibres and locking turns around the shank in front and then behind the tying in point.
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Take two or three turns of the organza around the bare hook and then pull back the EP and Poly Yarn and catch in place with a turn of organza. Bind down the fibres with further ribbing turns of organza up to the parked thread. Tie in the organza and trim off the waste.
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Fold the fibres forward over the ribbed body and tie in.
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Apply a small amount of dubbing and make a couple of turns behind and in front of the wing. Smear the thread with superglue or varnish, whip finish at the eye and cut the thread.
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Pull the wing fibres taught and trim to length.
It takes a bit longer to tie one than the CDC version but that time is gained back on the river when you don’t have to change the fly each time a big trout rips it to shreds.
Nick Thomas lives in South Wales. He started fly fishing on Scottish hill lochs many years ago and continues to design, tie and fish flies for trout, grayling, carp, bass and anything else that’s going.
