Wednesday, July 19, 2017

The "Tups Indispensable"

The Tups Indispensable. I'm not sure how many of you fish this fly, or how many of you know about it. I sure it is one of those flies that is not readily found in fly shops, but a few online shops may have them. The original pattern is a dry fly but variations of wet versions are about and this is what this post is about. The idea behind this fly is somewhat unique in that it's name and partial material item is out of the ordinary. Here it is credit "Alan Shepherd" Australia.


Austin was a tobacconist of Tiverton in Devon, South West England in 1900. As a side-line, he made and sold flies. Presumably Mr. Austin and daughter supplied various patterns of the day and materials to dress popular flies. His pattern, the Tups Indispensable, was effective when trout were taking pale midge or mayflies. Mr Austin sent a sample of dubbing with tying instructions on how to tie his unnamed fly pattern to Mr G.E.M. Skues. He informed Mr. Skues that he had the found it to be particularly successful in imitating female olive spinners. Mr. Skues followed the instructions and made the fly. He spent most of the following September testing the fly on his local water, the River Ichen. Skues was one of two people given the dressing secret by Mr Austin. He was so impressed that he published his findings calling the fly the 'Tups Indispensable.' The recipe for the pattern was kept secret and thus Mr Austin obtained a monopoly on selling the fly. The article by Skues, exalting the fly, was widely read and lots of orders were placed. The fly became so popular that Mr Austin became utterly sick of tying it. Why did Skues call it Tup's Indispensable? Well the 'Indispensable' part comes from the fact that it should not be left out of your fly-box, as it is such a good fish taker. The 'Tup's' part of the name refers to a Ram, a male sheep that is used for breeding. In Britain in those days, farmers used a sponge or rag soaked in dye tied to the under side of the Ram. In the morning, they would inspect their flock to see which females had dye stained on their backs from being 'tupped' by the Ram. The original material for this fly was urine and dye stained wool taken from a ram's testicles mixed with lemon coloured fur from a spaniel and a little yellow mohair, replaced later with crimson seal's fur. Mr. Austin and his daughter kept the dubbing materials secret; they had a monopoly on the supply of the correct dressing. Mr. Austin passed away in 1914 but it was not until 1934 that the secret ingredient, fur from a ram's testicle was revealed. It was kept a secret until after his daughter, who continued the business, had retired. In his Notes & Letters, Theodore Gordon had great praise for this fly. He particularly liked the 'Tups' dubbing which he had sent to him from England. He used this dubbing on other patterns. It can be fished dry when trout are feeding near the surface. It can also be useful in high summer when reduced water flow and high temperatures can make the trout very fussy. Tying Instructions Don't panic! We use modern materials that are the same colour but not as smelly. Hook: Size 16 up eye, dry fly hook. Thread: Yellow. Tail: Honey dun or light blue cock hackle fibres. Body: Mix white fur from a ram's testicle with lemon-coloured fur from a spaniel and cream seal's fur with a small amount of yellow mohair. Hackle: Light-blue cock hackle freckled thickly with gold. Using fur from the ram's testicle area wasn't even an original idea. The first use of this material goes to Alexander Mackintosh in the book The Driffield Angler, 1806. He suggests, "Take a little fine wool from the rams testicles, which is a beautiful dusty yellow." ~ Alan Shepherd

The Tups Indispensable Flymph. I prefer this version to the other one I tie which is below. This fly has great life like movement and has been a success on many outings.


The Tups soft-hackle. This is another variation and one that seemed to be less favored in the times I've fished it.


A result of the fish taking ability of the Tups Flymph. The fly when fished just below a riffle into some slack water can be deadly.







21 comments:

  1. Ah, the Tups Indispensable......! Did you know that Gordon thought it was named after a Mr Tup rather than a Rams 'bits'? He also hated using the dubbing blend Skues sent him as he found the wool too greasy?
    It is a fly I have used on occasion and have had some success with it. Have you tried it as a Parachute dry fly Alan? I have used it over here when pale coloured duns have been hatching with some encouraging results.
    Have you tied up some Coch-y-Bonddu yet?
    I managed to tie up three bombers before I went to Wales, but the weather (and a foul cold!) got the better of the fishing. Still, it is my birthday on Monday (I know 21 again!) and I will be making a trip to Teesdale to visit family where they will be getting a cast out!
    Alistair

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    Replies
    1. Anonymous
      Thanks
      Alistair, I also thought it was the gents name. I will try this fly as a dry.
      I did tie up a couple, and I'm going to use them tomorrow.
      Sorry about your cold, summertime colds seem to be worse. Happy Birthday, and work those "bombers"

      Delete
  2. Alan, either fly is a beautiful tie... However, I like your preferred pattern because of the more predominant color catching my eye. Thanks for the history lesson.

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    Replies
    1. The Bluegill Bug
      Thanks
      Mel I like the color for it matches many of the flies I see around these parts.
      I learned from the piece on the back ground of this old fly.

      Delete
  3. Beautiful work, Alan. Both of these flies appear to more heavily hackled than your usual ties. (I sent you a PM on this very subject over on SGM) I really like the gold hackle on the first fly; would you attribute that to the success over the partridge?

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    Replies
    1. mike
      Thanks
      Mike I'll check that PM, I've been a bit behind in my SGM reading.
      My thought on that flymph is the hackle I used. It was a very soft and fine hen hackle. When in the water it almost takes the effect of marabou. The partridge was somewhat stiff.

      Delete
  4. Alan, Both outstanding flies. Some things just never stop working. Love the pic of the brookie at the bottom!

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    Replies
    1. Ralph Long
      Thanks
      Ralph, timeless my friend.
      He was quite colorful.

      Delete
  5. Hi Alan, I tie a soft hackle with Piersol's yellow silk thread, Chadwicks 477 yarn body and Hun partridge hackle. It is indistinguishable from your Tup's soft hackle. Like the Ram's testicular fur, Chadwick's yarn is also not easy to come by.

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    Replies
    1. John Dornik
      Thanks
      John your fly sound just like the Tups.
      I did some searching for that yarn some time ago. I only found it from a source in England and the price was not in my range.

      Delete
  6. lol, I was wondering how long it would take you too sniff this out, not that Im saying you go around sniffing sheep. Nice work again mate

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    Replies
    1. George
      Thanks
      George I fully understand. I'm glad I'm not the fellow who harvests the dubbing.

      Delete
  7. Alan
    I can see a lot of life movement with both versions. Thanks for sharing

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    Replies
    1. Bill Trussell
      Thanks
      Bill one does have a slight advantage over the other.
      But I'm sure under the right circumstances they both will provide action.

      Delete
  8. We get a small group of flies that get called "Pale Watery" here in the UK. The Tup's Indispensable and it's variants makes an excellent fake of these. Here's a step by step of my version:

    http://dryflyexpert.blogspot.co.uk/2011/09/iou.html

    Size 18 and 16 seem to be the most useful.

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    Replies
    1. Regular Rod
      Thanks
      Rod I'll check it out. I've heard the term Pale Watery before but never quite knew what the meaning.

      Delete
  9. It's always hard to argue with success backed up by photographic evidence.

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    Replies
    1. Howard Levett
      Thanks
      Howard success today not so successful tomorrow.
      They say every fly has it's day.

      Delete
  10. The Tups has been a staple around these parts for a lot of years! I have quite a collection of Tups furs in my dubbing box that I have gathered over the years...none of which contains the most important ingredient, tups fur! Perhaps some day!
    Alan, I am glad to see that you have presented both versions of this venerable pattern! The beautiful tan colored hackle and tail fibers and also the Hungarian Partridge sample! I have to admit that the fish in our local waters seem to prefer the Partridge more. Both are killer patterns but they like the Partridge over the tan! Both of yours are excellent examples and I really like your tying style!
    Doug

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    Replies
    1. Dougsden
      Thanks
      Doug I was surprised by the response I have received to this fly. Folks from around the world have used this fly, and a rich history of it here in the US.
      So you prefer the partridge, I may have to try it more often. I also want to try it in the dry version. I think I'll stay with the synthetic version of the Tups dubbing.

      Delete
  11. Hi,
    Nice article but complete nonsense. First, Austin died in 1911.
    Second. If you read anything Skues wrote about the Tups you would know that Austin’s instructions are ‘well Washed’ wool from a rams scrotum. It’s not the colour he’s after, that comes from the red Mohair.
    Skues substituted red Seal’s fur for the Mohair.
    Third. Your fly looks nothing like an original Tups tied by Austin, which I have, it was designed to represent the Red Spinner.
    Kind regards,
    Adrian Howell
    Secretary Tiverton Fly Fishing Club. (Austin’s Club)

    ReplyDelete