When I first laid my eyes on the fly Salars Nemesis I never dreamed it would take up so much of my time. It consumed almost all of my fly tying, my fly fishing "I find myself fishing this fly almost a 100% of the time I'm on the water"....I have bought a book on it and have tied it to both the recipe as written as well as the photo of it in the book. Several readers of this blog have helped me in tying it, and most of all the fish have taken to it like no other fly I've fished with exception to the Ausable Bomber. The fly in the photo shows a well eaten Salars Nemesis. The hackle has been stripped down to just a few fibers, and the floss body is in tatters....it still works. Changes are in the works.....
Sylvester Nemes called for a body of Pearsall's silk thread or floss. In the bodies of future flies I will use this silk thread, it's a fine alternative to Pearsall's. I also believe the silk thread will hold up better and not fray as the floss does.
Here are two feathers that I've used for the hackle on this fly. The feather on the left is a ringneck pheasant rump feather. It has great movement and profile when wet. The problem I find with the rump feather is they are quite brittle and tend to break when fished. The feather on the right is a ringneck pheasant body feather. This feather is not as brittle but is much more dense when wrapped on the fly. Mr. Nemes called for a golden pheasant body feather. I ordered a golden pheasant skin and will tie a few Salars Nemesis when the skin arrives.
Here are the two flies. Both have silk bodies. The fly on the left has rump hackle and the fly on the right body feather hackle. Both flies have the same number of turns of hackle. I'm not normally a perfectionist when it comes to following a fly recipe, but this one has got me doing just that. More to come....
Great looking flies. Can't see how they wouldn't work.
ReplyDeleteKevin Frank
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Kevin that's true, they have that full plate look to the fish.
Alan, I agree. The YLI silk thread is an excellent replacement for Pearsall's. More importantly, it's easily available, affordable, and offered in many more colors.
ReplyDeleteNice job on the flies by the way.
John V.
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John I can't remember who put me on to YLI silks, but I sure hope I thanked him. I really like how they are so friendly to work with.
Good stuff, Alan. I'm certain that Syl Nemes would heartily approve of your versions of his pattern and be tickled pink that you are having so much success fishing it. Bravo!
ReplyDeleteWilliam Shuck
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Bill I can't believe how well this fly is doing. I know the quarry is brook trout but still. I may be fishing the Farmington soon and I'll get a good cross section of trout and that will help me.
Bill do use silk thresd or floss for the bodies when you tie this fly?
Alan ~ I have only tied three or four of them for "show" (haven't fished any), and used Alec Jackson Premium Silk Floss. I will be most interested to hear how browns and 'bows take to yours.
DeleteBill I'll provide an accounting of the fly when I fish the river.
DeleteAlan
ReplyDeleteI will have a report on the Nemesis next week. I can't wait to use it in some of the runs on the Sipsey.
I got side tracked this week with house construction and a bluegill trip on Smith Lake---will be doing a post on the trip in a couple of days. Thanks for sharing
Bill Trussell
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Bill there is no rush. There are times when other aspects in life take center stage.
Alan,
ReplyDeleteWonderful post pertaining to Salars Nemesis! I like your comparison of pheasant hackles and am really excited about YLI brand silks! I am glad you gave them a good review. Now, where are they available from? I have heard that some Walmarts stock them but have not checked this out! Tell us about the upcoming changes as soon as you can! I can't wait until you show them!
An excited Syl Nemes fan,
Doug
Dougsden
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Doug I purchased the two spools I have on ebay. Walmart does sell them but only online. If you google YLI it will give you a couple of more places to buy it.
Alan
ReplyDeleteGorgeous fly rod!!! Beautiful flies. They compliment each other.
TROUT1
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Pete a match that has proved to get it done.
Alan, could it be you were smitten rather than bitten by the pattern? Strong feelings are a good thing. Enjoy.
ReplyDeleteJohn Dornik
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John you have a point there.
I'm thinking that you are on to something good Alan. I vote for the fly on the right.
ReplyDeleteHoward Levett
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Howard that fly would be an excellent choice.
Alan, Can you share the full recipe for this fly? thanks.
ReplyDeleteBrad From Potter
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Hook, Partridge Low Water salmon #10....Tail, Golden pheasant tippets tied angling down....Body, Orange silk thread....Rib, flat narrow gold tinsel....Thorax, SLF standard golden olive dubbing....Hackle, Pheasant rump feather....Jungle Cock eyes.
Alan, just ordered more Gaelic Supreme/Sylvester Nemes hooks sz.13 while on lunch break before checking on the blog. Good call on switching to silk. I use floss and dab on a itty bit of hard UV cure to protect and secure the floss and rib, and adds some translucency. The colors yellow, orange, and red totally rule for fishing wild Coastal Cutthroat in my home streams in NW Skagit County, WA.
ReplyDeleteHappy Hooking, Matt Harding.
Anonymous
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Mat I thought of putting a coat of hard as nails to protect the body and may just do it. For now I'll test the silk thread. It's nice buying those odd number size hooks.
It sounds as if your coastal cutts have the same taste in colors as our brookies.