The Halfback and The Fullback
by Nathan Winter Streeter
Excerpted from Fly Tyer Magazine, August, 1981
This pair of flies is quite popular in the Rocky Mountain area and especially on the North Platte River. The flies were developed by the owner of the Black Hills Fly Company Route 4, Box 640, Gillette, WY 82720 by Nathan Streeter.
QUOTE
“I have experimented with my own personal variations of the Halfback and have discovered five important characteristics that contribute to the fly's attractiveness to the large trout in the Platte.
1) The Halfback is normally tied on one of the two Mustad streamer hooks…79580, and 9672. The 79580 is a longer (4X Long) hook than the 9672 (3X Long) hook. The latter should be used for maximum effectiveness.
2) The head should never be tied too long.
3) The tail should never be tied longer than half the length of the hook shank.
4) The hackle should never be much longer than the distance from the hook shank to the point. If it looks too long, it can be cut off evenly to the right length and it won't harm the fly's effectiveness. As a matter of fact, some Platte River fishermen prefer clipped hackle on their Halfbacks and Fullbacks. Personally I don't believe it makes a difference.
5) Most important of all, the body should never be too thin. The body should have ''body". It should be thick and full. Without this characteristic, you might as well be fishing with a bare hook. The chances are, you probably won't catch anything.
In short, the fly should look like the thickest, biggest, fattest, juiciest morsel of a nymph a trout ever clamped its jaws on.” ~ Nathan Streeter
UNQUOTE
Nathan Streeter’s Halfback
“The Original Halfback”
By: Nathan Streeter
Source: Fly Tyer Magazine (August 1981)
Hook: TMC 5263 (Original was tied on Mustad 9672 hooks)
Tied By: Larry O Jurgens
Size: 4 ~ 12
Thread: Black 6/0 Danville Flymaster
Tail: Pheasant Tail Barbules
Optional Underbody: Black Yarn and/or Lead Wire
Rear and Front Body: Peacock Herl
Rear and Front Hackle: Brown Saddle
Rear Half Shell Back: Pheasant Tail Barbules
Head: Tying Thread
Note: This fly should be tied thick and fat, e.g., a juicy morsel. This fly probably best represents a Dobsonfly Larva aka Hellgrammite, or a Dragonfly Nymph. It doesn’t seem to matter to the fish what is “supposed” to mimic but they have liked it for over 30 years that I have been tying and using it.
Step ~ Tying Instruction
1 ~ Start the thread behind the hook eye and wrap to above the hook point.
2 ~ Optional: Wrap a lead wire underbody and cover with thread and cement the wraps.
3 ~ Tie in a fairly large bunch of Pheasant tail barbules above the hook point for the tail and the shellback.
~~ Tail length equals the hook gape.
4 ~ Fold the barbules back and overwrap with thread to above the hook barb.
5 ~ Return the thread to in front of the folded barbules.
6 ~ Optional; Tie in the underbody yarn material.
7 ~ Tie in one saddle hackle feather by the by the butt with the fibers curved forward.
~~ Note: The hackle barbules should be slightly longer than the hook gape.
8 ~ Tie in a large bunch of Peacock herls.
9 ~ Move the thread to the middle of the hook shank.
10 ~ Optional; Wrap the yarn underbody material from step 6 to 2 eye lengths behind hook eye.
~~~ Tie in and cut off excess and return the thread to the hook shank mid-point.
11 ~ Wrap the Peacock herls to the middle of the hook shank. Tie in and cut off excess.
12 ~ Palmer-wrap the hackle to the middle of the hook shank and tie in and cut off excess.
13 ~ Cut off the hackle fibers on the top of the body or divide and force the hackle fibers down evenly on both sides of the body. Trim the hackle barbules even with the hook point if required.
14 ~ Pull the shellback over the body. Tie in and cut off excess
15 ~ Tie in one saddle hackle feather by the by the butt with the fibers curved forward.
~~~ Note: The hackle barbules should be 1½ times the hook gape, e.g., dry fly style.
16 ~ Tie in a large bunch of Peacock herls.
17 ~ Move the thread to 1 eye length behind the hook eye.
18 ~ Wrap the Peacock herls to 1 eye length behind the hook eye. Tie in and cut off excess.
19 ~ Palmer-wrap the hackle to 1 eye length behind the hook eye and tie in and cut off excess.
20 ~ Wrap and whip-finish a medium sized head.
21 ~ Optional; Apply water based head cement to the head/whip-finish.
22 ~ Trim all the hackle on the bottom of the fly even with the hook point.
For a step by step tutorial go to Charlies Flybox@;
http://www.charliesflyboxinc.com/flybox/detail.cfmOr
Alaska Flyfishers@;
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