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This month we have a really fun fly to tie. Don't be fooled by it's simplicity. If you are looking for a fly that gets scooped up like candy, then the Red Butt Kebari may become one of your top used flies in your "fleet of flies."..."swarm of flies?"..."flight of flies?" You know what Whatever you call it... you will want to add these to your arsenal.
Karel and I first met here in Colorado in the early days of tenkara. It was a sad day when his work sent him to live in London. But fortunately we have kept in touch and we have been able to plan fishing trips during a few summer trips he has made back to Colorado. Later this summer it will be my turn to go meet up with him. More about that later. On with the fly!
Red Butt Kebari
Karel Lansky "This one is a favorite from my time fishing in Colorado. Not quite an Ishigaki, not quite a Sakasa Kebari either. The Brahma hen hackle is somewhere in between stiffer cock hackle and soft hackles like partridge or pheasant. I tie this fly only in this color combination, a red butt and a black body." Gather up your supplies: 1. Hook: Daiichi 1157, size 14 (or any hook of your preference) 2. Thread: Red Pearsalls Silk, Black 6/0 no brand thread 3. Hackle: Brahma Hen Watch the video below!
We would love to hear if you tied this pattern and how it worked for you. Please share in the comments below.
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Just last month Jason Klass posted the "Silk Road Kebari" on his blog TenkaraTalk. I cursed him affectionately under my breath when I saw what he had created. I was also working with some silk thread that had been given to me and was enjoying the process of trying to see what I could do with this elegant and slightly "boujee" material. He nailed what I think is a perfect design with a great nod to the traditions of Japanese kebari. These flies are wispy and colorful. You can easily imagine what they will look like in the water. But go ahead and dip the fly you tie in a glass of water to see how much the silk just shimmers and glows.
I was hesitant at first to post this fly design in our "TIE THIS" feature for March, being as Jason had only just posted it himself this last month. But hey, I think it really stood out as a one of the most interesting if not beautiful flies I have seen in a while. This page is all about sharing the best flies and how nice to get this one shared so quickly.
I have to say that this is NOT Jason's first great fly design that he has come up with. I have been inspired by his fly design posts and enjoyed his philosophy on fly tying. Jason has a way of seeing design in flies, pairing and balancing materials in a way that is not just attractive to hungry fish, but also creating flies that have an aesthetic appeal to the artist fly tier we all think we are (but know we have work to do still.) Perhaps it is his attention to detail or is that a troubling intensity of OCD that makes these flies so good? It is saying too little to say "the guy has chops!" I hope that you will enjoy ![]()
Jason Klass
If you know anything about tenkara in the United States, then you know already that Jason is arguably the most prolific writer on the subject of tenkara in the world. His blog, has covered virtually every topic you can imagine. He has reviewed so many products and been a thought leader in the wave of bringing tenkara to the west. I just want him to finally publish a damned book. Rather than rehash and rewrite the text for his recipe for his "Silk Road Sakasa Kebari" I am just going to send you to his original post. But before I do I want to also say "thank you" to my friend for all you have done in supporting my work, encouraging me to write and for just being someone I can bounce ideas off of. Thanks too for the time we have shared hiking and fishing. I look forward to getting out again with you in the spring. Please be sure to send Jason a quick note of thanks if he has had an role in your enjoyment and education in tenkata. Either below in the comments here or on his blog in the comments below his post. You can also show him your support by visiting his new Etsy store too! ![]() STEWART'S SPIDER Variation by Adam Rieger Hook: Size 12-14 standard shank Thread: Your choice of color Body: Thread Hackle: sparse hen pheasant or Indian rooster cape. (HISTORY WC Stewart's "The Practical Angler" was published in 1857. It was a landmark book for two major reasons. The first is that in it, Stewart strongly advocated to fish upstream. He was not the first to do that but the vast majority of fly fishing was done downstream and the vast majority of fly fishing books talked about techniques for fishing downstream. His advocacy for upstream fishing was groundbreaking and met with debate, but Stewart was such an exceptional angler that the technique he advocated, in his own hands, left few with much to argue about once seeing him in action. The second major reason this book was a landmark is because he classified the dressing of hooks (tying flies) into two categories - "spiders" and "flies". This first grouping he called spiders were his all purpose all the time "fly". More than anything, the spiders are more a technique to dress a hook rather than specific patterns. He did prescribe 3 specific patterns only one of which, the black spider, is something one can tie today - the other two include feathers from birds that are not legal to sell. (That said, nothing is stopping you from using any reasonable substitute for those feathers.)
Futsu Kebari is a stiff hackle tenkara fly associated with Japanese Tenkara Fishing. As with most Japanese flies, it is not meant to mimic a specific insect but is instead a fly that suggest it is an aquatic food source.
This is a very dynamic fly in that it can be fished as either a dry fly on the surface (add floatant if you wish), or it can be fished as a stiff hackle wet fly subsurface. Traditional Japanese Futsu Kebari are usually kept simple in design. Jonathan has created a wonderful variation of a futsu kebari here that features a peacock herl body that is twisted in like dubbing to show off a red ribbing. |
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