"Thomas Littleton" wrote in message
news:yVIzd.5131$sh5.4923@trndny08...
Mark wants a:
pattern for a parachute Adams.

The one I use is as follows:
Thread-Grey
Tail- mixed brown and grizzley hackle fibers(stiff ones)
Body- Muskrat underfur
Wing-Calftail,calf body or white poly yarn(latter on smaller ones)
Hackle-Cree(way easier than intertwining a brown and grizzley, although
the mixed version is the standard)
I do dub a small throrax/head region from the body fur. I think it looks
nicer. I seriously doubt that the fish care. The moose fiber tail is a
common western US variation, originated by Dick Cheney, I believeg.

Well there goes the moose hair! Please tell me that Dick don't actually breathes too.
I don't think I can hold my breath for the rest of my life...Hmm?

The key thing, as I have always viewed it, with parachutes is to keep them
pretty sparsely hackled.

Some of mine are quite sparse, but not intentionally or by design.

It doesn't take a lot of turns of hackle in that
horizontal fashion to float a dry fly. Too much hackle tends to bunch up and
float worse, if anything, and also screws up the light pattern on the water.

Light pattern? I didn't think about that. Guess I should read more than the pattern
instructions. I bet Hughes mention light pattern somewhere in the big assed book!

I have a sneaking suspicion that your "improving" versions will work just
fine.

I suspect you are right, as I have caught fish with every fly I have tied that I have
fished. Some will never get fished. I don't even look at them anymore--they are
hideous!

Bring them up to PA in May/June and we will try them out.

I sure hope too!

FWIW, the
Parachute Adams might be my favorite small-stream, native brown trout fly. I
fish a few streams with natives in with stocked trout, and the Parachute
Adams seems to be the fly to get the native fish to come out and play.

Mr Miller taught me that on Upper one fishin' trip. "You want a parachute Adams,
Mark?" Asked Mr. Miller. "No, I think they'll hit this Tastes Like **** fly!" Mark
replied. "Okay, but I have already caught 50 nice trout on this single parachute
Adams, you really ought to try one." Smirked MR MILLER "Thank you very much, but I'm
perfectly happy gettin' skunked today!" Mark exclaimed through his teary eyes.

Go see Walt and tell him to put a nice cree neck on your tab.....

In due time.

although, one
of the beauties of parachute ties is that one doesn't need tip-top quality
hackle for them to work.

Hey, I did read about that!

I am not even sure the color matters all that much.

I wouldn't know, I never catch any fish!

Mark --said wiping the tears off his keyboard :~^( --
Tom