Flyfishing, flytying and hooks
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UTC Ultra Wire SM

The UTC Ultra Wire SM is a wire for building Copper John Nymphs, rib on czech nymphs, emergers, fully dressed salmon flies and a lot more. Wire in general is good to have available for a variety of patterns: I would keep a gold and a silver if I could only have two colors. I have tied up on a couple of different size hooks to show how it compares to the thickness of the hook.

Mustad 94840 #182013.06.dryfly.utc_ultra_wire_sm_mustad_18Dai-Riki 135 #16

Wrapping two different colors makes a good segmented body for small nymphs

2013.06.dryfly.utc_ultra_wire_sm_dr_16TMC 100 #22

2013.06.dryfly.utc_ultra_wire_sm_tmc22Partridge Klinkhamer X-treme #14

2013.06.dryfly.utc_ultra_wire_sm_partridge14

 

 

 

Thread: Uni 17, TMC 16 and Sheer 14

Tying very small flies (down to #32) one of the first thing to consider is what kind of thread to use to avoid building up too much. So far I have tested out 3 different threads that I use for sub #20 hooks:

  • UNI 17/0
  • TMC 16/0
  • Sheer 14/0

Here I have wound up the different threads on a TMC 100 #24 hook to give you an idea on how it looks like.

2013.04.dryfly.me.threads

Thread: Uni 17/0

I normally don’t take this out until I hit #30 or #32, but for these very small flies this thread is the absolute best: the build-up is hard to notice! But, this of course comes at a cost, it can be a most frustrating thread to work with compared to anything else: it feels like thin silk between your fingers and it will break as easy!
2013.04.dryfly.me.thread_uni_17

Thread: TMC 16/0

This thread is pre-waxed and is easier to work with than the UNI 17/0 thread. Since the UNI only comes in white this is the other #30/#32 thread that I use. The TMC is stronger than the UNI thread so it is “easier” to work with on the small hooks.

2013.04.dryfly.me.thread_tmc_16

Thread: Sheer 14/0

The Sheer 14/0 is my default thread for anything sub #18 – this thread is strong compared to its minimal buildup and is very easy to work with. It also comes in a wide variety of colors that makes it ideal to build bodies for small emergers/nymphs. This is also one of the threads I can use for large atlantic salmon flies when building up lots of material to avoid buildup of thread.

2013.04.dryfly.me.thread_sheer_14