Euro Nymphs · Nymphs · Trout Flies ·

Pat's Rubber Legs Tutorial

If you haven't heard about the Pat's Rubber Legs, you're missing out. The original fly featured a heavy dose of both chenille and rubber legs and caught plenty of fish. Many anglers who have adopted European techniques lately have modified this fly to function as an anchor fly loaded with some lead wraps and a big tungsten bead. 

MATERIALS

TOOLS

SIZES

Personally, I tie and fish this fly from the monstrous size 4, all the way down to a 10. Most of the time, honestly, I'm fishing in the middle of that range which is why we're tying a size 6 today. You may think this is a big stonefly but spend a half hour on most Northern Michigan streams digging amongst the rocks and lumber and I bet you'll find some impressively large stonefly specimens.

COLORS

I think this black & brown version featured in the video is a great all-around color scheme. I typically carry several other colors in my box so I can match conditions or to show the fish something a little different. One of the reasons I love this fly so much is it's so easy to change color schemes as there are only two materials to switch up (chenille & legs). Some of my other favorites include:

    • Black/Brown (who says these colors don't go together!)
    • Black/Coffee (this has two good contrasting colors)
    • Black/Tobacco (this has a lot more red in the brown)
    • Black/Purple (fish like purple, especially in low-light conditions)
    • Black/Brown Barred Sexi Floss
    • Black/Amber Barred Sexi Floss
    • Black/Purple Sexi Floss

HOOKS

Just a quick note about hooks, the 1730 is a great affordable hook from Daiichi but don't be afraid to experiment with others. My box definitely includes jig hook versions of this fly (mostly Firehole 523) and even some extended bodies.

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