Get It Down Pat’s Pattern & Tying Instructions
Fly Tying Recipe:
Get It Down Pat’s
Show / Hide Get It Down Pat’s Transcript Video Transcript:
I call this fly the “Get It Down Pat’s” and as you can see, it’s really nothing more than a Pat’s Rubber Legs tied on a jig hook. A weighty little beast, it sinks like a stone, pun intended.
For a hook, I like big, here, a Lightning Strike JF2 jig hook in size 8 paired with a 5/32” black nickel slotted tungsten bead. Even with large beads and hooks, I find plunger-style hackle pliers make for easier hook handling while a bodkin allows you to get the bead oriented with the small hole facing up, reducing the risk of it ending up on the tying room floor. Insert the hook point into the small hole and work the bead around to up behind the hook eye. Get the assembly firmly secured in the jaws of your tying vise and make sure the bead is properly positioned.
.02 lead-free wire is used to add even more weight to the fly and get it down faster. EZ hackle pliers allow you to secure the end of the wire to the hook shank thus reducing waste. Twelve or so wraps of wire is about right for this size 8 hook. Fine needle nosed pliers can be used to flatten the forward wraps of wire so they fit up into the slot of the bead. Sometimes you’ve got to give them a real good squeeze in order to fit. Once anchored in the slot, you can wrap the end of the wire into place without the whole thing spinning. All together, it produces a rather solid and weighty foundation for the fly.
For thread, there’s no harm in going a little heavy, here, UTC 140 Denier in black. Get your thread started on the hook shank, behind the wire, and take a few wraps rearward before snipping or breaking off the tag. Continue taking wraps with your tying thread over top of the wire to secure it and create a somewhat smooth underbody.
Medium-sized variegated chenille in a color called “black and coffee” is used for the body of the fly. A 2-card width segment is a good compromise between ease of handling and minimizing waste. Secure one end of the chenille to the top of the hook shank, behind the wire wraps and take thread wraps rearward all the way to the bend. Then advance your thread forward back up onto the wire.
For the tails of the fly, I prefer small black round rubber as opposed to flexi-floss or the like as on the original Pat’s. Double over one end of the material to create a small loop with inch and a half long legs. Lay the loop on top of the hook shank and take thread wraps to secure it, all the way back to the start of the bend. Try to split the tails down opposite sides of the chenille and take a few more thread wraps to make sure the material’s bound down really well. End with your tying thread at the base of the tails. You can then lift the extra little loop up and snip it off close.
Now comes the fun/tricky part. Lift the chenille up and position the rubber legs on either side of it. Pinch all of them a little ways back from the hook bend then start making wraps with the chenille around the materials going down toward the hook. After 3 wraps, loosen the pinch so you’re only holding onto the rubber legs and pull forward on the chenille to draw it down toward the hook shank. Then, once again, grip the tail end of the material with the fingertips of your left hand then continue making 3 more wraps around all of the material down to the hook. This is actually more difficult to explain then it is to do. You should end up with an extended body that has splayed rubber tails and looks something like this. Anchor the remaining chenille to the top of the hook shank with 3 or 4 tight turns of tying thread.
Advance your tying thread forward to about the 1/3 point on the hook shank and then start making touching wraps with the chenille to create the body of the fly. When you get to your tying thread, use it again to anchor the chenille. A couple of wraps in front of the chenille will help to keep it back and out of the way for the next step.
Once again make a loop with the rubber material, this time with 2” legs on either side. Place the loop on top of the hook shank and secure it with 2 turns of tying thread. Get each strand oriented on either side of the hook shank. I made my loop a little short here so I’m pulling on the strands until the loop is about an inch long. Now, get hold of the chenille and navigate your way through the rubber legs to keep them separated. Go all the way up to the back edge of the bead. There, use your tying thread to firmly secure the chenille and snip the excess off close. You can then do a 4 or 5 turn whip finish, seat the knot really well and snip or cut your tying thread free.
Pull on the loop so it points forward and then snip it at its midpoint. This should create a set of legs on either side of the hook. Cut the rear legs so they extend to the back edge of the body. Trim the tails to about the same length and then do the same with the front legs. The extended body should be fairly robust and tightly wound and the tails should splay slightly outward.
Although not necessary, I like to use pliers to flatten out the wire wraps underneath and thus flatten the entire body to more closely resemble a real stone fly. If you really want to go wild, use your scissors to trim both the top and bottom, and create a nice little taper down to the tail.
Since this is designed to be a bottom-dragger, I’ll place a substantial drop of head cement, here Hard as Nails, over the thread wraps behind the bead just to make sure nothing comes unraveled. Once you get the hang of the extended body, the Get It Down Pat’s is a fairly quick tie. A traditional Pat’s Rubber Legs is a hard pattern to beat but putting it on a jig hook that rides hook point up, certainly can’t hurt.
For a hook, I like big, here, a Lightning Strike JF2 jig hook in size 8 paired with a 5/32” black nickel slotted tungsten bead. Even with large beads and hooks, I find plunger-style hackle pliers make for easier hook handling while a bodkin allows you to get the bead oriented with the small hole facing up, reducing the risk of it ending up on the tying room floor. Insert the hook point into the small hole and work the bead around to up behind the hook eye. Get the assembly firmly secured in the jaws of your tying vise and make sure the bead is properly positioned.
.02 lead-free wire is used to add even more weight to the fly and get it down faster. EZ hackle pliers allow you to secure the end of the wire to the hook shank thus reducing waste. Twelve or so wraps of wire is about right for this size 8 hook. Fine needle nosed pliers can be used to flatten the forward wraps of wire so they fit up into the slot of the bead. Sometimes you’ve got to give them a real good squeeze in order to fit. Once anchored in the slot, you can wrap the end of the wire into place without the whole thing spinning. All together, it produces a rather solid and weighty foundation for the fly.
For thread, there’s no harm in going a little heavy, here, UTC 140 Denier in black. Get your thread started on the hook shank, behind the wire, and take a few wraps rearward before snipping or breaking off the tag. Continue taking wraps with your tying thread over top of the wire to secure it and create a somewhat smooth underbody.
Medium-sized variegated chenille in a color called “black and coffee” is used for the body of the fly. A 2-card width segment is a good compromise between ease of handling and minimizing waste. Secure one end of the chenille to the top of the hook shank, behind the wire wraps and take thread wraps rearward all the way to the bend. Then advance your thread forward back up onto the wire.
For the tails of the fly, I prefer small black round rubber as opposed to flexi-floss or the like as on the original Pat’s. Double over one end of the material to create a small loop with inch and a half long legs. Lay the loop on top of the hook shank and take thread wraps to secure it, all the way back to the start of the bend. Try to split the tails down opposite sides of the chenille and take a few more thread wraps to make sure the material’s bound down really well. End with your tying thread at the base of the tails. You can then lift the extra little loop up and snip it off close.
Now comes the fun/tricky part. Lift the chenille up and position the rubber legs on either side of it. Pinch all of them a little ways back from the hook bend then start making wraps with the chenille around the materials going down toward the hook. After 3 wraps, loosen the pinch so you’re only holding onto the rubber legs and pull forward on the chenille to draw it down toward the hook shank. Then, once again, grip the tail end of the material with the fingertips of your left hand then continue making 3 more wraps around all of the material down to the hook. This is actually more difficult to explain then it is to do. You should end up with an extended body that has splayed rubber tails and looks something like this. Anchor the remaining chenille to the top of the hook shank with 3 or 4 tight turns of tying thread.
Advance your tying thread forward to about the 1/3 point on the hook shank and then start making touching wraps with the chenille to create the body of the fly. When you get to your tying thread, use it again to anchor the chenille. A couple of wraps in front of the chenille will help to keep it back and out of the way for the next step.
Once again make a loop with the rubber material, this time with 2” legs on either side. Place the loop on top of the hook shank and secure it with 2 turns of tying thread. Get each strand oriented on either side of the hook shank. I made my loop a little short here so I’m pulling on the strands until the loop is about an inch long. Now, get hold of the chenille and navigate your way through the rubber legs to keep them separated. Go all the way up to the back edge of the bead. There, use your tying thread to firmly secure the chenille and snip the excess off close. You can then do a 4 or 5 turn whip finish, seat the knot really well and snip or cut your tying thread free.
Pull on the loop so it points forward and then snip it at its midpoint. This should create a set of legs on either side of the hook. Cut the rear legs so they extend to the back edge of the body. Trim the tails to about the same length and then do the same with the front legs. The extended body should be fairly robust and tightly wound and the tails should splay slightly outward.
Although not necessary, I like to use pliers to flatten out the wire wraps underneath and thus flatten the entire body to more closely resemble a real stone fly. If you really want to go wild, use your scissors to trim both the top and bottom, and create a nice little taper down to the tail.
Since this is designed to be a bottom-dragger, I’ll place a substantial drop of head cement, here Hard as Nails, over the thread wraps behind the bead just to make sure nothing comes unraveled. Once you get the hang of the extended body, the Get It Down Pat’s is a fairly quick tie. A traditional Pat’s Rubber Legs is a hard pattern to beat but putting it on a jig hook that rides hook point up, certainly can’t hurt.
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