Antron Egg Pattern & Tying Instructions
Fly Tying Recipe:
Antron Egg
Show / Hide Antron Egg Transcript Video Transcript:
Whether you're a fan of egg patterns or one of those people who believe they're bait and have no place in fly fishing, few will argue with their effectiveness. This particular pattern is a lot of fun to tie and, when wet, is incredibly realistic. So here goes.
I like curved shank hooks for eggs and have found the Dai-Riki #125 in a size 14 or 16 to work well on eggs intended for trout. For just about any color egg, white UTC 70 Denier thread is just fine. Once you apply a little head cement, it'll take on the color of the material below.
Start your thread leaving a small space behind the hook eye. Antron dubbing in bright colors, intended for steelhead, is really the only other material needed. Choose a light color for the outer part of the egg, and a darker color for the interior yoke or blood dot.
Start with the lighter outside color first. Grab just a pinch of fiber and pass that pinched end to your left hand. Then with a pinch wrap, secure the Antron to the hook. Repeat the same process with a second pinch of Antron. And then with the third. All three should be about equal in size. The idea is to get an even distribution of Antron fibers around the hook shank immediately behind the hook eye. With the three clumps secured, snip the rearward pointing butt ends off close. I also like to give the wispy front ends a little trim so they don't get caught up during the rest of the tying process.
Now pull just a small amount of darker Antron for the dot inside the egg. With this, form a short thin dubbing noodle and wrap it over the thread wraps to form a small sphere.
Then with your tying thread make open spiral wraps deep down the bend of the hook. Think barber pole or candy cane. Push the Antron fibers back until they point rearward and surround the hook shank. Take three wraps of tying thread. Again, these should be made way down the bend of the hook. Whip finish with five or six turns and then snip or cut your tying thread free.
Now comes the fun part. Grab the Antron and pull toward the hook eye - the whip finish should slide forward on the shank. Pull until the Antron forms a roughly spherical shape. If you pull too far, you can usually pull back to correct it. Now snip the remaining Antron off close to the whip finish. A good drop of head cement on the wraps really helps with durability on this pattern.
When Antron eggs are dry and in the vise they look pretty good. But when they get wet, they more closely resemble the real thing. Although this one looks less than spherical, you'll find when submersed in water the pattern maintains it's spherical shape very well. Try not only different color combinations, but also different sizes as well.
I like curved shank hooks for eggs and have found the Dai-Riki #125 in a size 14 or 16 to work well on eggs intended for trout. For just about any color egg, white UTC 70 Denier thread is just fine. Once you apply a little head cement, it'll take on the color of the material below.
Start your thread leaving a small space behind the hook eye. Antron dubbing in bright colors, intended for steelhead, is really the only other material needed. Choose a light color for the outer part of the egg, and a darker color for the interior yoke or blood dot.
Start with the lighter outside color first. Grab just a pinch of fiber and pass that pinched end to your left hand. Then with a pinch wrap, secure the Antron to the hook. Repeat the same process with a second pinch of Antron. And then with the third. All three should be about equal in size. The idea is to get an even distribution of Antron fibers around the hook shank immediately behind the hook eye. With the three clumps secured, snip the rearward pointing butt ends off close. I also like to give the wispy front ends a little trim so they don't get caught up during the rest of the tying process.
Now pull just a small amount of darker Antron for the dot inside the egg. With this, form a short thin dubbing noodle and wrap it over the thread wraps to form a small sphere.
Then with your tying thread make open spiral wraps deep down the bend of the hook. Think barber pole or candy cane. Push the Antron fibers back until they point rearward and surround the hook shank. Take three wraps of tying thread. Again, these should be made way down the bend of the hook. Whip finish with five or six turns and then snip or cut your tying thread free.
Now comes the fun part. Grab the Antron and pull toward the hook eye - the whip finish should slide forward on the shank. Pull until the Antron forms a roughly spherical shape. If you pull too far, you can usually pull back to correct it. Now snip the remaining Antron off close to the whip finish. A good drop of head cement on the wraps really helps with durability on this pattern.
When Antron eggs are dry and in the vise they look pretty good. But when they get wet, they more closely resemble the real thing. Although this one looks less than spherical, you'll find when submersed in water the pattern maintains it's spherical shape very well. Try not only different color combinations, but also different sizes as well.
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