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Mustad has more than 100 years of fly hook experience.
Many patterns still retained date back half a century. In spite of this
long experience, Mustad's processes and technology have been
continuously renewed and refined. The study of insects is fundamental
in modern fly fishing, and is therefore an all important criteria in
fly hook design. Mustad has combined entomology and hook
making into a totally new approach to fly hooks. Hooks are
designed to meet specific properties of the insect´s anatomy without
compromising presentation and action in fishing.
Each month Mustad will present a fly here, featuring one of our hooks, complete
with tying instructions and fishing suggestions. When you buy
hooks we hope you will consider Mustad and Partridge first.
Read Al Campbell's review of Mustad Hooks in the Product Reviews
CDC Steelhead
A great Steelhead & Salmon Fly
By Jeff Pierce
A while back a friend of mine, Marvin Nolte, tied up a couple
great little Steelhead flies for me. I had never seen this
pattern before and I really liked how it looked in the water.
I began fishing the fly for our local Salmon and Steelhead
with great success. I modified the pattern a little bit to
suit the fancy of our fat and happy Steelhead, Chinooks, Coho's
and Brown Trout. Marvin tells me that the original fly was
unnamed and was created by John Alevras of Chander, AZ. John
obviously does a bit of traveling because I've been to Arizona
and the only Steelhead you'll find there is on the menu of a
5-Star restaurant! Below is my modified version of the CDC Steelhead.
Tying Recipe
- Hooks: C52S BLN (Mustad Signature Series Hook) size 2/0 - 4
Substitute's - Mustad 36890, Partridge CS14/1B, CS14/1G, CS10/2, M.
- Thread: 6/0 waxed - orange.
- Body: Diamond Braid - Orange.
- Wing: Wapsi CDC - Sulphur Orange.
- Hackle Collar: Guinea Hackle - Flo. Orange.
Tying Instructions:
Step 1. Place C52S BLN hook into vice and secure the thread
to the hook up near the eye and wrap the thread back to just
before the hook begins to curve.
Step 2. Secure the piece of Diamond Braid and wrap thread
back up to just short of the eye. Then wrap the Diamond Braid
around the hook, stopping 1 eye length from the eye. Tie off
and trim tag end.
Step 3. Procure yourself 4 to 8 CDC feathers of the same size
and fullness. Be sure that all are the same length. You can
experiment with the length, but I prefer that the feathers extend
to just short of the bend of the hook. The quantity needed to tie
this fly depends on the quality of the CDC you are working with.
Tie in the first feather. Now tie in the rest of your CDC, one
by one, positioning them around the shank of the hook.
Step 4. Tie in your Guinea Hackle, tip first, and wrap to just
behind the eye. Trim excess and finish wrapping the head.
Whip-finish and apply a coat of head cement and it's ready to fish.
Fishing Instructions
This is a great pattern to swing through runs and holes. Fish
this pattern just as you would any traditional soft-hackle or
spey fly. While fish will take this fly on the dead drift,
many fish will strike it as it picks up speed at the beginning
of the swing. Some additional excitement often comes on the
first few strips of the fly and the end of the swing before
picking up and casting again.
Just this past fall I was fishing this fly in one of my favorite
runs on a local Lake Ontario tributary. On my third cast I began
stripping the fly in after swinging it through the pool. One
the second strip, I noticed a large flash and a splash of water
just behind the fly. I worked another section of the pool for
a couple casts and then made another drift through the lie the
fish was holding in. My swing ended just a foot or so from where
the strike had come. I had not made my first complete strip of
the fly back in when the fish came again. This time she hit
her mark and the fly was seated securely in the corner of the
fish's jaw. Immediately, a beautiful dime bright Steelhead was
cartwheeling across the pool. After 15 minutes and eight or nine
wonderful jumps the fish was in my hands, unhooked and released.
This orange version of this fly is great for Steelhead. I also
tie a version in purple which the Steelhead and Chinook Salmon
seem fond of. Pink is a good choice for Coho and Steelhead. A
Chartreuse/Kelly green version is liked by the large lake run
Brown Trout and the all black version seems to work on all of
these species. ~ Jeff Pierce
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