Fly Of The Month

October 1999
SURF CANDY

Materials

Hook- Tiemco 800s

Underbody- Bills' Bodi-Braid, silver

Wing- olive or smoke ultra hair

Tail- polar white ultra hair

Flash- peacock/olive flashabou

Eyes- green or silver witchcraft prism eyes, size 3ey

Thread- mono,fine

With all the epoxy patterns around today, we should remember from whence they came. The Surf Candy is the original epoxy minnow, designed from the developing series of patterns Bob Popovics calls the Pop-Fleye series. If you are new to saltwater fly tying, this pattern should be first on your list of flies to learn to tie. The hardest part in tying this pattern lies in the handling of the material. With a little time and practice, you will be able to put together one of the best saltwater epoxy patterns around.

Tying Instructions

1. The shape of a Surf Candy comes from the placement of the ultra-hair and not from the epoxy. The epoxy only seals the shape and gives dimension to the fly, so with hook in vice begin your tie-in point right behind the eye of the hook.

Take a small bunch of ultra hair in white (cut to your desired length) and tie –in Right behind the eye of the hook, with 3 or 4 secure not tight wraps. With your thumb press down on the material so that it begins to surround the hook shank. Now tighten your thread wraps to secure.

2) Turn hook upside down, and tie in right at the same point a smaller and shorter bunch of white ultra-hair.

3. Turn the hook back to the original position and cut about 5 strands of Flashabou. Wrap the Flashabou around the thread so that you now have 10 strands together and draw down to the tie-in point.
4. Cut another length of ultra-hair in olive or smoke, slightly shorter than the mid section and tie-in right on top.
5. Tie off with a whip finish. At this point there should be no tapered head to speak of.
6. Mix some five minute epoxy.
7. Begin applying epoxy to ultra-hair. As you apply epoxy, press bodkin against material so as to make the epoxy penetrate the ultra-hair. Not filling every space is what causes saltwater to seep into the body of the fly. This causes the epoxy to turn yellow and become spongy. Don’t put so much epoxy on the first coat, that will make the epoxy sag and drip. Manipulate the ultra-hair as the epoxy dries to the taper you want.
8. While the epoxy is still tacky place the prism eyes on.
9. After a few hours of curing time apply the second and final coat of epoxy, and after it sets up a little place on drying wheel.
10. With a sharpie pen place red gills on fly.
11. You can trim the hair up a little, although I like to keep them a little longer and shorten them on the beach if needed.