No-Hackle Patterns
No-hackle dry flies are just that, tied without the use of a hackle collar. Doug Swisher and Carl Richards brought to light the effectiveness of no-hackle patterns in their book Selective Trout. When the two men originated no-hackle dressings they literally changed the way we thought about mayfly imitations.
The beauty of a no-hackle pattern is that it projects a clean and simple profile of a mayfly dun by imitating the upright wing in a very natural way. Almost any standard mayfly dun pattern can be converted into a no-hackle by replacing the hackle collar and wings with primary or secondary duck quill sections. These patterns are not as easy to tie as it would seem and an improperly tied one does not look good at all.
These patterns are very effective on trout and work especially on selectively feeding fish. They are however very fragile and the first trout take will undoubtedly leave your new creation looking much damaged. The key to tying no-hackle patterns is all in positioning the wings properly as you tie them in.
Adams No-Hackle Pattern Recipe: Hook- TMC 100 size 12-18, Thread- Gray 6/0, Tail- Grizzly hackle barbs split, Body- Natural Muskrat fur dubbing, Wing- Dyed or natural brown mottled drake black duck feather sections.
Blue Wing Olive No-Hackle Pattern Recipe: Hook- TMC100 size 16-22, Thread- Pale Yellow 6/0, Tail- Blue dun hackle barbs tied split, Body- Dyed Olive natural fur or Antron dubbing, Wings- Light gray mallard feather sections.
Callibaetis No-Hackle Pattern Recipe: Hook- TMC 100 size 12-18, Thread- Cream 6/0, Tail- Grizzly hackle barbs split, Body- Creamy Gray Antron dubbing, Wing- Gray Mallard wing section.
Gray Olive No-Hackle Pattern Recipe: Hook- TMC100 sizes 16-22, Thread- Light Olive 6/0, Tail- Light blue dun hackle fibers tied split, Body- Pale Olive dyed natural fur dubbing, Wing- Light gray mallard duck feather sections. Pattern Designer: Doug Swisher and Carl Richards.
Gray Yellow No-Hackle Pattern Recipe: Hook- TMC100 sizes 14-20, Thread- Pale Yellow 6/0, Tail- Ginger hackle fibers tied split, Body- Pale Yellow dyed natural fur or Antron dubbing, Wing- Light gray mallard duck feather sections. Pattern Designer: Doug Swisher and Carl Richards.
Green Drake No-Hackle Pattern Recipe: Hook- TMC 100 size 10-12, Thread- Olive 6/0, , Tail- Olive dyed Grizzly hackle barbs split, Body- Olive dyed natural fur or Antron dubbing, Wing- Dyed Black or natural dark mallard feather section.
Light Cahill No-Hackle Pattern Recipe: Hook- TMC100 sizes 14-20, Thread- Pale Yellow 6/0, Tail- Light Ginger hackle fibers tied split, Body- Pale Yellow dyed natural fur or Antron dubbing, Wing- Dyed dark cream mallard duck feather sections.
March Brown No-Hackle Pattern Recipe: Hook- TMC 100 size 12-18, Thread- Tan 6/0, Tail- Brown hackle barbs split, Body- Tannish brown Antron dubbing, Wing- Dyed brown mallard duck feather sections.
Pale Morning Dun No-Hackle Pattern Recipe: Hook- TMC 100 size 12-20, Thread- Pale yellow 6/0, Tail- Ginger hackle barbs split, Body- Pale Yellow Olive Antron dubbing, Wing- Dyed cream colored mallard duck feather sections.
Slate Gray No-Hackle Pattern Recipe: Hook- TMC100 sizes 14-18, Thread- Gray 6/0, Tail- Blue dun hackle fibers tied split, Body- Natural Muskrat fur dubbing, Wing- Slate mallard duck feather sections. Pattern Designer: Doug Swisher and Carl Richards.
Slate Olive No-Hackle Pattern Recipe: Hook- TMC100 sizes 14-20, Thread- Dark Olive 6/0, Tail- Dark blue dun hackle fibers tied split, Body- Dark Olive dyed natural fur dubbing, Wing- Slate gray mallard duck feather sections. Pattern Designer: Doug Swisher and Carl Richards.
Slate Tan No-Hackle Pattern Recipe: Hook- TMC100 sizes 12-18, Thread- Tan 6/0, Tail- Brown hackle fibers tied split, Body- Tan dyed natural fur or Antron dubbing, Wing- Slate mallard duck feather sections. Pattern Designer: Doug Swisher and Carl Richards.
Trico Dun No-Hackle pattern Recipe: Hook- TMC100 sizes 20-24, Thread- Black Nylon 8/0, Tail- Blue dun hackle fibers tied split, Body- Black dyed natural fur or black Antron dubbing, Wing- White dyed mallard duck feather sections. Pattern Designer: Doug Swisher and Carl Richards.
Yellow Olive No-Hackle pattern Recipe: Hook- TMC100 sizes 12-22, Thread- Pale yellow 6/0, Tail- Pale yellow hackle fibers tied split, Body- Pale Olive dyed natural fur or Antron dubbing, Wing- Dyed cream mallard duck feather sections.