# Tying the "Half a Chicken."



## captken (Feb 24, 2008)

This was one of my Dad's favorite Bass flies. It works great on Snook, Trout, Redfish and others too. It is a big fly (~6" long) without being terribly bulky. It casts easily and accurately and gets eaten often. It is a pretty good Mullet immitator and, in other colors, it does a good job of looking like a shrimp.

I tied this on on a 1/0 Mustad 34007 but I should have used a 2/0.

Nothing but 10 long chicken hackle feathers wrapped to the hook with flat, unwaxed dental floss. The feathers should be arranged with the shiny side out, curved side inward. This gives the flythe taper of a mullet or even Cigar Minnow. 

I wrapped the hook shank backward then forward with dental floss and wrapped the feathers on with them arranged completely around the hook, curved side inward.

I formed a head with dental floss. 










Next I colored the headwith a red Magic Marker. I coated the colored thread with Sally hanson's Hard as Nails fingernail polish. This is all I did for lots of years. I fished the fly this way. (*ALLOW THE HEAD TO DRY AT LEAST 3 HOURS BEFORE FORMING AN EPOXY, GOOP OR ACE CEMENT HEAD. IF THE FINGERNAIL POLISH IS STILL LOSING SOLVENT, THE HEADS WILL BECOME MILKY LOOKING FAST)*










I smeared on a little ACE cement, added eyes then formed a rounded head with Ace Cement.










I like to tie this fly with gray or brown grizzly feathers too.

Dad often fished it with a size 0 or 1 Hilderbrandt spinner.


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## Russian (Jan 13, 2009)

Nice fly, looks like it could be killer in a few different colors also. May have to give it a try. One of these days I need to actually get out and use the flies I have been tying. Maybe this weekend hopefully.


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