Fly Tying Dubbing

                                              
                           Natural Dubbing                          Synthetic Dubbing

Those long nights at the fly tying vise are paying off this evening. The mayflies are about to move and you’ve got a box full of Gold Ribbed Hare’s Ear Nymphs ready to go. As the evening shadows begin to lengthen and the afternoon heat dissipates, you consider your finely dubbed offering. Tying the furry little bug on to the end of your leader deepens your understanding of why you fly fish – to develop a connection with a wild being, but also to develop a connection to the past and all the anglers before you. Standing on the fish stories of generations of fly fishers, you delicately make your next cast.

Dubbing material is aptly named after the fly tying technique (also called Dubbing) in which the tyer wraps or loosely “coats” a strand of thread with loosely chopped and matted material and then dresses the hook shank with this strand of “dubbed” thread to create the body of a fly. Dubbing, both the technique and material, are necessary for forming the bodies of dry flies. Nymph tyers rely heavily on dubbing to create the foundations of their imitations and love it for its properties that will give a fly movement and animation when fished. Dubbing is available in both natural and synthetic types and can be purchased in both natural and dyed colors.


Natural Dubbing
Natural dubbing is made from finely chopped rabbit fur or goat hair. This material is fantastic for use in nymph patterns and wet flies that call for dubbing. The natural fibers are typically a bit longer and will give a fly tremendous amounts of buggy underwater movement. 




Synthetic Dubbing
Synthetic dubbing is generally constructed of nylon materials and resembles natural dubbing quite closely. This material is an excellent substitute in any nymph pattern calling for natural dubbing, but synthetic dubbing is a top choice for dry fly tyers because of its excellent water resistance capabilities and extremely light weight.