The D&D Caddis Pupa
A very fast, easy to tie, and effective caddis pupa can be built from just a touch of dubbing and a little poly yarn or Antron yarn. It’s on of the flies in my Down and Dirty (D&D) series of imitations. It can be dressed in any needed colors, and the tyer can manipulate the dubbing materials (from coarse to fine, from natural to synthetic, from single to blended colors, and so on).
Step One. Attach the thread at the eye and wrap rearward. At about the half-way point, stop and apply the dubbing to the thread. It’s much easier to apply the dubbing at this point than when the thread has been wound completely to the rear of the shank. It’s also easier because one can twist the material on an inch or two below the shank. As the thread is continued rearward, the bare thread will be used up to wind the shank, bringing the dubbing right up to the shank and ready to wrap forward.
Step Two. Wind the dubbing forward to form the body, leaving a couple of head spaces at the front, Form a spinning loop and insert the fibers of poly or Antron into the loop at right angles to the thread, Twist tight.
Step Three. Wind the Poly or Antron hackle at the front of the body. Stroke the fibers back after each turn so that they are not trapped by the subsequent turn.