The original Pheasant Tail Nymph was created by legendary English fly tyer and fisherman, Frank Sawyer, around 1930. He designed the Pheasant Tail to imitate the small mayfly nymphs on the southern English river Avon, where he was river keeper. Sawyer’s original pattern used only pheasant tail fibers and fine copper wire instead of normal tying thread, to give the pattern extra weight. The modern variants of the PTN, that we are familiar with, including the one illustrated here, bare little resemblance to the original.
With only three materials, and tying thread needed for this pattern, it still helps to choose the right materials. At first glance, one pheasant tail feather looks like any other pheasant tail feather, or does it? Take a good look at a few cock pheasant centre tail feathers side by side, and you will see they are very different! Not only does the background colour and shading on each tail differ immensely but the black chevrons vary from light to dark and thin to thick. But probably the most
important factor is the fibre length. Normally the best marked feathers with the longest fibre length are found center top of the cock bird centre tail. The Pheasant Tail Nymph is a great model nymph, that meaning, that it has the shape, form and proportions for a generic nymph, you can apply the exact same tying technique used here, just change the colours, materials and size, to imitate and represent many other nymphs found on the trout’s menu.
Secure your extra long nymph hook in the vice, so that the hook shank is horizontal.
Load your bobbin holder with brown tying thread.
Attach your tying thread and run a foundation over the centre hook shank, until the thread hangs approximately vertically with the hook point.
Firstly find a cock pheasant centre tail feather with nice markings and long fibers. To get all the points of the pheasant tail fibers even for the tail, take a small bunch in between your finger and thumb and slowly pull them away from the shaft of the feather until all the points are level. Now, still holding the bunch tight so the points remain level, cut them away from the feather shaft with one swift cut.
You should now have a nice bunch of pheasant tail fibres for the tail.
Tie in the tail fibers on top of the hook shank. The tail should be approximately half of the hook shank length.
Now, you will need a short length of copper wire.
Tie in the copper wire the whole length of the hook shank, finishing at the tail base. Leave the remainder of the pheasant tail out over the hook eye, we will use these for the wing case.
Repeat steps four & five and cut a bunch of long pheasant tail fibres. Tie the bunch in as shown, by the tips, along the top of the hook shank, tight into the tail base.
Before you commence wrapping the peasant tail fibers to form the abdomen, make sure that all the fibers are parallel, and not twisted or crossing over each other! Wrap your tying thread forward. Holding the whole bunch, wrap the fibres (clockwise) forward over the abdomen, approximately the same length as the tail and tie off with a few wraps of tying thread in the same position as the previous bunch.
Now you can straighten all the fibres from both bunches and secure with a few turns of tying thread as shown.
Take hold of the copper wire and make four or five evenly spaced turns (anti-clockwise) over the peacock herl abdomen. If you would like a little extra weight to the nymph, make a few more wraps of wire tight into each other. under the thorax. Secure the wire with a few turns of tying thread.
Cut away the surplus copper wire. Fold the pheasant tail fibres back over the copper wire and tie down. Taking care to keep them all on top of the hook shank.
Once again cut a smaller bunch with pheasant tail fibres with the tips level.
This bunch with be the legs and the wing case of the nymph. Placing the tips out over the hook eye, approximately the same length as the tail. Tie down the bunch on top of the copper wire as shown.
Select two nice peacock herl’s with nice bushy fibres.
Tie in the peacock herl’s, butt ends first and cover the ends with tying thread, finishing just behind the hook eye.
Take the peacock herl and wrap them over the whole thorax making sure they don't twist and cross each other. Tie off behind the hook eye.
Now, trim off the excess herl. Divide the pheasant tail tips into two equal bunches and fold them back and along each side of the thorax to form the nymph’s legs. While holding these in place, secure them in position with a few wraps of tying thread.
The legs should look like this from the side view.
Now take the bunch of pheasant tail fibers you have collected for the wing case, and fold them over the thorax. Again taking care to make sure that all the fibers are parallel and don't cross over each other. Secure with a few turns of tying thread.
Once secure, your tying thread should be a little back from the hook eye, as shown here.
Carefully trim off the excess pheasant tail fibres at an angle over the nymph head. Care should be taken not to cut your tying thread by accident here!
Now, with wraps of tying thread build up a small neat head. Remove the tying thread and complete with a couple of whip finishes.
You can now give the head a couple of coats of varnish.
The finished Pheasant Tail Nymph as seen from above, note the proportions and symmetry in the tail, body, wing case and legs.
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