A creative use of hackle, originally designed and tied to emulate the schucks of dead midges.
The Buzzball was created by legendary fly tier Gary Lafontaine to imitate midge clusters on the Missouri River. We have found it to be just as effective fly fishing here in the Park City area. It’s clearly a variation on the classic Griffith’s Gnat, but adds a second color and a different profile. Featuring just a hook, thread, and two hackle feathers, it’s a simple and proven pattern.
In this great video from Tim Flagler of Tightline Productions, he shows you his method for tying a size 20 version of the Buzzball. Tying these in smaller sizes is a productive choice, especially when fishing the Middle Provo River, early season. As usual, Tim focuses on the preparation of materials, so when you tie them in, everything is in it’s right place. After a little trimming, the Buzzball is ready to fish.
Buzzball
Hook: Straight-eye, wide-gap dry-fly hook, sizes 14-20.
Thread: Black Veevus, 16/0.
Hackle #1: Grizzly hackle.
Hackle #2: Orange grizzly hackle.
Tools: Sharp scissors, hackle pliers, whip-finisher
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