Bubble Back Nymph

step-by-step- Bubble Back Nymph - BWO

Here’s a great nymph to use in the film or slightly sub-surface.  I say that because the fly starts out as a trailer nymph up in the film, but after the first few fish beat it up it rides a bit lower in the water column.  It behaves very much like a Pogo Nymph, another favorite of mine in that when it swims in the water column it bounces and bobs-n-weaves all over the place and drives the trout "to the take"... 
Tie some up in the Mayfly colors you need to match the hatch.

This is my version of this nymph.  I've seen many nymphs featuring some kind of foam used as a shellback. But mine differs slightly, because it also uses the foam to form the head and the eyes of the nymph providing a little bit more floatation especially in the bigger fly sizes.

Materials list:

Bubble wrap for electronics:  This is the thin, tightly packed, small bubble wrap in Tan/Gray/Dun really nice stuff... cut a piece a little wider than the hook gap. 

Hook: Nymph 1xl size #12-20,

this is a #16.

Thread: Tan Serafil or Uni 6-8/0

Tail: Pheasant Tail

Body: Olive yellow dubbing

Legs/Thorax: Fox Squirrel dubbing

Shellback, head and eyes: Tan/Gray/Dun bubble wrap.

Step 1.) Start the thread on the hook behind the hook eye. Wrap back to the barb.

Step 2.) Tie in PT as the tail. Wrap thread back to the 60% spot on the shank. Trim waste PT.

Step 3.) Dub the thread.

Step 4.) Dub the body back to the 60% point on the shank.

Step 5.) Tie in the bubble wrap.

Step 6.) Dub the fox squirrel on the thread and wrap it forward to one hook eye behind the eye.

Step 7.) Pull the bubble wrap over the dubbing and tie down one hook eye behind the eye and then wind thread forward over the bubble wrap to the hook eye.

Step 8.) Pull and fold the bubble wrap back over thread wraps and tie down at the one hook eye behind the eye point.  This forms the head and eyes... nice hah!  Trim waste bubble wrap and whip finish behind the head.

Step 9.) Brush out the legs and trim them to length. Finished view - bottom.

 

Finished view - top.

Finished view - side.