The pattern notebook · terrestrial
Charlie Boy Hopper
How do you tie a Charlie Boy Hopper?
Charlie Boy Hopper is a terrestrial fly pattern for Trout. Find its 6 materials and 18 tying steps below.
The Charlie Boy Hopper is a terrestrial fly pattern designed to imitate grasshoppers, making it effective for trout fishing in small streams. It floats well and creates a realistic profile on the water.
- Difficulty
- 3 of 5
- Target species
- Trout
- Pattern designer
- Charlie Craven
Added to catalog · Updated
At the vise
Materials
- Dry Fly Hook, TMC 200R, sizes 8-12
- Thread (140 Denier), Tan
- 2mm Foam, Tan
- Barred Round Legs
- Elk Hair
- UV Resin
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Tying instructions
Place the hook in the vise and start the thread at the eye.
Cut a 4" strip of foam (~1 hook gap in width) and pierce it ~1" from the end.
Slide the foam onto the hook, ensuring it is centered.
Rotate the foam strip to the side and create a thread base extending to the bend of the hook.
Cut a second section of foam (~1/8" in width) and secure it along the top of the hook shank.
Bind the strip tightly with thread and return the thread to the rear of the hook shank.
Rotate the foam strip forward under the hook shank, pierce foam at the eye, and pull through.
Apply superglue along the length of the hook and onto foam extending from the bend of the hook.
Carefully fold back the top layer of foam and squeeze to adhere the layers together.
Wrap thread loosely around foam at the bend of the hook, pull thread tight, and add a second wrap to secure.
Cross thread forward over the top of the foam (~1/4 shank length) before loosely wrapping thread around foam twice more to create four evenly spaced body segments.
Using a razor blade, cut the foam extending from the bend of the hook to form the tail.
Trim edges of the tail to create a tapered look.
Secure a section of barred round leg at the rear of the front body segment on the nearside of the fly.
Cross the thread over the top of the foam and secure the rear half of the leg along the rear of the second body segment.
Repeat the leg attachment process on the far side of the body.
Using a hair stacker, align a thick bunch of elk hair and secure it with two loose wraps at the rear of the first segment before pulling the thread tight.
Whip finish, apply UV resin, and trim legs to the desired length to complete.