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AK Best’s Melon Quill has always been a head scratcher. Me Best says, “It could be a sulfur dun, an eastern light cahill, a pale morning dun, or even a western red quill.” Here’s what goes through our mind when we read that: “It works. Everywhere.” This is our version of a melon quill color scheme married with Mr Mathews’ brilliant sparkle dun.

Tying Notes:

• Semperfli’s Dirty Bug yarn is very versatile stuff. For sizes 14 and smaller, we like to use one strand (the rope comes with two strands twisted together). To form a really nice segmented body, twist the single strand into a tight cord prior to wrapping it forward.
• Leave a space behind the wing the width of one wrap. At this point, put in one loose wrap of thread and let the yarn unwind. This flatter yarn is better than the cord for finishing the thorax. From this point, wrap in front of the wing and then go back and fill in the gap left behind the wing. This helps stand up the wing and build a thorax.
• You can cut the trailing shuck square, but we like to cut it an angle to create a taper. This likely doesn’t matter to anyone but us.

Recipe:

• Hook: Dry fly hook, sizes 12-20. https://www.discountflies.com/product/M-D1180.html
• Thread: SemperFli Nano Silk. https://www.discountflies.com/...
• Tail: Antron or Z Lon, grey or olive. https://www.discountflies.com/product/M-UTCAYS.html or https://www.discountflies.com/...
• Body: SemperFli Dirty Bug Yarn, Salmon. https://www.discountflies.com/...
• Wing: Deer Hair. https://www.discountflies.com/product/M-RWDEER.html or https://www.discountflies.com/...
• Thorax: Same as body