What is commonly called the “brahma” bugger is an improvement on the original wooly bugger due to its incredible look, and movement when under the water. This fly pulsates due to the chickabou and soft hackle makeup. Now I call this the “soft hackle bugger” because I don’t tie it with a brahma pelt. I find any soft hackle pelt with chickabout, or even the mini marabou packages paired up with the soft hackle packages will give the exact same effect for less money. You can also get longer or shorter fibered soft hackles this way, and a wider range of colors as well than just using the whiting brahma pelts. Basically any type of hen soft hackle with chickabou (or mini marabou) will work for this fly.
I also added a bit of flash in the tail like I do with original wooly buggers, which from my knowledge wasn’t originally done with the first version of this brahma bugger. You can also make this two tone, or even stripped by changing out colors of the hackle as well. For instance, alternating a darker and lighter hackle will give a neat effect.
If you can stick around to the end of this video, I put some underwater footage of this fly, showing just how well this flows in the water. This fly really moves well, and every fiber seems to vibrate. The fly also pushes a fair amount of water as well, so its a great fly for many situations. I love swinging this fly in riffles for trout, but also it makes a great fly for a sink tip in a deep pool, or even in lakes for bass. Just like the original wooly bugger, I suspect this will work for just about any species out there including some salt water ones as well.
As always I’m listing all the materials I used on this fly, with a link to the fly artist. I am including a discount code as well as a thank you for being my subscriber! Type in McFlySubs at checkout for a discount when purchasing from the fly artist.
Hook: Daiichi 1740 in size 8 – https://www.flyartist.com/products/da…
Thread: Veevus 6/0 – https://www.flyartist.com/products/ve…
Tail: Chickabou/mini marabou – https://www.flyartist.com/products/ha…
Flash: Holographic Flashabou – https://www.flyartist.com/products/ho…
Body: Soft Hackle – https://www.flyartist.com/products/me…
Head Cement: Solarez “ultra thin” UV Resin – https://www.flyartist.com/products/so…
