The Bone Collector: A Translucent Shrimp Pattern for Bonefish

Tie by Sam Wike

"Dry" Fly January v.8

Bonefish aren't the pickest fish in the sea (except for when they are), but when you find something that works, why not roll with it?

House of Fly's Sam Wike has been rolling with the Bone Collector for 20 years, starting with his first trip to Belize when he tested this creation on a bunch of schoolies before moving on to the bigs, meaning singles and doubles to five pounds and beyond. The fly performed so well in Belize, Wike decided to make it a staple in his quiver no matter where he traveled for saltwater species. Mexico. Bahamas. The Keys and beyond. Bonefish, he learned, will eat this pattern, in a varity of colors, everywhere they are found. If you're looking for a go-to, no-questions-about-it fly, that's going to catch a bonefish's eyes, whip up a few Bone Collector's and call it good.

THE BONE COLLECTOR

Materials

Hook: Genryuu 321S Stainless Hook

Thread: Semperfli Nano Silk - Orange

Feather: Natural Wood Duck Flank

Body:  Rainbow Scud Dubbing

Tail: Predator Wrap

Legs: Fly Project No Broken Legs

Eyes: Silver Bead Chain Eyes

Butt:  Arizona Simi Seal Canadian Orange

Tying Tips: All the materials can be switched out to adjust profile and/or weight. I often tie these with dumbell eyes or even our micro tungsten Squatchy Dumbbells. The 3mm size is awesomee because the profile is tiny and it gets the shrimp to the bottom quick with no extra splash at all. I alternate the butt, rubber legs and thread colors on this pattern but I almost always keep the natural wood duck and rainbow scud dub the same. Those two materials add a lot of translucency to the fly.  ~Sam