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The technique used for the body is really not braiding but the finished result looks like it was braided. The technique was taught to me more than 40 years ago by my late brother-in-law, and mentor, Russ Mowry. See the Green Weenie article. The late Al Campbell referred to this technique as the Granny Knot style. When you see the pics below you will see why he said that.

The material used for the braiding is 4 or 5 or 6 strand embroidery yarn that is available at any craft, fabric, or general merchandise store (Wal-Mart) and is very inexpensive.

A size 8, 3x long, hook is used in the pictures below but the braiding style can be used for sizes #4 through #18 by removing strands of the yard to appropriately reduce bulk. Colors of your choice can be used but my experience has shown yellow (gold) and brown, green and yellow, black and gray produce flies that catch fish.

This fly harkens back to my good buddy and fly fishing English professor Joe Cambridge.  He always used it for the landlocked salmon runs here in the upstate NY’s finger lakes region.  It’s meant to imitate a sawbelly or alewife, a species of baitfish common to these parts.   I’ve had good success with it for stream trout, bass, and even pike and lake trout in larger sizes.

Materials List

Hook:  #10-1/0 3x streamer hook
Thread: gray 6/0
Tail: flashabou
Body: flashabou
Underwing: flashabou
Middlewing: gray bucktail
Wing Topping: peaock herl
Throat: red saddle hackle fibers
Cheeks: small mallard flank feathers
Eyes: 3D stick on eyes

Ready? 

The Green Weenie was developed by Ken Igo and Russ Mowry from the Latrobe area in Western Pennsylvania. (Please see below the profile on Russ Mowry). Ken Igo began the development with a simple fluorescent green/chartreuse chenille body on a #12 Mustad 79580 hook. While the fly was mildly successful, it was discussed during a meeting of a small but elite group of Westmoreland County fly fishermen. The group went by the name Afloat and met monthly in Russ’ basement to discuss flies, fly fishing, fly tying, drink beer, shoot the bull, and not necessarily in that order. Following one of these sessions, Russ suggested to Ken that the fly would be more enticing to trout if it had a tail. Trying to keep the tying very simple, they decided a one-quarter inch loop of the chenille might do the trick. The Green Weenie was born. The name was picked up from Bob Prince, the announcer for the Pittsburgh Pirates, who would wave a green wiener to jinx the opposing team.

The fly was fished for a couple years by members of Afloat and by a few others who had contacts with group members. On a visit to Russ, I was introduced to the fly and carried it back to York, PA, where I fished it on Muddy Creek, introduced local TU members to it, and became known locally as the "Green Weeny Guy."

The late Russ Mowry, my mentor, loved to tie dry flies and, while he tied the Catskill style, his specialty was the spent wing parachute. He tied professionally and tied so many of these flies he had a bunsen burner on his tying desk hooked up to his natural gas line to facilitate burning the wings.

He was a firm believer that, if trout were feeding on surface mayflies, spent wing parachutes were more productive than any other dry fly. My own experience bears this out and, accordingly, practically all the dry flies I tie are spent wing parachutes.

In his opinion, and mine, hen necks are the best source of feathers for producing the spent wings. The stems are thinner, easier to handle and position, and the feather itself has heavy webbing which enhances the look and the silhouette when observed from the fishes viewpoint.

The Usual is a unique fly invented by Fran Betters, of Haystack and Elk Hair Caddis fame. This fly takes advantage of the natural water repelling qualities of the fur from the heel of the Snowshoe Hare. The editor doesn't presume to know what Betters had in mind when he tied it, but I find it works great as a caddis emerger because if its profile in the film and that bug about to "explode" look. Tied in a variety of sizes, it would serve well as an emerger during many mayfly hatches as well.

The Usual

Hook: TMC 100 #14
Thread: Red Uni 8/0
Tail: Snowshoe Hare Foot (from the heel)
Body: Snowshoe Hare Foot
Wing: Snowshoe Hare Foot
Instructions:
Dub and wrap the body loosely so thread shows through.
Leave room at the eye for a slightly larger head.

About the Author...Carl DeFazio, born and raised in West Virginia, is a forester who loves to fish for trout and smallmouth bass on the South Branch of the Potomac River. Find out more about Carl at his website Mountaineer Flies