Developed by Britt Phillips - Hole in the Wall Fly Shop, Calif.

The PT Brassie is a pattern I've used with considerable success on the Dream Stream and in a number of Colorado mountain lakes. Best of all it's incredibly simple and fast to tie.

Materials:
Hook: Standard, sizes 14-18
Thread: Fire Orange or White, Uni-thread 8/0
Body: Brass or copper wire
Tail, wingcase: 5-6 Pheasant Tail fibers.
Thorax: Spiky dubbing to suit, like squirrel or hares ear.

Instructions:
1. Mash the barb, put hook in vise and start thread at eye. Tie in brass wire one eye width behind the eye on your side of the hook. Hold the wire to you and wind the thread back to the bend, holding the wire as a guide. Lay the wire over the top of the hook and let it hang.

2. Tie in the Pheasant Tail (PT) in front of the "lay over" wire and wind back till the tail tips up a bit against the wire. Britt calls this "Kicking the Tail."

3. Wind thread forward keeping the PT on top of the hook, take the thread to the eye, covering the PT. The PT is now sticking straight out the front of the hook.

4. Wind the wire in touching turns to just shy of the eye, wrap back to 1/3rd shank length back from the eye and then forward to front of the hook. Grab the wire and circle it to break it off for a smooth end ( do this for all wires and you will not have sharp edges to cut or damage thread). A slight build up of wire is now the thorax area.

5. Double duty the tail material by using it for the wingcase. Take the PT and pull it back on itself, in effect putting it in a bow shape. Make the bow so it will be a bit longer than the thorax when pulled back. Secure folded PT with a thread wrap right behind the eye. Pull the PT butts forward and secure with another thread wrap. This gives three layers of pheasant tail for the wingcase.

6. Go behind the PT and begin dubbing a noodle for the thorax. Put a little dubbing wax on the thread, spin the thread and touch the dubbing to it. Push up the dubbing to make it a little denser. Cover the built up wire with dubbing and leave the thread at the rear of the thorax. With a little practice you will learn how much dubbing to put on the thread and how much to push it.

7. Pull the tripled PT over the thorax and tie off at the rear of the thorax leaving the head portion clean of thread and fiber. You may change the color thread now if you like, but we like the band of Fire Orange thread. It is a "key-on" spot for the fish. Trim the butts of the PT close to the thread. Whip finish over the tie down point.

8. Strengthen the wingcase and thread with head cement. Coating the wire abdomen with cement gives it a translucent look if you are using un-varnished wire.