Realistic Deer Hair Mouse Tutorial from the Fantasy Fly Company

Patterns Of the Masters - Mouse by Don Ordes (1995)

Although I have been tying flies for 30 years, and collectors flies for the last 15 years, I don't think I've had as much fun with any pattern as I have had with the realistic mouse. I have been working on it for a few years now, continually improving it. The present version has been a real show stopper, appealing to a broader range of people than anything else I've tied. Even people who don't fish left them.

in a simplified version, it's a very durable fly for a big bass, pike and trout. Highly detailed it's great for a collectors item gift or lapel pin. The stacking and packing techniques are ones that I've developed over the past decade while trying Monster Muddler Fantasy Flies on 6 inch hooks. That experience, and studying the real thing helped me to tie and sculpt a life-like mouse. Necessary things to tie them are long hair, sharp scissors, strong thread and strong fingers

Hook: Mustad 37187 #2 and up
Thread: Kevlar, spectra or equivalent
Body: Grey deer or elk
Underbody: White deer or elk
Legs: Cut from elk hide
Ears: Calf hide
Tail: Calf or elk hide
Eyes: Dress or map pins
Whiskers: White hackle

	1. Once you have the tail, ears and legs cut out, begin by tying in the tail and back legs on the back of the hook.
	2. One stack at a time, stack and flare grey hair on top and white hair below. Use enough hair to fill the area behind the legs.
	3. Stacks should end at 180 degrees on each side.
	4. Work thread through hair to point of rear leg attachment and push all hair to back out of the way.
	5. Stack and pack another section, first grey on top then white on the bottom. Pull thread tight, flare, pack and work thread forward through hair and put just a couple turns in front of hair to hold it back.
	6. Repeat step 5 with third stack section then tie on the front legs.
	7. Repeat step 5 with fourth stack, flare, lock in and pack.
	8. Tie in ears side by side, tying about 1/4 inch length onto the hook, no more. Position ears.
	9. Repeat step 5 for the first part of the head, grey on top, white on the bottom. Flare and pack, making sure that you stay on the ledge created by step 8.
	10. Tie in mid-head, adjusting amount of material to leave room for nose. Grey over white, flare, pack, lock.
	11. Tie in a sturdy white hackle with long webfree hackles.
	12. Finish with nose using finer hair. Grey over white, flare, pack, lock.
	13. Partially sculpt head from middle to nose. Tie off and whip finish.
	14. Work hackle through hair, and wind forward all the way to nose. Tie off and whip finish. Hackle will project 360 degrees now.
	15. Sculpt mouse body. take your time and have fun. Make a mess, carefully rough out, snip around legs and ears then finish sculpt. Work with fingers and scissors tips to stand all hair out from shank, and finish trim.
	16. Trim whiskers top and bottom of nose and shape head.
	17. install eyes by pushing map pins into the ledge created in step 9.
	18. Finished fly. Lacquer knot.