The PGH Black Stoner

This pattern came about in 2017 while fishing Elk Creek in Erie PA. I noticed all of these little black bugs all around. They were black stoneflies. I started getting very serious about tying by this point and wanted to make a good stonefly pattern. My brother in law had turned me on to Lively Legz, and I started looking at The Peterson Guide to Insects. Now I’m far from the only one to offer a Vinyl Ribbed stonefly, but mine looks different enough than others. Most people only use the front two legs on a set of Lively Legz, where I had to figure out how to utilize the whole set and still have a body. I chose the size 16 curved nymph hook, which is a bit longer than a standard size 16. Goose biots acted as the antennae, due to a lack of other durable materials. Small vinyl ribbing acts perfectly as a segmented body. The thorax was decided to be peacock herl. The herl almost perfectly simulated the thoracic gills that stonefly nymphs have. Folded over the peacock herl thorax is the set of Lively Legz. The finishing touch is Veevus large black holographic tinsel. This fly has caught thousands of fish in multiple states. I’ve transferred over the same pattern to a golden stonefly, which has had a lot of success in the Midwest. Since then, I’ve added a quill wrap and holographic tinsel wrapped stonefly. This fly is definitely my best seller.