Pat's Rubber Legs
Pat's Rubber Legs is one of the most devastatingly effective attractor nymphs in the West. The pulsing rubber legs create motion and flash that triggers feeding reflexes in large trout. It's the go-to searching nymph on big Western rivers like the Madison, Green, and Colorado. Fish it on a short, tight leader with split shot to get it to the bottom quickly. Works year-round.
- Type
- nymph (Stonefly)
- Hook sizes
- #4–10
- Target species
- trout
- Difficulty
- beginner
- Best seasons
- spring, summer, fall, winter
Materials
- hook: 4X long nymph hook #4–10
- thread: Brown or black 6/0
- body: Brown and black mottled chenille, alternating
- legs: Medium brown/black barred rubber legs (3 pairs)
Tying steps
- Mount a size 4–10 4XL nymph hook; build a heavy underbody of lead wire.
- Start brown thread; tie in one pair of brown/black rubber legs extending on each side at the bend.
- Wind a length of brown/black mottled chenille to the 1/3 mark and tie off.
- Tie in a second pair of rubber legs at the 1/3 mark.
- Continue winding chenille to the 2/3 mark; tie off and add a third pair of rubber legs.
- Wind chenille to the head; tie off, build a head, whip finish, and cement.
- Apply head cement to the thread wraps behind the hook eye and let cure completely before fishing.
- Check that all rubber legs are the same length on each side and are not twisted around the hook shank.
- Bend each rubber leg downward at a 45-degree angle with your fingers after tying so they retain a natural V-kink when wet and in current.