Raw Prawn Bream and Flathead Saltwater Fly

Summer has arrived and the Prawns are running throughout the estuaries during the dark of the moon.  The waters have warmed; estuarine systems have come to life and fish will aggressively chase down a well-presented shrimp fly. The Raw Prawn, originally designed as a Flathead fly pattern for the crystal-clear waters of NSW’s Mid North Coast, fastly became a versatile fly for Bream. From Northern NSW to the depths of Tasmania, the pattern has accounted for a host of species.  Outside of Flathead and Bream, Estuary Perch, Mangrove Jack, Mulloway, Australian Bass, Golden Perch, Carp along with Brown Trout on the infamous Eucumbene yabby beds have all succumbed to the Raw Prawn. For this column, we focus on the tie for the southern, light saltwater estuarine species.

The Tan colour, as described throughout the tying process has dominated. Consider Olive and Pink combinations which perform well on their day. A well-regarded pattern for its natural movement and precise silhouette, allowing it to mimic local prawn species with conviction.

The Raw Prawn fly tying kit will be available at BWCflies Tuggerah or online at bwcflies.com.au

Materials List for the Raw Prawn

• Hook – Partridge CS56 size 4 | Ahrex NS156 size 6
• Thread – Flat Waxed 210D | Tan
• Head – Steve Farrar Blend | Shrimp
• Eyes – Easy Shrimp Eyes | Translucent Brown
• Antennae – Krystal Flash | Pearl
• Legs – Hareline Crazy Legs Metallic Gold and Wapsi Perfectly Barred legs in Sand
• Body – EP Shrimp Dub in Tan and Hareline Scub Dub in Shrimp Scud Orange
• Wing – H2O Baitfish Blend | Mullet Brown
• Dumbbells – Brass or Lead
• Resin – Gulff Flexman
• Glues – Gulff Minuteman Gel

Key Tying Notes

1. Wrap the hook shank in a base of thread and tie in the dumbbells.
2. Move the thread above the hook point and secure a small, tapered bunch of SF Blend.
3. Rotate the hook point upward and attach the Easy Shrimp Eyes.
4. Double two strands of Krystal Flash over the thread and tie them in at the centre. Add another tapered bunch of SF Blend above the Krystal Flash. Create a ball of dubbing, which will be used the flair the legs.
5. Fold two gold Crazy Legs over the thread and tie them on top of the hook shank behind the dubbing ball. Then attach one barred leg to each side of the body, below the gold legs.
6. Dub the orange dubbing onto the hook shank just behind the legs. To finish the body, add tan dubbing onto your thread and wrap right up to the dumbbell eyes.
7. Using a small clump of Baitfish Blend, tie it in front of the dumbbells.
8. Trim fibres near the hook eye, whip finish, apply flex UV resin, and cure.

Embellished Tying Steps

• Secure hook in the vise with the hook point facing down. Lay a base of thread from behind the hook eye along the shank, stopping directly above the barb.
• Tie in the dumbbell eyes, positioned 5mm back from the centre of the hook eye. A drop of Gulff Minuteman Gel superglue will assist in bonding those in place whilst ensuring they are square to the hook shank and level.
• Advance the thread to be positioned directly above the hook point, secure a small bunch of tapered SF Blend, so that 30mm is protruding past the bend of the hook.
• Rotate the hook to point up and secure the Easy Shrimp Eyes by laying the stem along the shank and wrapping with thread, aligning the eyeballs with the bend of the hook.
• Taking two strands of Pearl Krystal Flash, double them to over the thread and secure in the centre of the Shrimp Eyes.
• Take another bunch of tapered SF Blend and tie in above the Krystal Flash. Trime the legs and antennae to the same length of 40mm. This completes the head portion.
• To commence the body, start by adding a tight noodle of EP Shrimp Dub in Tan to your thread. Wrap around the hook shank directly behind the head to create a ball of dubbing.
• Taking two Hareline Crazy legs in Metallic Gold, fold them over the thread and tie in place directly on top of the hook shank behind you ball of dubbing.
• Taking two Wapsi Perfectly Barred legs in Sand, attach one on each side of the body, positioned below the gold legs.
• To tie in the hot spot, dub a portion of Scud Dub in Shrimp Scud colour and wrap around the hook shank, directly behind the legs. At this point, you should be just past the hook point. Since space is limited, carefully consider your thread wrap counts.
• To complete the body section, apply tan dubbing to your thread and work towards the dumbbell eyes. Finish the dubbed body tight to the dumbbell eyes.
• Before advancing to the wing section, take your dubbing brush to work out the dubbing fibres to create Shimp legs under the body.
• Take a small clump of Baitfish Blend, slide it between your forefinger and thumb to create a nice taper, and tie in front of the dumbbells.
• Trim the excess fibres from the hook eye area, build a bullet shaped head, whip finish and coat with a flex uv resin and cure. The viscosity of the Solarez Bone Dry Flex works well in allowing some resin to bleed in to the wing fibres before curing.
• The finished fly should measure 60-62mm in length. The Raw Prawn can also be scaled for species like Barramundi, Threadfin Salmon, and Mulloway.

Follow the Fly-Tying Tutorial below

Raw Prawn Fly Tying Video

Fishing the Raw Prawn

A full floating weight foreward fly line in sizes 6, 7 and 8 for the flats and either full intermediate or float / intermediate configuration works best when presenting the fly deeper than 2m. A loop knot lets the fly move freely during retrieval, making its silicone legs pulse in the water.

When retrieving, I use two quick, sharp bumps of the fly line, keep tension as the fly descends, bump again, then make a 30–40 cm long draw before another sharp bump. Keep the rod tip close to the waterline and set the hook with a firm strip set, before lifting into any fish.