This classic high-riding hair wing is often miscreditted to Lee Wulff. Lee originated the Wulff series with the Gray and White versions probably being his first. However, the Royal Wulff was designed by Q. L. Quackenbush of the Beaverkill Trout Club and tied by Rube Cross. "Quack" wanted a version of the Royal Coachman (Jon Hailey) with stiffer, more robust wings. Rube accomplished the task with Impala fur and called it the Quack Coachman. The name 'Royal Wulff" has evolved with it's similar appearance to Wulff style flies.

I like this pattern, from a tier's perspective, because in order to tie it well you must pay keen attention to your proportions. I have demonstrated the fly on a standard shank R50 dry fly hook to show that it can be neatly accomplished but a 2XL hook is probably a better foundation.

This is a fly I will go to for native brook trout or western pocket water cutthroats if I insist on fishing the surface. In very large sizes, this fly has a following among Atlantic Salmon purists.

MATERIALS

Hook: Mustad R50 or Equivalent OR a 2XL Dry Fly Hook

Thread: Black

Wing: Calf Body Hair

Tail: Moose Guards

Abdomen: Red Floss sandwiched between Peacock Herl

Hackle: Coachman Brown (Brown or Brown/Black mixed acceptable substitutes)

Place the debarbed hook firmly in your vise.

Start the jam knot behind the eye, wrap back to the 1/2 point of the shank and come back forward to the 1/3 point.

Obtain a patch of white calf body hair. Calf (a.k.a. "kipp") is also suitable but more difficult to deal with.

Using your closed scissors, stroke a section of the hair forward so you can grasp it easier.

Grab a healthy pinch (twice as much as you'll need) and snip it close to the base.

Grasp the bundle close to the tips.

Comb out the shorts. Notice that you lose about 50% of the original density.

Tips first into a midge stacker.

Stack and remove the base so that the tips are facing forward.

Remove the hair from the stacker and measure to equal the entire hook length.

Move the measured point forward to the thread.

One loose wrap collects the hair on top of the shank...

...several tight wraps to the rear secure it.

Clip the butt ends at the middle of the shank.

Move the thread back forward to the 1/3 mark.

Grasp the hair bundle and pull it back hard.

Build a tapered thread dam in front.

Now you have an upright clump of even-tipped hair.

Divide the hair with your fingers.

Hold the nearside wing down and away...

...and come front-back with a few wraps between the wings.

Repeat for the far side, only this time you go back-front to complete a series of "x-wraps."

You now have divided wings using a series of X-wraps.

Grasp the far wing by the tips and make a series of wraps around its base in a clockwise direction. This will gather and strengthen the wing.

Make some wraps around the shank when you are done to secure the process.

Repeat on the nearside only this time you wrap counter-clockwise.

Make some wraps around the shank when you are done to secure the process.

You now have upright and divided wings that have been "posted."

Advance the thread to the rear, just above the barb location.

Obtain a patch of moose body hair.

Snip away a healthy bunch. Notice it has two lengths of hair.

Grasp by the tips and pull out the shorter under hairs.

This leaves you with the darker guards hairs.

Tips first into a standard hair stacker.

Stack and remove the base so the tips face to the rear.

Remove the hair and measure to be equal to the overall length of the hook.

Place the measured point over the thread, on top of the hook with the butts between the wings, and secure with some tight wraps.

Bind the hair to the shank, stopping just shy of the rear edge of the lashed-down wing material.

Pull the wings and butt ends of the moose hair upright to expose the separation between the two...

...and snip away the excess moose hair close to the shank.

Cover the transition area with thread to form a level underbody.

Select three or four long peacock herls.

Note: for presentation flies you'll get better results using a single herl.

Even the tips and then lop-off the top inch to remove the weakest section.

Secure the peacock to the side of the shank all the way back to the tail. No gaps between the tail and peacock please. Advance the thread to the hook point.

Wrap the herl forward as one unit (I do not twist them as they'll twist on their own as you wrap) to the thread-about 1/8."

Catch them in with the thread...

...and wrap forward about1/8."

Select one-strand of a 4-stranded red rayon floss.

Square-off the tip.

Secure it with a single tight wrap of thread at the forward edge of the thread band you just created while tying off the peacock herl.

Wrap the floss back to the edge of the herl...

...and forward again to where you secured it, with the last pass going over the shank and coming underneath in front of the thread.

Pull the floss up and angle it back...

..one wrap of thread will lock it in.

Clip the excess close.

Pull the remaining herl back and advance the thread forward 1/8."

Wrap the herl forward to the thread...

...and secure it just as we secured the floss.

Clip the excess close.

Smooth the thorax area while advancing the thread forward to behind the eye. Notice the clean, smooth thorax area that is equal in length to the abdomen.

Obtain a quality Coachman Brown saddle or cape. Coachman brown is a deep, dark, rich brown color but can be hard to find. Brown or furnace hackle are apt substitutes or you can mix a brown and a black together.

Select two hackles whose barbs are about as long as the hook shank, or about 1.5-2 times as long as the hook's gap.

Note: If using a genetic saddle cape you'll only need to select one feather.

Expose the stem above where the webbing is minimized.

Clip away the bases leaving a small section of exposed stem.

Catch in the hackles, as a pair, just behind the eye with the undersides facing you. Notice how I am using what will be the head as my measuring point here. Nothing will be applied forward of the rear edge of the head. Planning and proportion!

Note: If you are using genetic saddles then I suggest tying the feather in as shown but at the rear edge of the thorax.

Crease the hackle stems by pulling them forward so they stand roughly perpendicular to the hook.

Select the rear-most hackle and wrap it back to the abdomen. Make sure each wrap goes behind the previous and that you come close to the wings.

Note: If using a saddle you will be wrapping forward.

Reverse direction and go back through the thorax ending at the hanging thread. Secure the first hackle at the rear edge of the head. Clip the excess.

Note: if using a saddle you will be reversing back through the thorax.

Repeat the process with the second hackle and secure it, too, at the rear of the head.

Note: If using a saddle you will back making a final pass forward where you will secure the hackle and clip the excess.

Pull the hackle barbs back to expose the head area.

Build a neat head without binding the bard to the rear or trapping them over the eye.

Whip finish and clip the thread. Dress the fly by stroking the wings and hackle back into position-which they will readily do if quality materials were used. Cement the head for durability.

A completed Royal Wulff!

Notice how the a) the wings are in the middle of the hackle collar and slightly longer than the hackle barbs, b) the abdominal bands are of equal width, and c) the abdomen and thorax each consume 1/2 of the hook's shank. Planning and Proportion!