How to Tie the Y2K Fly

Producer: tightlinevideo

This fly is called a Y2K and it’s a super effective, but truly easy fly to tie. The Y2K also happens to be one of the very first flies I tied on here on my YouTube channel 14 years ago—so I figure it’s time for a little update.

This version of the Y2K starts with a size 12 Fulling Mill 5115 barbless grub hook. It’s easily tied in a variety of sizes but I use a ton of size 12’s, particularly for Great Lakes steelhead. To make handling easier, I get hold of the hook shank behind the eye with plunger-style hackle pliers and keep them at the ready.

Although not essential, a drop bead works really well with this pattern – here, an 1/8” tungsten gold one. Drop beads are asymmetrical with a small hole on one side and a countersunk hole on the other. How you put them on the hook is a matter of personal preference, and good arguments can be made for either way. I like the small hole facing forward, so I’ll stab one of the beads with my bodkin and center the small hole in the fingertips of my left hand. Then, I insert the point of the hook into the small non-countersunk hole of the bead. Next I’ll get the entire assembly firmly secured in the jaws of my tying vise, which I have set up for rotary tying, even though there’s no benefit to true rotary tying with this pattern.

For thread, you can basically use whatever color you want, I prefer white. Just make sure that it’s fairly heavy, like this UTC 140, as you’ll be using quite a bit of thread tension while tying. Get the thread started on the hook shank immediately behind the bead and, after taking a few wraps rearward, wrap back up to the bead and snip the excess tag end off close. Build up thread wraps right behind the bead to help stabilize it on the hook shank and pin it against the back edge of the eye.

Although you can use a variety of material for the fly, including traditional glo-bug yarn, I prefer McFly Foam, as it compresses well, making it easy to secure, and it’s available in a huge range of colors. McFly Foam comes packaged in sort of long lengths which are a little cumbersome so whenever I get a new packet, before anything else, I’ll snip the lengths in half, like so.

Most Y2K’s are two-toned, often with one fairly light color and another fairly dark. I prefer combinations of colors that are at least somewhat complementary, but figure out what works best for you. Here I’m combining a color called “apricot” with a darker orange color. McFly Foam kind of comes in bundles of strands that are relatively the same size, so separate out one of each color. This stuff can be a pain to work with, and I’ve found that snipping the butt ends of the strands off square helps to tame them just a wee bit, as wispy ends tend to catch on everything.

With about a 1/2” of material extending past the hook eye, place the two different colored strands on top of the hook shank and take two tight wraps of tying thread right behind the drop bead. Sweep the forward-pointing material back and take two tight wraps of tying thread in front of it, but behind the bead. Then, pull that material back forward and down and take two more tight wraps around it. Pull the material back on either side of the fly and, once again, take a few wraps in front of the material but behind the bead.

Pick up your whip finish tool and use it to do a 4 or 5 turn whip finish, seat the knot well and snip or cut your tying thread free. Separate the forward portion of the Fly Foam to either side then pull both strands up together and snip them off in line with the top edge of the bead to create a small sphere, then pull the rearward-pointing portion back until it’s taut, and snip it off at about a hook gap back from the back edge of the hook bend. At this length, the material should bounce back and ultimately extend just past the hook bend, like so.

You should also end up with different colors on either side of the fly, and some bare thread on the underside of the hook behind the bead. Get hold of your favorite head cement, here Sally Hansen Hard as Nails, and apply an ample drop to those exposed thread wraps. This is where the rotary function of the vise comes in handy. The white thread I’m using goes almost clear once the adhesive sinks in and dries, so it becomes all but unnoticeable.

And that’s all there is to tying a Y2K. Trout, particularly steelhead, can get super fussy about color with egg patterns so it pays to carry a variety. I found that the drop bead, here on the left, causes the fly to ride in a bit more horizontal orientation than the fly tied with a more standard bead on the right. The more horizontal orientation usually results in less bottom snags. The drop bead also provides a bit more jiggy motion than a regular bead, but the difference is pretty subtle.