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Nymph

Copper John

Short answer

The Copper John is a nymph that imitates mayfly and stonefly nymphs, with an attractor's flash. It is usually tied in sizes 12 to 18. Fish it spring through autumn in fast, broken water. Especially useful in high or colored water when you need weight and visibility.

Nymph Beginner #12-#18

Copper John — 9 of diamonds from The Reel Deal Deck, showing the hand-drawn fly and its description
9 of diamonds · Nymph in the deck

By John Barr, 1990s. Weighted with copper wire, gets down quickly. Good mayfly/stonefly imitator.

Printed on the 9 of diamonds

John Barr designed the Copper John to solve a practical problem: getting a nymph rig to the bottom quickly in fast water. A body of wound copper wire, a tungsten or brass bead, and a lacquered wing case make it one of the densest nymphs you can fish, and it drags a lighter trailing fly down with it.

But it is not merely ballast. The wire body has a hard, segmented, translucent look that reads convincingly as a mayfly or small stonefly nymph, and the flash of copper in moving water is a genuine trigger. Trout in fast riffles have very little time to decide, and a bright, dense, buggy object tumbling past gets eaten.

It comes in a dozen wire colors and most of them catch fish. Copper is the original and still the most reliable; red and chartreuse have their days, particularly in off-colored water. As the lead fly in a two-nymph rig with something softer behind it, this is one of the most productive setups in western fly fishing.

What does a Copper John imitate?

Mayfly and stonefly nymphs, with an attractor's flash.

How do you fish a Copper John?

Fish it as the heavy point fly in a two-nymph rig, or as the anchor in Euro-nymphing. Dead drift close to the bottom — if you are not occasionally ticking rocks, you are not deep enough.

When should you fish a Copper John?

Spring through autumn in fast, broken water. Especially useful in high or colored water when you need weight and visibility.

What are the quick tips for fishing it?

  • Use it as the anchor and hang a soft, natural nymph eighteen inches behind.
  • Red is worth carrying for off-colored spring flows.
  • Tungsten bead versions sink noticeably faster and are worth the extra cost.

How is a Copper John tied?

  • Hook: 1XL nymph, #12-#20
  • Bead: gold or black tungsten
  • Tail: brown goose biots
  • Body: copper wire, wound
  • Thorax: peacock herl
  • Wing case: black Thin Skin over flash, epoxied
  • Legs: mottled hen

Dressings vary by tier and region. Treat this as the common recipe, not the only one.

Pheasant Tail Nymph — 7 of diamonds from The Reel Deal Deck, showing the hand-drawn fly and its description Prince Nymph — 8 of diamonds from The Reel Deal Deck, showing the hand-drawn fly and its description Perdigon — 5 of diamonds from The Reel Deal Deck, showing the hand-drawn fly and its description Pat's Rubber Legs — 10 of diamonds from The Reel Deal Deck, showing the hand-drawn fly and its description

The physical version

Copper John is 9 of diamonds in the deck.

All 54 flies, drawn by hand, on Genuine Bicycle Rider Back stock with the patented Air-Cushion finish. A reference you can actually deal out — which was rather the point.

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