Materials & Equipment:
Hook:  Mustad 3665A or 9575 #6-10
Thread: Red or orange, 6/0
Body:  Fluorescent pink Depth Ray nylon wool or orange
Wing:  Marabou, pink or cerise
Collar:  Yellow saddle hackle
Head:  Thread

Step 1

Two things you can do before you put a hook in the vise are cut rubber legs in 2.5-inch pieces and cut out the foam bodies.  Put an overhand knot in the middle of each rubber leg.  Line hook with thread.

Step 2

Pick a big hackle from a neck.  It is one of the feathers that you would normally throw away.  It doesn’t make any difference if it is webby.  Tie it on by the butt, run the thread forward, and then closely palmer the hackle forward and secure.

Step 3

Trim it to look like a bottle brush.

Step 4

Move thread to a point that is about 2/3rds shank length back from the eye.  Brush plenty of super glue on the hook, position the foam so the tapered end is a little beyond the end of the hook.  Push it down into the super glue, hold in place to let the super glue set a little.  Put a loose wrap around the foam and hook and then two tighter wraps.  Move the thread forward to a point about 2 or 3 eye lengths back from the eye.  Put on a loose thread wrap followed by two tighter wraps and move it to the rear again.

Step 5

Now come the legs.  Take a leg fold it around the thread and move it to far side of hook.  Put a thread wrap on each side of the knot.  Repeat with near side leg.  Move thread forward to first segment and repeat the steps with each front leg.

Step 6

Trim legs to final length.  Split poly yarn.  Fold a one-inch piece of yellow poly around the thread, position it on top of body and put a few thread wraps around the base to bring the two halves together.

Closing Comments

Here is a super Chernobyl Ant.  It will last for catching many fish.  If you practice catch and release like many of us do please land them quickly, keep them in the water and release them carefully.  Then you or somebody else can play with them another day.