Published Feb 25. 2015 - 9 years ago
Updated or edited Mar 24. 2021

USD Shrimp

This is a fairly complex shrimp pattern, a little difficult to tie, but also durable. It fishes upside down and is tied by Danish Mads Schmidt who has had great success with the fly.

USD Shrimps - Two USD Shrimps showing a lighter and a darker finish obtained by using lighter and darker SLF and EP fibers
Very naturalistic - The USD Shrimp is an excellent imitation
USD Shrimps
Mads Schmidt

My acquaintance with the Up Side Down Shrimp started more than three years ago. Back then it was one of its relatives named the Honey Shrimp that was at the end of my tippet. I fished with it for half a year and had many contacts with trout.

But there was a minor problem.

Between the hooked fish there was also quite a few trout that were not hooked despite properly rapid strikes and even strip strikes. The fly was obviously very attractive to the fish, but I thought the hook lacked a wider gape.

I decided to start to tie it in my own way with the adjustments that I wanted.

Mads Schmidt with the prize - A magnificent Danish sea trout caught by the author
Stiff upper lip - Since the fly is fishing upside down, the fish are often hooked in the upper lip
Another one felll - The USD Shrimp has claimed yet a victim
The USD strikes again - Resting of the tail of its quarry: the sea run brown trout
USD fish
Mads Schmidt

That was a hook that could reduce missed hookups and materials that worked well in the water. The last, but probably the most important issue, the placement of the weight, took me quite a few attempts to get right, but finally it was 100% right in the water - up side down.
The up side down shrimp you see here, is effective all year round. It is relatively difficult to tie, but very durable and will provide many catches. One of these flies from my box had ten trout on its conscience, and didn't look worn out in any way. Unfortunately, I lost it before, it was worn down.
The USD Shrimp is a very efficient shrimp imitation, which is at the end of my tippet 80% of the time I spend on the coast.

A shrimp family - A single beaded Copper Bully sneaked into this family of different USD Shrimp variants
The family
Mads Schmidt
USD Shrimp
Pattern type: 
Cold saltwater fly
Originator: 
Mads Schmidt
Materials: 
Hook
Gamakatsu F 314 size 6
Weight
Tungsten or Round Wire 035
Thread
UNI-Mono, Fine/Clear
Rib
UNI-Mono, Med/Clear
Legs
Wapsi Stretch Round Rib, Small/Clear
Body
SLF Dubbing Blend, sand and EP Fibers, white
Eyes
Black mono eyes
Antennae
Polar bear, white, or (synthetic) substitute
LCR
Loon UV Clear
Shield
Thin Skin
Coloring
Brown waterproof marker
Laquer
Head cement
Skill level/difficulty: 
A little difficult
Instruction: 


Tying instructions
Step 1: hook and weight

Step 2: dubbing

Step 3: first legs

Step 4: more legs

Step 5: thorax

Step 6: eyes

Step 7: rib

Step 8: antennae

Step 9: thorn

Step 10: dubbing

Step 11: last legs

Step 12: front body

Step 13: tail

Step 14: secon tail loop

Step 15: secure legs

Step 16: secure tail

Step 17: dub body

Step 18: comb body

Step 19: shield

Step 20: rib and trim

Step 21: dots

Pinkie - You can tie the USD Shrimp in pink if you so wish
Even pink
Mads Schmidt

Comments

The USD brown shrimp...

The USD brown shrimp is almost exactly what the browns, speckles, and rainbows eat in my area of Nova Scotia. I don't tie my own flies but would like to buy some of these. Can they be purchased?

Wow, totally blown a...

Wow, totally blown away by the wet look, incredible realism, wheres the cocktail sauce? Definitely going to toss that at the searun browns, and salters ( searun brookies) this coming fall, in an olive or light olive it is a mirror image of the wee grass shrimp found on most New England flats, the striped bass will at times feed on them and nothing else for weeks it seems. Thank you for another incredible pattern. GFF rocks as always,sharp hooks,tight lines.

usd shrimp...

Would like to purchase USD shrimp who or where could I purchase some ???

.

Log in or register to pre-fill name on comments, add videos, user pictures and more.
Read more about why you should register.
 

Since you got this far …


The GFF money box

… I have a small favor to ask.

Long story short

Support the Global FlyFisher through several different channels, including PayPal.

Long story longer

The Global FlyFisher has been online since the mid-90's and has been free to access for everybody since day one – and will stay free for as long as I run it.
But that doesn't mean that it's free to run.
It costs money to drive a large site like this.

See more details about what you can do to help in this blog post.