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Closed cell foam is exactly what the name implies. It is for with multitudes of tiny closed cells each filled with air. The material that closed cell foam is made out of varies but it is heavier than water and therefore sinks, it is only the trapped tiny bubbles of air that cause the material to float. Closed cell foam comes in many shapes, sizes and colours and it is quite easy to amass quite a collection if your constantly on the look out. You can of course buy it at your tackle shop but keep Spotlight and other craft type shop in mind and don't forget recycling. Some of the best closed cell foam I have come across has been in the form of recycled material. The old computer mouse pad, the left over door sealing rubber for the fridge, a little bit of packaging that something really useless but fragile came in etc. etc..

Many different types of beetles are fond in the vegetation around Australia. There are those that live in forests, other that live in pastures and yet others peculiar to tussock ridden high country grasslands. Sizes and colour vary significantly as do the patterns that represent them. Because Beetles are blown onto the water rather than intending to be there it is common to find a number of different types of Beetles on the trouts “shopping list” at the one time. They ride low in the water and some of the more commonly encountered beetles include Black Beetles, the Fiery Brown, various Gum beetles with iridescent green, yellow and red bodies or bellies and even Ladybird beetles.

Process

A	Select an appropriate piece of closed cell foam generally I like the foam to be as wide as the gape of the hook. The thickness is important, too thick and it will be too cumbersome to tie and too thin and it wont be sufficient to float the fly. Any time your using a new closed cell foam material that you have foraged tie just one fly and check that it floats at the correct level before getting too carried away and filling you fly box with "drowned" beetles when you thought you were adding floating beetles. You will need a piece of foam which is at least 3 times longer than the foam body you want to tie. I cut long strips and work with the full length, that way I can tie several flies of the same type all with similar backs and there is little wastage. Cut the leading edge of the foam into a V.

	I suggest that you use heavier thread when tying foam beetles because substantial pressure must be applied when securing the body to the shank of the hook. Wind the thread in touching turns to the bend of the hook. Tie in a tail like feature extending behind the hook about 2/3 the length of the hook shank. This isn't really a tail. The tail like feature on my beetles is tied in to imitate the beetle wing parts that often trail behind the beetle like a tail when it gets trapped in the water mid flight. Return the thread to 75% of the way along the hook shank toward the eye of the hook.

C	Hold the narrow end of the foam in your left hand with the foam firmly against the top of the shank with the tip just protruding past the tie in point. Using the fly tiers pinch take a couple of firm wraps of thread securing the tip of the foam to the top of the hook shank at the tie in position.

D	Now whilst retaining pressure on the top and along the closed cell foam move your left hand along the foam and take 4 or 5 separated wraps of thread all the way back to where the bend of the hook or where the body is to start. The wraps should not be so tight that all the air is forced out of what will be the under-body of the fly but should be firm enough to prevent the dressing twisting on the hook shank. At the actual starting point for the body take a couple of tight wraps of thread. Make sure that the tight wraps of thread in the previous step are beyond any tail tie in position. It will look daggy if when you pull the foam over to form the back of the body you can see wraps of thread tying in a tail. If there is a little ridge where you first tied the foam down at the fly neatly off with a pair of scissors.

E	Tie in your body material at the bend of the hook.

F	Wind the body material over the under-body toward the eye of the hook with firm touching turns. Tie the body material off and trim the excess body material at the same position that the under-body ends. Alternatively at this stage of the fly you can add hackle legs. Foam beetle hackle legs

G	Pull the closed cell foam into position over the top of the fly.

H	Hold the closed cell foam in position onto the top of the hook shank at the tie down point with the fingers of your left hand squeezing it round the hook. With your right hand take a couple of tight wraps of thread.

I	Without releasing pressure on the thread place a couple of double hitches over the eye of the hook.

J	Trim the thread and paint eyes on for a completed beetle. This beetle body could of course be tied only on the back half of a long shank hook leaving room to dress the front part of the fly in some other way such as in the Booby Beetle or Foam Ant.

K	On all but the smallest beetles I like to add silicon legs. Silicon and rubber legs

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