How many Fly Tiers/Fly fishermen??

[centerfire_223]

From a thread the other day, we were talking about tying flys and fly fishing. Well that got me wondering how many tiers and fly fishermen we have on here?

[msmith]

I'd love to get started fly fishing then tying flies in the future. Truth is, I pretty much stink at fishing with a spinning outfit and don't have the time I'd like to hit the water. I am working on making some changes to rectify that though.

I do have a fly rod and reel set up for Steelhead that I hope to use this fall. Gotta get out and practice some.

[bigben]

I used to tie flys when i was younger. Now all i tie is foam ants for sunnys.

[FinsnFur]

We make a lot of our own spinner baits...but I never tied anything but my shoes.

[nastygunz]

I dabble mostly in the winter time but I'm def not very skilled at it I tie a lot of poppers and foam flies for panfish.

http://forum.finsandfur.net/index.php?topic=18163.msg202091#msg202091

[Dave]

Used to also.  Even took a college credit at PSU on flyfishing and tying by a big name in the game (Joe Humphreys). 
Now all I tie are buck tail jigs for saltwater fishing.

[Dale]

probably been fly fishing for 50 years or so, and tying for at least 45... started tying deer hair bugs for bass and sun fish...

[nastygunz]

Id like to tie one from jimbos mustache- The Champion !......

[FinsnFur]

Thats illegal in four countries

[Okanagan]

I have too many hobbies/interests already  and though I used to tie some flies never really got into it.  I have the tools and some material.   

Oddly enough, though I have not tied actual flies for years, this morning I am tying up a few special flies to try as an experiment on sockeye salmon, just yarn flies and no need to get out real fly tying tools. 

IMO The best flies are sparse and  tight.   Most people tie on too much stuff too loosely.  Such flies look bulky and good but don't catch fish as well and get chewed apart after catching a fish or two.  IMO a really good fly looks like the tyer didn't put enough material on the hook, sometimes hardly anything. 

On a windy day in lily pads we noticed trout gobbling something amid the big leaves.  There were small black snails on the underside of the big surface leaves and the wind would flip them off of a leaf once in awhile.  My only totally original fly was a snail imitation fished among lily pads.  It was a bare hook with some peacock herl wound tightly and glued in a short wide cone to imitate a snail.  It was an ugly curiosity but effective. 

Much of fly fishing is snooty--- and then there are the good 'ol boys who catch boatloads of fish on simple flies and a piece of mono line for a leader!   

Edited to remove some extraneous nattering 

[Coulter]

I used to live for flyfishing and tied all my own flies. Often times I would incorporate some of the fur from my own trapline or feathers from hunting excursions into my fly recipes. Nothing better than fooling a wily trout with all of your own stuff. I miss that. I still have all of my gear, including one fly rod that I bought that was never used. It pretty much became an expensive wall hanger until the day I find the time to get back out on the streams and gets after 'em. I still have all of my tying stuff too...maybe again someday.

Steve

[Dale]

the best sources of materials are furriers{dudes that make fur coats etc} and taxidermists, specially ones that do African and Alaskan game animals...

[Okanagan]

FYI in case anyone didn't know what I meant by tying a yarn fly, herewith:



That's a 3/0 hook snelled onto a 17 lb. mono leader with two colors of wool or yarn tied into the snell knot.   You tie the fly material into the knot as you tie the hook to your leader.   

Below is an experimental fly I tied to try to get a sockeye to bite it, on a smaller 1/0 hook.  Instead of tying it on a leader I snelled it with 10 lb. test line with a bit of wool, tinsel and sparkles laid on the hook shank and wrapped into the knot, then just trimmed off the ends of the 10 lb. line.  It will tie on the end of my leader like a regular fly.

This kind of "fly" is quick to produce.  No vise, head cement, glue, thread wrapping etc.  It is all fingers.  Just lay the fly material along the hook shank and tie a snell knot around the hook and material.



And now, a yarn fly with a corkie:  advanced yarn fly tying!  (These are not real fishing flies, but I'm not sure what to call them).  In the pic below are two of the 1/0 sockeye prototypes, and in the background a 3/0 yarn fly with a large pea sized corkie.  With or without the corkie is my standard sockeye lure.



Below is a leader board full of pre-tied flies on leaders in a mix of colors with and without corkies.   

[FinsnFur]

Very impressive Okanagan

[msmith]

Very impressive Okanagan

+1

[Okanagan]

Colorful but hardly impressive.  They are soooo simple (put some yarn in the loop as you tie the knot) that almost anyone could tie them. 

Big hooks make tying them easier:  I'd hate to try to tie these on #10 fly hooks!  It helps that steelhead and salmon will bite such slapped together bits of color.