New to fly tying

[ATbuckhunter]

I'm pretty new to fly tying and I figured I'd make a thread so I could ask questions to the more knowledgeable guys here. I've tied a bunch of flies and teasers...some came out good and others, not so good. The first question I have is, do these wet flies have too much hackle? I know one definitely does, but in iffy on the rest of them. FYI try not to laugh too much at my home made tying vise.

 

 

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[turkeyfeathers]

Wish my brother had a computer or I’d have him chime in. He’s been tying flies for 60 years. Catches thousands of trout a. year.  Fishes native trout streams in NY, Idaho , Montana, Wyoming from May til November. He’s one of the top fly fishermen out west and has built a reputation as such amongst the guides ( he doesn’t guide and fishes for fun   ) Hebgon lake gulper on a tiny dry fly he tied

It’s about learning the hatches , tying accordingly , presentation etc  Nothing better than fooling ole Moe out of his hole , where many have presented flies before  Yet you fooled him , release him to know you’ve caught him on your home spun fly you tied   This is my only knowledge of fly fishing besides I’m terrible at it 

 

[ATbuckhunter]

Wow what a resource he must be! Sounds like someone id like to sit down with for an afternoon, that's for sure

[Just Lucky]

I finished my first fly over the weekend. I never did it before and just watched a couple videos. Took about 10 hours to finish. Did not turn out as I envisioned. 

[Dinsdale]

I tie those sparse with only one wrap of hackle, and put a small ball of dubbing right behind hackle, makes legs stand out.

[chrisw]

I finished my first fly over the weekend. I never did it before and just watched a couple videos. Took about 10 hours to finish. Did not turn out as I envisioned. 

10 hours on one fly!? I've gotten into fly tying in the past year also, mainly streamers, jigs, nymphs and a couple of scuds. I don't spend too long on each one because quite honestly, the fly is more for the fisherman than the fish I think...

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[chrisw]

A few of the boxes I have inside right now, they're mostly steelhead geared but the jigs are multipurpose, as are the streamers, the nymphs will work on any trout for the most part.

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[virgil]

I think they have about the right amount of hackle. It just takes practice. Lots and lots of practice. After a while, you’ll be able to crank out a dozen flies in no time. 

But, you gotta get the right tools- starting with a decent vice. 

[virgil]

Turkeyfeathers, ask your brother if he knows of a guy named Craig Matthews. About twenty years ago, I was fishing on the Firehole River and ran into a local flyshop owner who offered some really helpful advice. Turns out that he’s a legend in the fly fishing industry. 

[left field]

@ATbuckhunter

Like most things in fly fishing ... it depends. The best way to determine if they have too much hackle is to fish them. If they don't work, begin to snip off pieces of hackle until you find something the fish like.  

I've done this with dry flies on nymph rivers. 

@chrisw

You would do well in Iceland with those fluorescent flies.

 

[ATbuckhunter]

1 hour ago, virgil said:

I think they have about the right amount of hackle. It just takes practice. Lots and lots of practice. After a while, you’ll be able to crank out a dozen flies in no time. 

But, you gotta get the right tools- starting with a decent vice. 

A decent vise will be my next purchase for fly tying! Sometimes its a struggle doing it the way I am. 

[Daveboone]

It takes a lot of practice, and a vice with a good fine jaw on it makes life a lot easier. Do you use a spindle to hold your thread? that and a hackle clamp are essential. In the long gone days, flies were tied strictly with fingers, but those three basic tools (and a fine little pair of scissors) will greatly improve your abilities. 

After that, just practice, practice , practice. But don't be afraid to use your earlier efforts...amazing what fish will bite on, Panfish / bass in the shallows are a riot on fly rod, and aren't finicky at all!

[ATbuckhunter]

It takes a lot of practice, and a vice with a good fine jaw on it makes life a lot easier. Do you use a spindle to hold your thread? that and a hackle clamp are essential. In the long gone days, flies were tied strictly with fingers, but those three basic tools (and a fine little pair of scissors) will greatly improve your abilities. 
After that, just practice, practice , practice. But don't be afraid to use your earlier efforts...amazing what fish will bite on, Panfish / bass in the shallows are a riot on fly rod, and aren't finicky at all!

I do have a hackle clamp and I use a ceramic bobbin to hold my thread. I also have surgical scissors with a very fine point on them. Only thing I'm missing is a vice and experience.


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[chrisw]

I do have a hackle clamp and I use a ceramic bobbin to hold my thread. I also have surgical scissors with a very fine point on them. Only thing I'm missing is a vice and experience.


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My suggestion is to go on eBay and buy a cheap vise kit, I got my starter set for $30, it comes with all of the necessary tools that make tying much easier, then you can upgrade when ready. I actually see no reason to upgrade yet, I spend my money on tying materials as you'll probably find yourself with a ton of different things. Also, don't overlook craft stores, you'd be surprised how cheap you can get Marabou, biots, beads, embroidery thread etc.

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[chrisw]

[mention=2496]ATbuckhunter[/mention]
Like most things in fly fishing ... it depends. The best way to determine if they have too much hackle is to fish them. If they don't work, begin to snip off pieces of hackle until you find something the fish like.  
I've done this with dry flies on nymph rivers. 
[mention=5688]chrisw[/mention]
You would do well in Iceland with those fluorescent flies.
 

Iceland? I'm not sure if there's validity to that or a snarky comment on UV based bright lures? I can tell you they work here for sure, trout eat a lot more than people realize, much more predatory than some would think, especially browns. Steelhead love the brights at times too, time and place for everything.

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[ATbuckhunter]

My suggestion is to go on eBay and buy a cheap vise kit, I got my starter set for $30, it comes with all of the necessary tools that make tying much easier, then you can upgrade when ready. I actually see no reason to upgrade yet, I spend my money on tying materials as you'll probably find yourself with a ton of different things. Also, don't overlook craft stores, you'd be surprised how cheap you can get Marabou, biots, beads, embroidery thread etc.

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I was thinking of getting a midline vice. Something around 80 bucks. It's a griffin odyssey I believe. I figure I might as well spend a bit more money and get something I'll be a bit happier with and will do a little more.


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[left field]

On 4/24/2018 at 11:12 AM, chrisw said:

Iceland? I'm not sure if there's validity to that or a snarky comment on UV based bright lures? I can tell you they work here for sure, trout eat a lot more than people realize, much more predatory than some would think, especially browns. Steelhead love the brights at times too, time and place for everything.

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Not at all. Just reminded me of my fly box in Iceland. 

[Salmon_Run]

It's a great start and soon you have more materials than you'd ever have imagined.

First get a good quality mid-range priced vice that rotates and that will help you along.

Get reading and there are plenty of youtube videos out there.

NICE JOB !! 

[Salmon_Run]

Griffin is a good vise and mid range priced.

[Daveboone]

Holy cow poop...that Griffin looks like a rocket ship compared to my old Thompson, which was state of the art at the time!

[The_Real_TCIII]

Not at all. Just reminded me of my fly box in Iceland. 

I hear polar bear hair has that property. A guy told me there was a polar bear mount at his bank in Wisconsin, they finally had to move it behind the counter because fly tiers kept snipping hair off it lol

[Salmon_Run]

I've been know to chase a road kill or two.

It's an addiction for sure.. 

[turkeyfeathers]

https://www.fieldandstream.com/blogs/flytalk/2011/03/has-steven-tyler-ruined-fly-tying-world

[BowmanMike]

You are on the rigjt track AT. Keep tying a bunch of the same flies so you get those particular skills mastered,then do a different one. I switched too much in my early days. And trout do eat all sorts of things,i had one eat my strike indicator once,not my fly. I kept yelling,not that!!!