ChromeAddict

I posted my first impressions of this vise a while ago as well. It is a really well made product.

Amazing work, that would kill up here.

Anyone use these? I need a couple good dun capes and these looked nice. I normally tie from a 12 to a 16. Any help would be appreciated.

Wow, amazing work. If there wasn't a hook I would honestly believe it was a real stone.

Flashabou makes my flies look terrible. I replace it with tinsel for wingcases or crystal flash for adding shine.

I actually just got some 5 min epoxy for Copper Johns, but I'll use it on these as well. Thanks for the tip!

Here are some of the Clousers I tied. Suggestions and critiques are welcome and appreciated. Size 12 My ever growing Clouser box Size 8 (tan and blue dun) A little detail I have been doing

I have been using the Wapsi mini dumbbell eyes and a size 12 Mustad Nymph/Sproat hook, and place the eyes at the halfway point on the shank. I watched a video with Bob Clouser tying a Clouser Minnow, and he does place the eyes further forward, so I guess the size 12s I have been tying are Clouser variants.

I have recently gotten into tying Clousers, and have 2 questions. Does anyone tie smaller Clousers? I have been tying a size 12 and really like how it looks, but haven't heard of anyone tying them smaller than an 8 or 10. Also, are there any other materials I can use for them other than bucktail? I want to try a few different variation but haven't been able to think of anything else to use. Thanks

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I've started using Veevus 10/0 for virtually all my tying and have not run into any problems. As a beginner you might even step up to 6/0 Veevus. I would imagine it is pretty strong.

They sell Whiting capes in the original package as well, the plainly packaged ones are their show capes, which are a mix of Whiting and Hebert-Miner. I also believe they are slightly cheaper. I have ordered from them without any problems, and would gladly order again. From their site: These are the high quality unpackaged mix of Whiting and Hebert dry fly capes I have at the shows. They grade out between a Bronze and Silver.

Odd, I placed an order a few weeks ago and it was shipped and arrived promptly.

Ty tying some of the slim bodied competition style nymphs. They are quite fun to tie and work extremely well.

Or just play it safe and go barbless on all the flies you bring with you.

Hook: Daiichi 4660 jig hook Bead: 3/16'' Tail: Fibers from a blue Guinea feather Body: Fluff from the base of the guinea feather chopped up and used as dubbing Rib: Medium black UTC Vinyl Rib Wingcase: Fibers from a blue guinea feather Thorax: Same as body Legs: Blue guinea feather fibers, 4-6 on each side.

Rabbit sir. Holds more water but the movement in the water is great.

Here is an articulated streamer I tied. It's nowhere close to Eastern Fly's streamer, but I think it look pretty nice. It is a take on Mike Schmidt's Junk Yard Dog, omitting some features and substituting others. I plan on fishing it for fall browns in some of the Lake Huron tributaries, and maybe even for steelhead. If anyone wants a materials list I would be happy to post it. Side view: Top view:

It definitely was an upgrade. For the past while I have been tying on an X-Acto knife handle clamped to a table, and while it worked, this is much easier to tie on. Oh, and I tied an 18 today with no issues at all.

I recently purchased a Griffin Montana Mongoose tying vise for my fly and jig tying. First impressions: This thing is awesome! Holds a hook ridiculously well, solid pedestal base, well made c-clamp, rotary function is spot on, and there is absolutely no play in the vise while tying. The vise appears to be built very well and seems like it will last a very long time. It holds a wide variety of hook sizes as well. I have tried from a 16 to a 3/0, and it held them all very securely. I am sure you could go smaller or a bit larger without any issues. The cam lock is very smooth and easy to operate, as are the rest of the adjustments. Most of the features on the vise are adjustable, and once you get it set up the way you want, they will stay in place nicely. It came with a pedestal base, c-clamp, stem extension (to use with the c-clamp), bobbin cradle, materials clip, hackle/hook gauge, ceramic bobbin (awesome as well) and of course the vise itself. It came in a black carrying case, which will be handy when transporting the vise. The only things I did not like about the vise were that the hackle gauge was not very well made, and although the sizing was accurate, I do plan on upgrading it. (Maybe to a Whiting gauge). Also, the case was made of cheap plastic, but if you would like a sturdier case, I would imagine a large foam lined reel case would work well. I will probably end up doing that in the near future as well. After using it for a while, I will make a more detailed review of the vise. Here are a few flies/jigs I have tied on it already. Size 16 nymph: Size 6 steelhead jig: Size 8 stonefly nymph 3/4oz salmon jig (bucktail):

I added a few changes to this pattern: http://www.flytyingforum.com/index.php?showtopic=81426 and want to share them with you guys. I started tying them on jig hooks so that when i fish them under a float (generally using a centerpin setup) they will be horizontal in the water. I also started replacing the bead with a 3/16'' black cone head that I attached using the bead and pin method. I also replaced the black saddle hackle with grizzly soft hackle. It has more movement in the water, which makes the fly look very much alive. The final adjustment was adding rubber legs to a few of them. This also adds to the movement of this fly, especially in slower water where twitching the float will cause the legs to flutter. Apologies for the bad photos. Here is one with rubber legs: And one without: This is my box full of large nymph patterns (mostly these with a few big stoneflies and other miscellaneous patterns.)

I use 30lb orange backing to make hotspot collars on big stoneflies.

You could put it in a rod tube and check it in.

^^^ beautiful flies! Thanks for all the help guys, I'll call a few shops and ask if they stock them.

Thanks guys. That sure is a beautiful bird.