AF_Tier

Hey guys, just sent Rich a PM--Box 6 is back on the move, on it's way to Missouri I believe. I apologize for such a huge delay. Our training schedule lately has been NUTS, and coming home to a swap box kinda horrified me, once I looked at the delivery date! Frank

The subject line says it all: how well does bunny hair (in Zonker & crosscut format) stand up to saltwater use? Just curious. Frank

Still working out a few kinks, but here's the Double Bunny in 3" & 4":

Any fans of Swedneck's site will recognize (I hope) this pass at his Copper John: Great pattern, but I've tied so many small flies today I got sick of fairy-hair thread and hooks that I can accidently inhale, so tied up a brute before going to bed: Aren't #2 hooks refreshing? Frank P.S. If you haven't been to Swedneck Flyfishing yet, you're missing out. I'll never look at ear plugs the same way again!

I recently moved my desk into one of our larger closets: The room is lit by three laarge windows and one (weak) overhead light. In the daytime this is fine, but at night that room gets dark quickly. What I'm looking for are some ideas on lighting, if anyone has a similair setup to mine. Track lighting immediately came to mind, but I don't want anything too harsh, and of course I don't want to break the bank, either. Finally, it's also a rental, so I'd rather not go digging into the walls if I don't have to. Any ideas? Frank

Bob, The one in that picture doesn't have a red butt, but after I tied about 6 or so I thought I should add one, so all the later Down and Dirty's have them. I'll mess around with adding some bulk to the Charlies, shouldn't be that hard. Thanks for the tips! Frank

Just throwing together a few patterns for a Cali coast perch trip: Down and Dirty Mole Crab Crazy Charlie Nothing too complicated, but I've never really tied for saltwater before, so there's some excitement in branching out. Frank

Been on a bass fly kick lately, so here are some Black Dredgers: Fun to tie, especially compared to those "Sex Dungeon" articulated beauties Smalliestalker tied up. Hopefully I have the same success he does.

That's what I thought: go for the hen necks, per the author. The only thing that held me back is that I was under the impression that neck hackle is for smaller flies than what I'm tying. Is that incorrect?

I'm tying up a batch of smallmouth flies, and one of the patterns I'll be using is: Soft Hackle Bi-Bugger I'm stuck on what hen hackle to buy. I went to J. Stockard and looked at the Whiting Hen Capes and Saddles, but I want to make sure that, before I purchase, these are going to be the size I need for palmering hackle on fat, size 2-8 bass flies. Do these fit the bill? Whiting Hen Saddle (I chose the Saddle rather than the Cape because the Saddle comes in a few more colors) Frank

I take a bit of extra time on there because of the torture I'll be putting that fly through. I'll be dragging it through vegetation, against fallen trees, and (hopefully) pulling it out of the mouths of some hungry bass. I could shave a few minutes off finishing the head, sure, but my plan is to have that fly at the end of the season. Frank P.S. That video is to show how I tie it, not how it should be tied. Corrections and suggestions on improvement are welcome!

I'm glad you can get it to open, since I get an error every time I try. And if you open it, pause it, and walk away for 5 minutes at the tying bench, that buffer will catch up, and you can watch it without all the pauses.

I was trying to take pictures and explain the M.O.A.L. tying process, and it just didn't work out. So here's a video! I've never made an instructional video, so sorry if the light is bad, but it should explain the process. Hope it helps! It's 48mb, but that's not too bad, I hope. Frank MOAL_3.wmv

I've never done a Step By Step before, but I can try! Keep an eye out for it in the Bench board. Frank

Ever since I posted about the "wild side" of leech patterns, I've been looking for some fun patterns to work with. Here's my first 3 takes on the M.O.A.L., aka, the Mother of All Leeches. These are a bit large for the local trout, but there are some bass that I'm thinking might want a taste, as the water is already warming up around here. Frank

Man, I knew my friends' crafty wives would come in handy. One of them sent me this: http://www.papermart.com/Product%20Pages/P...pID=19022#12479 For $5, I'm going to give it a shot! Frank

Thanks for the link Flytire. And yeah, I think this is going to be stuff I just stumble on. I found a spool of gold embossed in my fly desk last night, just buried in a bunch of other stuff.

Hammered red tinsel is used in several patterns I've found around Oregon, specifically the Bend/Sisters area (near the Deschutes). Thing of it is, I haven't been able to find any. Anyone here ever heard of such a thing as hammered red tinsel? Frank

Thanks for all the tips on this one! 4 bags of crosscut and some wild combos produced some pretty crazy flies. But now that I think about it, they don't look all that different than spin tackle I've seen. My Tequila Sunrise (red & orange with some blue dubbed in) mix might not produce any hits, but it'll have the trout (and other fishermen) asking "What the H*LL was that?!" Frank EDIT: A rough lesson learned on this fly. Failing to keep the hide as tight as possible (stretched almost to the breaking point) puts a slight amount of slack in the fly. By the time you get to the head, it's enough to allow you to "unwind" the fly with your fingers, turning it into a big mess. Good times.

Hey guys, I've been trying up a couple dozen #4 Conehead Bunny Leeches in black and purple, and my imagination has started to wander in the direction of new colors. I'd really like to try pink, two-tone purple pink, and other combinations, but at that point it becomes just a streamer, not really a leech imitation, right? I'm having a hard time putting to words my thoughts on this, but I guess the best way to put it is what would be your motivation to move on from the standard colors? Of course, black is the dead-on imitation. Purple is popular, although I've never seen a purple leech. At what point are you going for a purely aggression/reaction strike? What would stop you from taking these leeches (to borrow from Motley Crue) down the wild side? Vague questions, I know, but I lost the ability to articulate at about hour #3 at the vice. Frank

Agn - I'd seen those, but I was going to try and avoid plastic if I could. Tidewater - I didn't even think of chamois, which falls into line a little better than the plastic tails. And I bet I could dye them whatever color I needed as well. I'll probably end up giving the plastic tails a shot, as well, just to compare. I just thought I'd be tossed out of here after mentioning (gasp!) bait casting! Frank

Hey guys, just wanted to get your opinion on tails for trolling flies. I'd like to try something that matches (or at least comes close to) the action of the tails on plastic grubs (think 3" Power Grubs from Berkley, although I feel terrible about mentioning something so crude on this forum). I know there are different variations of hair, feathers, and fur available for this sort of thing, but I was wondering if anyone would mind posting their success at imparting a little more action on their streamers/tube flies. Thanks! Frank

I've only just started, and that's because I have the study guide for E-6 on my iPod, and I test in February. Most of the time I refuse to do it, because of the close proximity of several pairs of very sharp scissors. Most of the time I have the TV on about 12 feet away, with a Mythbusters, Dirty Jobs, or History Channel episode going. The vast majority of the tunes on my iPod are 80s hair bands (Skid Row, Iron Maiden, Poison, you get the picture), yet the only music I can listen to while tying is Pavarotti. Anything else just turns into a distraction. Frank

3D0X2 (comm geek) is my AFSC. Drives me a little nuts to be looking at a computer screen all day, but at least I can keep FTF open! This spring will be my first real experience fishing around here, since deployments have got a little nuts (this year's vacation hot spot: the Stan!), but I've been trying to get a feel for the area, since it's a bit different from my old fishing grounds (the Deschutes and John Day rivers, as well as the high mountain lakes of Eastern Oregon). It's definitely changed the way I tie flies, since around here the caddis is king, not the mayfly (not that I mind, since tying #20 flies gets old fast).

You guessed it, 200R, but #6. Time to mass produce! Frank