Almost rdy to get started

[dabalone 0]

I have just about everything I need to get started. Here is a short list of items I have picked up. Maybe some comments on what I have so far.

 

Dan Vise

griffon bobbins

generic brand scissors

rotating whip finisher

griffon hair stacker

griffon hook and hackle gauge

 

6/0 uni thread, waxed

tinsel

uni yarn

chennile

Estaz

various patches of fur, deer, moose, elk, beaver, caribou

 

I will start out with buggers since we use them a lot here and they they seem to be good for a beginner to learn. Then maybe some streamers for the stripers. There is much info available out there, so much it can get to be confusing, and it does not take much to confuse me these days.

 

You see what I have listed above maybe you can help me fill in the blanks for:

 

Tools I will need

Cool stuff I will end up getting anyway

 

Thread type, size, wax or not.

 

Recommended hooks?

 

Wet fly Hackle, brand, size.......

 

Thank you for any input.

Don

[Guest]

Man, you haven't even begun to scratch the surface...

 

Get a bodkin, it amazing how handy one can be.

 

Maribou, how can you tie a bugger without it?

 

Crystal flash, various colors.

 

Beads, clouser eyes, lead wire. You gotta make these things sink.

 

Bucktail, in white, chartreuse, red, yellow, green, orange, pink. You can tie thousands of different kinds of streamers with bucktail.

 

Whiting American streamer hackle in whatever colors turn you on, as long as it's white.

 

Finally, a comfortable chair and a good light.

 

 

 

[steelie 0]

Good Day,

 

I so agree with troutbum...

 

As you advance you will also find that certain tools become invaluable and are well worth the caost vs. the headache of dealing with less expensive tools. For instance I just love my Dr. Slick scissors. They have a serrated edge which realy grabs the material vs letting it "slide" down the scissors...

 

At this point nearly any hackle should suffice for simple buggers. You may even want to think about schlappen at some point.

 

Hooks sizes will be determined mostly by what you plan to fish for.

 

Take a good look at the archives for ideas, patterns and sizes....

 

Steelie

[SALMONATOR 0]

Has anybody else noticed this? Maybe it's just me, but I found the list of fly-tying tools saverely lacking in one particular area. BEER!! How do you tye flies without it? Standing in your shoes, I'd take back the "whip-finisher" thing (you can do it with your fingers with a little practice), and the hackle guage (you don't even have hackle listed in your materials anyway) and grab 6-12 of the finest lagers your money can afford. Get those creative juices flowing man!!!!

 

As a general rule, I like to limit myselfe to 1 beer/fly when I tye. I usually don't acomplish mutch, but it has increased my enjoyment of tying flies tenfold since this rule was implimented. There are the rare ocasions when I've tied 16-18 flies/evening under this rule, but usually I find that only about half of them are fishable. In general, I find that a solid dozen/sitting is sufficient, and beyond that your effort is mostely as wasted as you are anyway. I just wish I were lucky enough to get such advise when I first began tying. Good luck!!

 

Al

[dabalone 0]

I just figured the beer was a gimme and did not need to be on the list. I am currently looking for a tying station with built in beer carousel.

 

I stopped by the local fly shop to pick up a couple items so I could actually try and tie a fly this weekend. While browsing it was amusing to see many of the items they were selling I have routinely been discarding as early as this last year. Deer, Elk, Pheasant, rabbit, squirrel, duck ......... Saw a pack of wood duck flank feathers, 12 feathers for 5 bucks lol.

 

[Bryanfly15 0]

Tying with a coldie is great. I tie on monday evenings with a group of guys I fish and of course tie with. We meet at this social club (membership is $12 for the yr. - cheap) and tie while throwing down a few coldies. We tie on monday nights cause of happy hour. I get $.50 drafts, saves me money so I can buy more materials.

 

Have fun tying those unique and crazy looking flies.

[dabalone 0]

Bryan that is a heck of a deal, the last time I had a draft for .50 was a lot longer ago than I care to remember.

 

I set up today and put together my first flies. All variations of boogers and if they hold together I am sure they will catch fish. The first one actually came out really nice, but the next three or four got worse and worse, hmmm whats up with that lol.

I definately need some hackle pliers, my hands and fingers are so beat up from years of construction I just dont have the soft touch with my fingers so the hackle is not as even as I would like it, but it still looks buggy. The whip finisher was a little challenge but I think I got it right, one thing I am not sure of is how much tension is acceptable applying materials and adjusting the bobbin for correct thread tension.

 

Did a couple size 8 with bead heads and used thread to build up a base to slide the bead over and keep it snug, it seems to work but not sure if thats the thing to do. I used lead wire to weight all of them, .025, but they still seem kinda light. So far they at least look like what I have been buying, when I start slinging them on the end of a fly line will tell the tale.

 

Spring is arriving here, trees are leafing out. Should be close to 70 degrees within the next few days. Tally Ho!

[BearsDenWoodshop 0]

I might be a bit, no maybe a tad swayed in the process but you have to have a workstation!!!! Yea, Yea, I make great workstations but thats not the point now is it? LOL. Anyway, over the years you will accumulate many many tools, some you make yourself, some you buy...but bud your just getting started.

 

Have Fun