Skill Builder Series Round 4; Classic Dry Flies

[breambuster 0]

Great tip, Vic. Thanks. Yes, I whip finish around the bottom of the post.

[vicrider 0]

Just picked up my flies today. These are quality flies to join any dry fly box. In a lot of places they're on the large size of what many use but they'll be in my box if I get to where they're called for. Hate to just use them on bluegills but I know they'll get chewed up by them for sure.

 

Special thanx to FishinBob for a couple of great Renegades. I really like that fly and definitely cannot get the nice quality in them you do.

[Wetsock 0]

Got mine the other day along with the fall copy of fly tyre mag. Good day for mail all flys looked great and will get put to good use. Special thanks to Stilis for step by step to divide wings now I know what I was doing wrong Thanks. Anyone looking for good discription of game birds and hackle color should check out the fall FT. Lots of good info and nice patterns.

[Henrik Thomsen (DK) 0]

Ok, once again I've been kindly asked by BB to give my comments on the flies.

As usual I will go through all the flies one by one.

But first, a great applause for all the very beautiful flies tied here.

 

Troutguy:

Tail: Seems to fall down on the sides of the hook. Try the pinch loop method when attaching, and do two tight turns.

Body: A little thin in the end, thread visible though the dubbing, did you use wax? Wax tend to soak and flatten the dubbing making it "see-through" (for the funny guys, don't start to pour gallons of liquid wax over random girls)

Wings: looks nice in height, personal I prefer a more dense wing.

Hackle: very nice behind the wing, less good (a little short) in front of wing.

Head: please make it shorter, will also give room for more hackle.

Head 2: Very nice with the little space in front of head, but be carefull if tying turtle knots, that the hook eye doesn't "bite" the line.

 

Idaho RC:

Tail: See troutguy

Body: Try to form a more even body, you might have added too much dubbing at once to the thread leading to a lump of dubbing forming an uneven body.

Hackle and Wing: Perfect! If the hock where a size or two bigger. (might be angle of camera that's cheating me here ;-) )

Head: Very nice head, but it almost crowd the hook eye.. maybe a single turn shorter would have made all the difference? :-D

 

PJ2:

You have challenged yourself a lot with the two hackles style... (Use a cree hackle, although it is cheating ;-) )

Tail: Use stiffer fibers and have them point same direction

Body: Cover all the tying thread, some thread is seen under the tail.

Body 2: use a smaller size tinsel for rib, it is too dominating.

Hackles: A challenge it was, and it is easily seen that you have struggled. Try to do the fly with first one hackle and then with two. And remember to keep the hackle stem pointing 90Degrees out from the hook at all times while turning.

Wings: Looks very nice, but be sure to cover the base of the wings with turns of hackle.

Head: It is very nicely short head, but try to get it small also.

 

Jacktjl:

Tail: A little short to my liking

Body: Start at the tail, thread is visible

Body 2: Use less dubbing, more wraps with less dubbing makes for a more even body (but if you prefer segmented body, use dense robes of dubbing)
Hackle: too long

Wings: Very nice wings, try to place them a bit further back, to get in the center of the hackle wraps.

Head: good, but unfortunately you trapped a few hackle fibers.

 

Wetsock:

Only few comments needed here...

Tail: Good and even

Body: less dubbing and more wraps to get an even body

Hackle: Thumbs up

Wing: Same

Head: Don't know the pattern, but seems a little long for my liking, make it 2-3 wraps shorter and you have it nailed!

 

Fishingbobnelson:

Tail: Thumbs up if species copied has 3 tail fibers ;-)

Body: Maybe a tiny hint longer

Hackle: Shorten the area with hackle, but add a turn or two to increase density (and be carefull not to trap fibers of one hackle with the other.

Wings: Thumbs up

Head: Material sticking out in front and a fiber or two has been trapped, but size is good as well is the little gap up to the hook eye.

 

Jmckaughan:

Please see https://donbastianwetflies.com/tag/dette-coffin-fly/ for an image of the original.

Tail: Too many fibers, three is all that is needed

Body: A little on the heavy side

Palmer Hackle/Body Hackle: Do the turns a little more dense, the fly must look furry (not confused with fury :-D ).

Hackle: A little short, and more dense will be perfect.

Wing: Try to even up the fibers before tying in, the angle looks funny (or blame it on the mailman ;-) )

Head: Crowds the eye and has material sticking out of it

 

Vicrider:

Tail: Tie it in a fraction earlier, not to go down the bend of the hook.

Body: Nice, but would be even more fantastic with even turns covering all the thread beneath.

Hackle: Too sparse for my liking

Wings: Thumbs up

Head: Thrice the size (as I feel when hung over) and has material sticking out in the front (I do not when hung over...)

 

Stilis:

As BB writes, very nice fly.

Tail: Thumbs up

Body: Very nice

Hackle: I would like a turn or two more (but that is personal preference)

Wings: very nice

Head: Put two turns of hackle more on the fly, and the head will locate better. Also, be carefull about the material you have in the head, that forms the funny shape.
Tip: Tie in the fiber from the body under the hook and all the way under the hackle, but no into the head (if that is the case)

 

BB:

The ridiculous fly...

Image quality: Out of focus (are you hiding something :-P )

Tail: Looks like it's tied in on the far side of the hook. And use a pair of pliers to pluck that stray fiber off.

Body: Looks nice and fuzzy (is that the missing focus? ;-) )

Hackle: Very nice and dense, but the turns could have been even closer to one another (or so it looks on the picture)

Wing: Add a little to the length, it is almost hidden in the hackle...

Head: Looks a tiny bit to large and like a glob of lacquer hanging underneath the hook? Also some material sticking out in front?

 

 

Ok, all of you, please don't take my word to harsh up. They are meant for you to not be better fishermen. The fish will eat every single fly presented here, no doubt.

But why do we wish to improve out tying? To get more fish or to catch the eye of the other fly tiers? ;-) :-)

 

Have a great time at the water and remember to enjoy all the nature and every experience while you are out there...

 

/H

 

 

 

[Idaho RC 0]

 

Idaho RC:

Tail: See troutguy

Body: Try to form a more even body, you might have added too much dubbing at once to the thread leading to a lump of dubbing forming an uneven body.

Hackle and Wing: Perfect! If the hock where a size or two bigger. (might be angle of camera that's cheating me here ;-) )

Head: Very nice head, but it almost crowd the hook eye.. maybe a single turn shorter would have made all the difference? :-D

 

 

Henrik I have a question. When you said Hackle and Wing: Perfect! If the hock where a size or two bigger.. I am sure you meant to say hook size or two bigger hook. I am not sure what you mean? I thought on the classic flies the hackle was supposed to be about twice the size of the hook gap like in the picture http://renegadefishers.com/thefly_x/proportions_x.html.

 

I think mine is a bout twice the size of the hook gap like in the picture. If I am not looking at this correctly please get me on the right track. Do you meant that there are two many turns of hackle? How many turns of hackle should these have? Is there a basic rule on that?

 

Just trying to learn more. I appreciate your help!

[stilis 0]

 

Stilis:

 

Head: Put two turns of hackle more on the fly, and the head will locate better. Also, be carefull about the material you have in the head, that forms the funny shape.

Tip: Tie in the fiber from the body under the hook and all the way under the hackle, but no into the head (if that is the case)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Henrik,

 

For the head location, that was intentional to mimic the classic catskill fly with the bare shank of the hook exposed at the eye for a turle knot.

 

Agree with the rest of the feedback. Thank you again for your expertise.

 

Seth

[Henrik Thomsen (DK) 0]

@IdahoRC

Meant bigger hook like a hook size or two bigger.

I personally prefer hackle to be 1.5 times gape and wing 2 times gape.

But if you like 2 times gape for hackle it is perfect as long as you are consistent. :-)

Hope that helped. :-)

 

@stilis

Yep, got that one. And it is how it should be. However I think the room left is a little on the large side.

Try attach a 5X or 6X leader with a turtle knot and see if the part around the shank fits the bare hook part.

Or in more technical terms the bare hook part should be around .004" to .005" (0.10 to 0.12 mm).

 

H

[PJ2 0]

thanks Mr. T. I really enjoy getting your critique. its the only way to improve my tying. the lower body is a turkey tail feather wrapped, there is no tinsel on the fly.

BB thanks again for the kind words and also for the critique. Thanks again for the swap I've really enjoyed this!!

[Henrik Thomsen (DK) 0]

Pj2.

 

Glad to help.

And hadn't seen it as quill body... Might be the camera ;-)

[Wetsock 0]

Henrik all comments well noted. Would like to thank you on the review of all the flys in this swap! Your input has really helped me judge my flys and make improvements.

[Henrik Thomsen (DK) 0]

Wetsock

 

Your welcome.

I do this of solely egoistic reasons... It is the only way we will be more fly tyers (with focus on tying) around the globe.

 

There has long been a tendency (at least in Denmark), that fly tying is only to create lures to catch fish. The old trade of hand has kind of losts its meaning, and i'm really sad to see people gluing on plastic parts to a hook and call it tying.

 

A little like my math teacher in first grade said. You will NOT get/need a calculator before you know to calculate by hand.

 

If we learn to tye flies good, it is much easier to experiment with premade vings, legs, shellbags etc.

 

And remember only a very small part of fly TYING is to catch fish. The most is about catching FISHERMEN... ;-)

 

/H

[PJ2 0]

Wetsock

 

Your welcome.

I do this of solely egoistic reasons... It is the only way we will be more fly tyers (with focus on tying) around the globe.

 

There has long been a tendency (at least in Denmark), that fly tying is only to create lures to catch fish. The old trade of hand has kind of losts its meaning, and i'm really sad to see people gluing on plastic parts to a hook and call it tying.

 

A little like my math teacher in first grade said. You will NOT get/need a calculator before you know to calculate by hand.

 

If we learn to tye flies good, it is much easier to experiment with premade vings, legs, shellbags etc.

 

And remember only a very small part of fly TYING is to catch fish. The most is about catching FISHERMEN... ;-)

 

/H

Thats awesome....well said.