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Oliver47

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I keep tying so I can go back and look at older stuff and say "Those are really bad". I keep tying to try to improve on the results. I don't think I'll live long long enough to get good!

 

Les

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I won't ever run out of flies to tie because I am continually experimenting with new flies. For me, that's a huge part of the fun of fly tying. I like to tweak existing flies to make them more effective. When I see or read about flies that peak my interest, I'll tie up a few to test them out. Logically, I know that there isn't a "magic" fly that the fish can't refuse. But it's a lot of fun trying to find it. And when I do find flies that are more effective than their standard counterparts I can be pretty sure that I'm the only one using them.

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I won't ever run out of flies to tie because I am continually experimenting with new flies. For me, that's a huge part of the fun of fly tying. I like to tweak existing flies to make them more effective. When I see or read about flies that peak my interest, I'll tie up a few to test them out. Logically, I know that there isn't a "magic" fly that the fish can't refuse. But it's a lot of fun trying to find it. And when I do find flies that are more effective than their standard counterparts I can be pretty sure that I'm the only one using them.

 

Some excellent replies! The above is me also. I enjoy tying & experimenting too. It's no longer about simply fooling the fish, and now about finding more ways to do it. I'm primarily a warmwater & tidalwater angler, but have looked to other types of fly fishing for more flies to try. For example, some of the Salmon & Steelhead patterns work well for bass. I like chasing Striped bass, and there are no big "predator" flies now popular that a Striper won't eat. Gives me a lot of variety in what I can experiment with. Think outside the "label" and there's more fly patterns available than you'll ever tie.

 

I like Joel's & Norm's replies too. Can't have too many fly boxes. I think I have about 20 now. I also have a lot of materials so never a shortage of flies that can be tied.

 

To the OP, if the quality of your flies is good, selling some is another option. This can help supplement your fishing expenses, so it pays for itself. Just be sure to check into the "legal" side of what's required if you decide to go that route.

 

I tied commercially for about 15 years. It can become "work". So, take that into consideration also. I never made a living doing it, but it did pay for my fishing licenses, other gear I wanted & so forth. There's been some very good discussions about that topic for various points of view. smile.png

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I currently have 18 nine by eleven boxes here at home. These are mostly full of Salt water and Warm water patterns. I have only 3 boxes of cold water flies, at home, and 3 boxes of Steelhead flies. I just got 6 more small fly boxes which I will start to fill up for my next trip to Utah and Idaho. I have 4 boxes of still water flies stashed at my brother's in Utah, and 16 more boxes of trout flies stashed at my best friends house in Utah.

 

My best guess is that I have at present somewhere between 4 and 5 thousand flies. By next week, I will have more, and before heading back to Utah next spring, I will have another thousand. I usually fill up a large 9 x 11 box to leave with my friend each year, and share flies every chance I get.

 

One can never have too many flies. If I run out of space, there are lots of empty boxes out there just waiting to be filled.

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being retired what else is there to do? smile.png

 

Depends how many interests you have, I think I have too many maybe ! Most recently though I've taken up calligraphy and into the adventure of investigating pens, nibs, papers and ink. Why ? Because I wanted to sign my fly rod blanks when I build a rod and a calligraphy pen works pretty well for that. Like any other hobby it gets interesting and then you get hooked. I've gotten caught up in a little writing. Then I realized what everyone already knew, I don't write worth a crap ! So started on fonts and how too etc and etc... Honestly though, between all of my interests and if I put a little time into any few of them each day ( tying included), the days just fly by. It's nuts how fast the time goes since retiring almost two years ago now.

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Every post has a bit of good advice - and it's different for all of us... Since I may need something "completely different", like most I probably carry far too many flies on the water with anglers aboard. To keep things manageable I only keep three or four bags (most of my flies are in plastic sleeves, then bagged up in quart sized ziplock bags by fly types -hopefully) then kept in my tackle box (a 20 quart cooler). I have another five or six bags stored in my dry box as well.

 

If you fish the salt like I do you'll eventually get discouraged from keeping lots of flies and fly boxes with you on the water. Whether they get used or not the salt air and exposure will cause them to deteriorate over time... even when I make an absolute point that no fly that's been out of the sleeve goes back into one until it's been rinsed in freshwater and allowed to dry thoroughly...

 

Although at one time or another I've tied up well over 100 different patterns for shops and other customers... I probably get by each day on no more than five or six different bugs... I tend to use what's worked for me before if at all possible. Yes, it's great fun to come up with something new for a specific spot or situation but the standbys rule -day in and day out...

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If you fish the salt like I do you'll eventually get discouraged from keeping lots of flies and fly boxes with you on the water. Whether they get used or not the salt air and exposure will cause them to deteriorate over time... even when I make an absolute point that no fly that's been out of the sleeve goes back into one until it's been rinsed in freshwater and allowed to dry thoroughly...

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Been doing this my entire fishing life even freshwater. My dad had no money for tackle so tackle was like gold to us. Everything got rinsed and dried before going back in the tackle box. He would have had your ass if there was rust, dirt, or dried pond scum on anything in the tackle box. It's a big reason I'm not a tackle hoarder, I can't think of one good reason to constantly spend money on more and more tackle. Most people don't believe me but I have never had a rusty hook or rusty anything in my tackle.

 

I forgot I also reload my own ammo and recently have taken up the guitar as well. Maybe I should drop a few Hobbies. Naaaaaaaah, no way.

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OK I think we tell administration to throw this guy out!!!! WE tie too many flies????? WHAT next we limit the amount of tying materials or GASP fishing equipment?????

 

Ladies and gentlemen we have a heretic among us. This is blasphemy!!!

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Every post has a bit of good advice - and it's different for all of us... Since I may need something "completely different", like most I probably carry far too many flies on the water with anglers aboard. To keep things manageable I only keep three or four bags (most of my flies are in plastic sleeves, then bagged up in quart sized ziplock bags by fly types -hopefully) then kept in my tackle box (a 20 quart cooler). I have another five or six bags stored in my dry box as well.

 

If you fish the salt like I do you'll eventually get discouraged from keeping lots of flies and fly boxes with you on the water. Whether they get used or not the salt air and exposure will cause them to deteriorate over time... even when I make an absolute point that no fly that's been out of the sleeve goes back into one until it's been rinsed in freshwater and allowed to dry thoroughly...

 

Although at one time or another I've tied up well over 100 different patterns for shops and other customers... I probably get by each day on no more than five or six different bugs... I tend to use what's worked for me before if at all possible. Yes, it's great fun to come up with something new for a specific spot or situation but the standbys rule -day in and day out...

UI love this storage technique...How do i downsize so i can keep my flies in my biker leathers? If you meet me, i will be the insane looking biker in full leathers wearing Orvis light-weight hip waders tied off to an Indian primary chain belt wearing full biker leathers. And every-one wonders why i go un-recognized, I am not your typical fly-fisher...by a long shot.

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