April Flies From the Vise

[Kimo 0]

13 minutes ago, TSMcDougald said:

I have seen other videos from that same event where he uses that technique (This one for example) but haven't gotten around to trying it yet. By the way how did you insert that video? I have been unable to figure that out.

I just copied the address from the address bar while in youtube.com.
This is my video of that technique.
 

Kimo

[TSMcDougald 0]

Oh, I see now. Thanks!

[Swamp Fly 0]

17 hours ago, Landon P said:

I wasn't quite sure what to do because the bucktail was fanning out

Landon,

On the fly that you tied you can see the hair bulging out a little between wraps, that is a sign of hollow hair flaring.  I also agree with Mark, don't wrap quite as far back. Stop when you are over the hook point and then assess if you should tie back any further.  With larger hooks I'll tie back just a bit more (I've tied Clousers down to #16 and up to at least 5/0).  You may also want to add a modest amount of flash to the wing, either before you tie the wing on or in the middle if you add more than one clump.

The hair at the very base of most bucktails is hollow just like body hair is and it will flare if you crank on it. FYI, some bucktails have more of this hair than others. The hair just a little further up the tail will transition to solid hair that won't flare.  If you need to use hollow hair yet don't want it to flare then use looser wraps.  As you wrap you will see how much pressure you can use before it flares.  If you are worried about not securing the hair well enough, you can tie down the base of the hair with more pressure and taper off pressure as you get away from the tie in point or you can come back and add firmer wraps toward the front of the fly after getting the hair to lay the want you want.  Be aware that compressing the hair later can make the looser wraps pucker up and the fly might not look as clean (not that the fish care).

As a general rule hollow hair is much more fragile than its more solid counterpart and can get chewed off by fish easier. Coating the hair and thread with some UV resin, epoxy, or cement can help with durability.  I use UV resin for convenience.  Ideally I put a coat on all of mine regardless of if the hair is hollow or not before I add the wing, but if nothing else I make sure the hair that spans the dumbbell eyes has a good covering when I coat the head of the fly when finished.

 None the less your fly is respectable as it is, good job.

Swamp.

Edited to add that the second fly is much better.  Loogie's examples are spot on.

Edited May 1, 2020 by Swamp Fly

[Landon P 0]

Thank you Swamp I appreciate it. I'm going to take a bit of a break from closers but once I need more I will be tying them as you said. Any thoughts on a new pattern I should attempt in order to use a new set of skills?

[Swamp Fly 0]

Landon,

Pick a simple fly that needs a dubbed body and use three different methods of adding the dubbing, ie. dubbing noodle, split thread, and loop.  I'm choosing this because I see in your photos that you have dubbing on your pegboard.

and/or

Tie two or three hoppers (or any type of fly) that use very different techniques to represent the same insect.

and/or

Tie a dragonfly nymph to use as a dropper for the foam dragonfly that you tied.

and/or

Tie another extended body dragonfly that uses some of that hollow bucktail instead of foam.  If you don't have blue/black/brown/tan/yellow then use a marker to color the white you have. Tie one that has two colors of hair top and bottom.  Figure out how to keep the colors from mixing.  Tie one that uses the method that the Carnage flys use, SBPlat has an SBS of this here on the site. For that matter follow any of his SBS posts...

Don't have a particular material? Look around see if you have something that comes close.  Wrong color? Who cares? Bass aren't that picky most days.  Hackle to large? Trim it down.  Remember, the fish that acts like it has a PHD may be hit in the head with a box full of dumb next time you see it, most of what we do to our flies just makes us happy not the fish.

Pick a technique you don't know then pick the fly to use it on not the other way around.  You can also just practice the technique then razor blade it off the hook, try again till you get it. You don't need to have a finished fly when you are done.  Techniques are usually just a means to and end, not the goal itself.  Some particular fish doesn't care about what technique you used to tie a fly just if it looks like food.

Tie the same fly six times in a row even if you can't in one sitting.  Take a good hard look at each once finished and see what is good and what could be better.  Make the next one better than the last. Do you like what you see? Is it because it's "yours" or because it really is good/bad? Come back in a week and look at them again. Take all of the flys out and prove to yourself that all of them can catch a fish.

You didn't like the way your bucktail flared, right? Next time something like this comes up think about why a material did what it did.  How do you change the outcome?  Use a different technique? Different material?  Learn to think critically.  Develop a passion for how things work and why.  BTW those things are good to know in life regardless of the situation.  Learn to do it now, before you go off to college or pursue a career.  Don't be the guy whose answer is "duh, I duknow" when the boss asks for suggestions.

Swamp

 

[Landon P 0]

Thank you this is what I was looking for. I think I'm going to focus on a dubbing loop or split thread.