WPaoli

I'm down.

All the flies were awesome- good job to everyone who made it to the second round. I do have to say that one I voted for was hands down the best fly I've ever seen. I printed it off in color and I have it hanging in my office now- in a frame.

Excellent job to all. I was very impressed and it it was TOUGH to decide on just one. WOW!

Okay, I just wanted to fill you guys in on a little glitch that I took advantage of yesterday. I've been looking for a nice fast action rod for the past few months and decided that a TFO TiCr X was exactly what I was looking for. I live about an hour from the main Bass Pro store here in Missouri, so I looked on-line for their prices. The TiCr X 6wt sells for $249.00. A nice reel (their top line) Bass Pro makes, the 270, sells for about $190.00. Add that up and you get $440.00. Well... I went to the "combo" section of their web site and found the EXACT combination listed for- are you ready? $227.00!!! I printed this out and took it to the store where I was told that it was a mistake. I promptly went to customer service and asked if they would honor their advertisement- and they did. If ANY of you are looking for a nice 6wt for bigger fish and want a top quality reel... I suggest you go to this link http://www.basspro.com/servlet/catalog.Tex...arTarget=browse You can see the price listed for $227.00. After I bought the combo, the sales guy IMMEDIATLY went back in the office and ordered the same deal. The TiCr X has gotten EXCELLENT reviews as a rod that fishes like an $800 Sage. The 270 reel is WICKED light for a LA and it feels NICE with a very smooth and reliable drag system. All in all, if you have a little extra X-Mas cash and you want a WICKED good deal- go to the link I posted above and have at it before Bass Pro changes the price.

I heard about that record trout the other day. I keep reading about the monsters that are being caught out there so I figured it's time to take a 2 hour drive. I just don't know where I'm going once I get there. I have NO idea where the dam is, I don't know where to park so I can walk to the water, and I have NO clue where to fish. That's why I'm making it it a two day trip. Thursday to figure everything out- Friday to do some serious fishing. If you have any advice and information for me, now would be a good time to share it :help:

Hola! Hey, I'm heading down to Branson Missouri next week for a couple of days. Have any of you guys been there- or better yet, live around the area? It's supposed to be one of the top 10 trout fishing spots in the country. About this time the brown trout are moving to the shallow water to spawn- with the average brown weighing in at 5lbs, and 10 pounders are a common catch. In any case, I'm looking for some information on the lake and the dam- I already have a place to stay, just need some good fly fishing advice that I can't find by doing an internet search.

Hey, thanks for the welcome!

My first real try at a nifty fly. Again, this was used to try and "fit" things together on a hook- not for practical use. Feedback would be most welcome as I'm still in the first month of learning to tie- so light me up so I can learn! Regards, Will

A new addition to the fly pattern database has been submitted by WPaoli: Peafly

Thanks, guys. I sent my order(s) in

Hell, all. I've been lurking on this forum for over a month and I just realized that I never introduced myself, so... My name is Will, and I'm originally from Pittsburgh, PA but I now reside in Missouri. I'm in the Army and have been since 1990. I got into fly fishing this summer after I got back from Iraq (been there a few times) and had some pretty serious down time. I started out with one of those Wal-Mart $19.00 fly rods and within two months broke it over my knee and went out and spent some money on a couple nice rigs. So far I've managed to pull in a few large mouth bass and several 20"+ Rainbows- needless to say, I'm "hooked". About a month ago I decided to start tying my own stuff after I'd spend a good $10.00 at a local fly shop each time I'd go fishing. I went out and bought a "Spider Vice" and built a $150.00 fly tying table from scratch. Why a sudden jump and not something gradual? Well, the first time I tied a fly I knew this hobby/art was for me. I'm totally engrossed when I'm sitting at the bench and I've discovered that, just like fly fishing, I can find my "center" (if you're into that kind of thing) and focus on one thing instead of the usual 100 different things. I started out tying a lot of crackle back and nymph patterns then progressed to some original bass flies that seem to light the local fish's fires. Now I'm moving on to streamers and salmon patterns since I'm planning on moving to Washington State or Alaska on my next military duty station. I'm planning a fishing trip up north to go after the big fish as soon as I can figure out a good place to go. I must say that in the short time that I've been a member here I've learned a GREAT deal from you guys. This is an EXCELLENT web site. I plan to get more involved here as soon as my skill improves to the point that I don't mind posting pictures of my craft. I realize that I'm still in the "grasshopper" stage, so please feel free to tell me if I'm being annoying when I ask stupid questions- we were all beginners once I don't have any outside influence for tying flies, so I'm pretty much just flying by the seat of my pants here and soaking up everything I can from you guys. Well, that's it. I look forward to meeting you all via on-line discussions and the like, and I hope to have few entries in the upcoming FTOTY contest. Regards, Will

Well, I'm not really sure... I'm doing a lot of top water bass stuff and I'm just getting into salmon and steelhead flies with the wing feathers and such. I'm sure there's a way to get the pressure of the thread to go straight down instead of to one side as you wrap- I just don't know how to go about doing it. Hope that sort-of clears it up a little.

... get a feather to lie flat on the shank? Every time I tie something up with something that's supposed to go down the middle of the shank, it ends up canting to the side- away from me as I look at the vice. Any help would be most welcome.

Hola, I was wondering where's the best place to buy feathers- specifically those used for the salmon and steelhead flies? The nearest fly shop to my house is about an hour away (and I live in Missouri where the salmon and steelhead run all year long ) and I’m the only one I know that ties… so my options are very limited. Not to mention that I'm wicked new to this and don't know my shank from my barb. Anyway, I would sincerely appreciate some information on any on-line shops or dealers that you guys have used in the past. Thanks!

Well, I'll give this a try. What do I have to lose?