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BuzFly

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About BuzFly

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  • Birthday 09/02/1965

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    http://www.buzfly.com
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  • Location
    NJ Coast and Stuart FLA

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  1. New Venu should be great. Looking forward to displaying my wares and hopefully selling a ton of Bucktails. This year I will be Airbrushing Poppers using a traditional airbrush and demonstrating various ways to assemble them. I know Chuck and his staff is doing a fantastic job with the new venue and promoting it on Facebook and other placed on the web. Going to be a nice weekend. I do like the later weekend in November. See you at the show.....
  2. Old School Mullet Fly I have tied for over 15 years but updated with Flyman Fish Masks to reduct weight and add a nice finish to the head. Gamakatsu #2 SL12S, Bucktail, Pearl Blane Chockolett Filler Flash, Red Grizzly Webby Fat Saddle Hackle, #7 or #6 Fish Mask, Super Pearl Eyes to fit. When mounting the head fill the inside of the head with Loctight GO2 to make the head rock hard and it will stay clear.
  3. This is one you need to be tying for the Spring...... Brad
  4. Long fiber brushes are not impossible or hard once you do a bunch. Key points in making them (brush being spun from left side of bench): - Even distribution of fibers and perpendicular alignment to the wire - As you spin the brush lightly brush the fibers starting from the left side - Don't drop the table all the way. Slowly drop it as the wire twists all the way to the right and the materials is secure. - Spin it fast and start brushing the material aggressively. If you are pulling out a lot or material you are not letting it twist enough or your material is to dense. - Dog Brush or Brass Brush works best. To thick of wire will make the brush thicker at the base of the brush. - You will know when you can stop twisting because the brush broke and the next time twist it a little less and then stop - Biggest key is one end of the brush must move towards to spinning end or the brush will never get tight enough and break too soon. A 15" of wire should move about 3/4" or 1".
  5. I get a table every year and always find a way to make it work for me. The attendance was very low. I do not think it had to do with time of year, loosing two rows (people would not have known before they came) or the weather. People are loosing the importance that seeing something done live, face to face and being able to physically touch the fly or the materials and ask questions. Youtube it great if you can get through some of the painful videos that are up their and deal with maybe 1 out of 20 videos that are done well and the flies are properly tied and explained. A lot of tiers that "Think They Tie A Great Fly" don't know andy better and for some reason can't see or comprehend the difference between a proper tied fly and one they tied. Even if they hold them side by side. This is more of how our kids are growing up with the everyone wins/participation trophy error. Close is only good in horseshoes and hand grenades. I think its was was poor advertising, not local media presence (i.e. WCTC, New12, Local Papers, Billboards) and a stagnant show offering (i.e. same old talks same people - not that the people themselves are not good). Few is any mailings. Sending the same card to the same mailing list does not attract people to the show. It needs a new look and feel. Different presentations, some live exciting demos, change the layout. Maybe have some music in the background and a big video screen projecting content that everyone can see. Get some of the new tiers in the presentations with good videos and media. The facility is great and the hotel is ok and I do not think is the problem. Its just to many years of doing the same thing over and over and resting on your laurels. It needs a big kick in the pants and maybe the low turnout (ie. low gate they took in) will turn it around.
  6. Bob. Wish I could get on a soapbox and not break it. I agree 100%. I ran a 25 GW offshore for years and a lot of times by myself. The one piece of safety gear also I insisted people in my boat ware was a cheep plastic whistle that also had a mirro on it. I would have a dozen of them hanging in up in the head and alway let one or two having at the helm. One would be on ever of my PFD's and Throwables. I would alos keep a throwbag in the cockpit. Thankfully myself and friends have never needed them but they help. Even if my friends go for a swim off the boat, they were told to ware one.
  7. A Hard Stripping basket is basically a required piece of equipment when we fish in the NE in the Salt and Back Bays or places where line control is an issue. Once you get accustom to them you will never go without them. A velcro strap or bungie cord and a Rubbermaid tube is all you need. A set of fingers in the bottom is also a must. Once you get one set up it can be used for other things while you are fishing. Spin them around your back when walking, holing your fly rod when unhooking a fish, put a fly patch on the outside to hold some flies, put your pliers and other tools on the belt are a few of the other things you can use them for. Here is Bob Popovics showing how he uses the Stripping Basket. The key is Stripping the line UP and then letting it fall into the basket, NOT stripping it down into the basket. http://www.aswf.info/images/stripping_basket_and_retrieves.mov
  8. Rit and Veinard are two readily available good Acid dies because they have most colors you need out of the box and you only need Vinegar to set the dye. If you are doing more than say 200 a year, then you should look into some of the commercial dyes that work a little better and cost a little less, but you have to also start worrying about additives and stinking up your house. Troll the internet and you will find all the information you will ever need about dying. For tails 140F -180F water and weigh your dry tails and weigh your dye and record what you do in a note book. Most dies will use between 1.5% to 5% dye per pound of material. So read your instructions on the dye and you are good to go. Putting in to much dye normally does not solve any problems except waisting dye and clogging up the cells. Degreasing your tails in Dawn Dish Detergent (i.e. washing them in hot water) is a big step a lot of people overlook and soaking your tails for 15-30 minutes in hot water and some detergent also helps immensely for dye penetration. A good dye bath is one that get the proper color and the dye water is almost clear when you are done (except for very dark colors).
  9. Wow.... Big question with way to many answers. First off be prepared for may sleepless nights and getting paid very little for your time. If you want to be a ligitament operation it all starts with: Apply for State/Federal Tax-Id Forming some form of a LLC Apply for a Sales-Tax Certificate if you sell directly to the public Apply for a Federal Excise Tax Number Learn about accounting and how to track all your expenses and sales Talk to your Accountant Set up Trade Account with Suppliers Set up USPS Account or other Shipping Account When you do will be a legitimate company tying flies. Be prepared to only keep about 50% of the money you take in because the rest of it goes to taxes and expenses. All of this assumes that you can tie 6 dozen of the same fly consistently and have a good quality fly that a shop wants to purchase from you on a regular basis and hopefully get paid for in less than 30 days. You will have to master least 12 patterns before you start to go into shops. Commercial tying in the US comes down to two simple things, how many flies you can consistanly tie per hour to set your hourly rate and can you make enough money after you pay taxes and expenses. If you can find a niche market and a style of flies the sell well you should be successful.
  10. Every year I put up about 3,000 tails and dye over half of them with quality dies. Most tails for big supply houses are rarely washed adequately after they come out of the dye pot. Its all about time and money. If you get a lot of dye on your hands when you tie, it is the leftover dye that was not washed and left to dry on the surface that basically turned back into dust. Rad and Black are the worst colors that do this. You can wash your tails, same colors and don't mix colors, in your sink or big zip lock back with hot water and some Dawn Dish detergent. After 30 minutes the hides will soften and the excess dye will come out. Take them out, squeeze them (not pull or twist) out and lay them flat. You can sandwich them between news paper or paper towels for a day, then cage the paper and repeat until they are almost dry. Also brush out the hairs perpendicular to the hide. If you want softer hair, brush them out a few times a day with a dog brush. You can then lay them on your counter, put them out side on a close line or fence and let the wind and air to the rest. If you want soft hides you can try the following. You basically have to stretch the hide two or three times a day when they dry. DO NOT LUST PULL THE TIP AND BUT. Start this process once the hide starts to dry and is no longer rubbery but not hard. Do a few and you will figure it out. You have to grab the hide with both hands with your thumbs touching, then pull your thumbs gently out words. You are basically only stretching an inch or two at a time. if you do this with an undyed hied you will see the hide change colors and the hide will almost spider. You are breaking down the hide or breaking it. You are not ripping it apart. Just like stretching a piece of rubber. Brad
  11. Posted this on another thread, but watch this video of Bob tying his Clouser a few times and them compare it to your...... Bobs eye placement is very important. Also, it looks like you trimmed the tips of the the bucktail which is normally a bib no-no because you loose the natural taper of the bucktail that bucktail is so famous for.
  12. Wetting a fly down out of the water only shows you what a matted down fly looks like out of the water. My saltwater flies look almost this same out of the water as it does in the water when it is at rest or slowly stripped. Most tank testers just blow super fast water across the fly just like if you put a hairdryer to your dry fly. Tank testers need a variable speed on them to make them mare representative of the real fly.
  13. Well good first attempt. I would strongly suggest getting Bob Clousers book and read it. Not trying to be insulting, but he lays it out in simple detail. The eye is good and placed in a good position. The bottom white is ok, but you need to look how to tie it in better. The tips should only be secured at the hook eye, then move your thread to behind the eye without binding down the bucktail. When the thread is behind the eye then you secure the bucktail right behind the eye. You want to create a triangle of bucktail between the hook eye and the top of the eye of the hook that is open. Two most common options for wrapping the white bucktail down the shank of the hook. You can do 5 or 6 open spiral wraps to the back of the hook and come back to behind the eye or you can bind it down with tight wraps like you did. I like the first way because it is more consistent with the way Bob ties them. Take a few warps behind the lead eye, I like to throw in a whip finish, and then move the thread forward to the hook eye with out going over the bucktail an collapsing the triangle. Flip the fly over and tie in the top clump of bucktail at the hook eye. Build up a small thread head, do not collapse the triangle, and whip finish. Coat the head with epoxy/uv acrylic or a few coats of head cement. You can add you flash where ever you want. Most commercially tied Clouser tied by the Big Commercial Fly Houses do not tie them the way Bob does and use 2-3 times more material then they should. Yours will work, but get his book and see how he does it and why. That is the most important part before you make changes to it.
  14. Glad you figured it out. Most of our problems we have, like this one, is not the materials, but poor technique. There or Four warps forward and Three or Four wraps back over it with tension works for me.
  15. Commercial flies are made to let other people catch fish, but they do have to catch the fisherman first to get them out of the bin. Flytying Houses have to come up with new flies, just like Rod Companies, Car Manufactures and countless other companies to hopefully increase sales and turn a profit. I know in the NE Saltwater I could catch about 90% of the species we chase with a simple Clouser Minnow or Half And Half, Deceiver and Bob's Banger in three sizes and probable three color combinations. It is always good to see and share some new designs as long as they have been tested and proven. Selling flies is a part of the industry that a lot of people don't fully understand. Consumers and so-called commercial tiers. There is a good segment of independent or small commercial fly houses that follow the rules and pay their fair share and produces quality durable flies for a fare price. Just remember that everyone can be commercial/production tier these days because they have a Facebook Page and take PayPal. Brad
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