FLY TYING with Common Household Materials

[ralphh 0]

Just bought JAY FISHY FULLUMS BOOK on Tying with common household materials. A lot of interesting materials to say the least. Any one have any comments on this book?

[shoebop 0]

Not much new there. Using odd materials is not really that odd here.

[mikechell 0]

Never seen the book, but as Shoe said, nothing is "uncommon" about common materials. One of the best, both in tying and photography, Terje, is quite fond of his duster material flies.

I have a flip flop and feather duster popper on the SBS forum.

I can't remember the name off the top of my head (because it's Hendricks or something like that) uses cassette tape to make great looking legs.

They're all "odd" materials, but so are most of the people using them. Myself NOT included.

[André Ribeiro 0]

I think it's great! Love the tips and the solutions, I think he have a special gift to look at a material and see it in the hook.

 

 

 

 

[FlaFly 0]

Didn't know Fishy had a book on alternative materials. Like everyone said, lots of us use alternatives, and are always glad to see someone post a new idea. I read an article by Tom Deshaine on MichiganTroutStreams.com about alternatives. I had already started doing so, but his article made me feel like I was legal. We had a thread a few months back on use of dog/cat/etc fur for dubbing. I died some of my cat's white fur red and it worked fine. She sheds constantly.

[mikechell 0]

Don't want to hijack the thread, but that's a beautiful cat, FlaFly. Two of mine say Hello.

 

[utyer 0]

I haven't read it, but I tie hundred of patterns with common house hold materials. Plastic baggies: they come in lots of colors, and little strips can be twisted and made into great nymph bodies. The aluminum peal off caps from yogurt cups make good silver tinsel. The Mylar seals from coffee cans also make good tinsel I have bags of yarn, cat hair, dog hair (I collect it from friends,) old fur coats and parts of coats. Rubber bands, for claws on crabs or crayfish, also legs on other flies. Old computer wire, foam insulation, pins and needles, rubber and latex gloves, these items all can be used in some way or another. Copper wire from electrical cord, and computer cables is great stuff. I have miles of it.

 

I have used coffee filters, tea bags, and dryer sheets for wings on mayflies, and caddis flies. Coated with flexible cement, they can be used to tie up very realistic bodies, even entire flies. Don't forget to recycle your old fishing line for legs feelers tails, and other parts. Paint brushes are also good for legs feelers and tails.

 

I have read Fishy's column in Fly Tyer for years, and he has lots of inventive patterns using "common" materials. There was a time when the ONLY way you could tie flies at all was to go out and round up some "common" materials from around the house or barnyard.

[flytire 0]

i too have been using household stuff for years

[Cannonx4 0]

Utyer, you gave me lots of ideas with your reply. Thanks

[phg 0]

The book is, basically, a compendium of ideas from Fishy's ideas from several years of Fly Tier Mag. If you read his "columns" regularly, you won't find much new in the book. I bought the book mostly so I could get him to sign it.

[wayne offord 0]

I wish I had a cat, if I put food coloring in its food, could I get an olive colored dubbing???

[tidewaterfly 0]

Ralphh, I just read your profile & see you're new to tying, but are not a youngster! Most of us who have been tying a long time use or have used many of the things the Fishy mentions in his books & articles. I don't have that book, but do have a couple of his fly pattern books.

 

It's common for us older folks to have used many items for tying that may not be mentioned much today since we didn't have the wide variety of materials now available when we started tying.

 

C Boyd Pfeiffer also was another who wrote many articles & several books & mentioned many common items for tying. Boyd didn't write a book specifically about such materials however (at least I don't think he did)!

 

As far as such books go, IMO it's likely a good one for beginners since it does mention common & often "cheap" items that can be used.

Since you've already purchased the book, make the most of it!

[FlaFly 0]

Wayne

Depending on the color of food coloring you use, you might get an olive colored hairball.

[Davidpensfan87 0]

I use plastic bags as shellback for scuds.

 

I have also tied some flies using duct tape as a body.

[Glennie 0]

I hate going to the grocery store now because I find myself more drawn the potential fly tying implication of the packaging holding the product than the product itself.

 

I have dozens of Ziploc bags stuffed with thin strips cut from candy bar wrappers, chip bags, cookie packaging...none of which has done much for my girth but have given me lots of ideas for use in flies. I clip open the bags and spray them with a household cleaner to clean them up and then using a stainless steel ruler and an exacto knife cut them into thin strips using a smooth 12 x 12 inch tile as my cutting surface. I can cut thicknesses for use as body material, ribbing, shellbacks or wing cases.

 

Some of the colours are just not available anywhere from suppliers. I tie a lot of chironomid patterns so tend to look for shades of olive green, bright green, silver, black, grey and brown. Some of the stuff has a nice reflective quality too that when put to a hook gives terrific results.

 

The next time you're shopping for groceries just cruise through the chip and candy section and open your eyes to all the potential and you'll see what I mean.