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Fly Tying

92Esquire

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About 92Esquire

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    Advanced Member

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  • Favorite Species
    Trout
  • Security
    2007
  1. I normally buy what I can find in stock in the color I'm looking for. F'rinstance, I had been looking for a saltwater Cree cape, and the first one I came across was a Bronze. I'm very happy with it. If I'm buying online, I'm more likely to buy a higher grade cape as insurance. I've got a couple of silver grade dry fly capes that have been outstanding for the smaller dries I normally tie.
  2. Chartreuse/White is my go to. If that's not working, I'll use grey/white, olive/orange with barred markings, or red/white.
  3. UNI for most of my trout flies. I use a ton of 8/0 in black, red, olive, and brown. I have come to prefer UTC for anything saltwater or bass, because I like the way it lays down for clouser heads. I also feel that the UTC 140 allows me to torque a bit more than UNI 6/0 while still laying flat.
  4. Trout flies are all on Tiemco. Love the hooks. Saltwater flies are either on Tiemco (if I'm feeling flush, &*^#$% they are pricey), Mustad (still haven't forgiven them for jacking the price up on 34007 and 34011's a few years back) or Eagle Claw (the 413 is my current favorite hook to "play" with). Bass flies are either on Tiemco 811's or (I prefer) Gamakatsu B10S.
  5. Nope, not a pro. But he is an engineer who is incredibly compentent with tools and problem solving. He's actually a bit ashamed of this as it was one of the earlier things he did. He says when he sees it, he only sees the mistakes. I'm blessed to have it.
  6. Here's the custom tying bench my dad made for me a few years ago. Cherry and birdseye maple, made to the dimensions I wanted. He also inset a replaceable Melamine top into it so that if I drip glue, I'm not ruining nice hardwood. Also makes hooks easier to find.
  7. My Spartan is my travel vise, but I tie on it quite a bit at home, too. The HMH Midge jaws are the best I've found. It holds stable, and I've been able to tie from saltwater 1/0 hooks down to size 28 midges with the two sets of jaws. The only thing I have trouble with is the distance from the upright to the jaws. My bobbin is continually knocking into the upright. The Standard would be better, but it's also a bunch more money, and takes up more space in my tying kit. For what it's worth, I've owned a Peak as well. The Peak is a nice vise, too.
  8. I like the Hopper Juan mentioned above and the Charlie Boy (CB) Hopper: http://www.charliesflyboxinc.com/flybox/detail.cfm?parentID=16 The CB may be slightly easier to tie.
  9. I'm glad you like that vise. I've always been curious about the C&F tying tools, but have never seen them "in the flesh". Based on their fishing accessories I've used, I have no doubt that the vise would be first rate. My local shops are no longer stocking vises in the price range over about $250, so there was no chance of getting to mess with one of the C&F's. What do you like best about the vise? What design choice did they make that's superior to the other vises you've used?
  10. That's a Toho seed bead, size 11/0 in silver lined brown. I tie with those down to size 22. I use a 15/0 bead for size 24 and 26 flies. Your local beading supply store will sell you them in hundreds of colors. Your fly shop will also have them as "killer caddis" beads.
  11. This discussion is interesting to me because I typically don't post pictures of my flies. First, my level of talent is nowhere near what is displayed by a number of posters here. Second, the things I tie that make me happy wouldn't do much for anyone else. Does anyone really want to see my version of the Hare's Ear Nymph that uses a mylar thread from JoAnn instead of a wire rib? Probably not. Not so different that you can't visualize it without a picture. I am doing my first tying demonstration at this year's TroutFest. I'm nervous as all heck about it, and trying to figure out what to tie. In the end, I'm going to tie three flies that I fish more than any others for trout. All of them are patterns that I've seen somewhere else, but all of them use materials that I've found outside of fly shops that make them a bit more "mine". Nothing earth-shattering, but if you caught me on my local tailwater and asked to see my leader, one of these three would be on the end at least 90% of the time. One of them I thought I'd invented until I saw an old Fly Tyer magazine with nearly the same pattern in it. Oh well. Hopefully some of the folks will enjoy the patterns - that is if they can see me tying them - the largest is a size 18! Here's one of them. I can promise you I've caught fish with this fly:
  12. I've got several, mostly Griffin, but I have a Renzetti and a Rite as well. I like the Rite especially for tying with 8/0 thread (in fact, my Rite lives with brown UNI 8/0 on it). The Renzetti is my saltwater bobbin. However, my favorite bobbin is a Griffin Rod Wrapping bobbin. Why that one? Because it allows me to use the "wide" spools of Guterman and Sulky rayon and silk threads that I buy at JoAnn fabric.
  13. One thing to consider if you're looking at the modular fishing bags that hold Plano-style boxes - I've looked all over and it appears that only the 3700 size allows you to get a box with no dividers. Why is that important? That size allows you to hold a rotary vise, or a bunch of tools like needle nose pliers without cutting dividers. My local Wal-Mart had this: http://www.walmart.com/ip/Plano-Large-Bag-...lities/13283389 I bought one last week and am currently refitting it to be my travel tying bag. It looks like I'm going to be tying at a local show this spring, and I need to be sure I've got all my stuff in one sack. This should easily hold all I need to carry for a show.
  14. I've had mixed experience with some of the less expensive vises. A couple years ago I bought my niece a vise for her birthday and flew to her house to teach her how to tie. The vise was a Terra Silverado that I bought at my local Gander Mountain. That vise failed in less than 15 flies - the pivot pin that the tensioner rides on bent almost immediately. I was pretty embarrassed - she learned to tie on my HMH Spartan and I bought her a new vise when I got home - a Griffin model 2A: http://www.flyfishohio.com/Vise%20Review%2...superior_2a.htm It's not fancy. It doesn't rotate. But what it does do is hold a hook very, very well, and pack down to a tiny size. I've had two of them now and they are great. I've found them on sale for $35 before and kicked myself for not buying more. What I like about it is that it is an inexpensive lifetime vise - there are really no materials compromises on the Griffin, and you'll find a use for it as long as you are tying.
  15. Vises are very much a personal preference. Some of the best tyers I've ever met won't use anything other than a Regal. Others won't touch it if it does not say Dyna King. Still others tie on Renzetti, HMH, LAW, Peak, or on an old pair of vise grips. Save your money. In the mean time, find a shop (might be local, might be while you're on a vacation) that has different vise styles. Or find a way to get to a fly fishing show - watch what people tie on and ask questions. Most folks have been through a couple different vises, and are more than happy to tell you why they chose what they did. But understand that there isn't a bad choice, or a wrong one. Every vise is a compromise in some way. Every vise has things it does very well, and things that it isn't the best at. Every tyer has learned to work with and around his/her vise to tie what they normally tie. You'll do the same. The Regal is a very good vise. So are the rest of them. Save your money, make your choice, and tie on it. I'd bet a nice hackle patch that it won't be your last.
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