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Fly Tying
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jimmyboy

getting to know a fly

  

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Not sure why exactly, but it seems that once I tie a pattern a few times I hardly ever forget how to tie it. Now if I could only do the same with Genetics and Biochem....I'd be Valedictorian! :hyst:

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For me, to really have it down to the point of knowing precisely where each thread wrap needs to go, precisely where and how each item should be tied on and tied off, exactly how thick and how long a dubbing rope should be, etc., etc., probably takes me on average a couple dozen flies before I’m tying perfectly proportioned, identical bugs every time. Really depends on the pattern, though -- some far less, some many more.

 

From another perspective, I’m sure many of us have heard the quote from A.K. Best, “I don’t really know how to tie a fly until I’ve cranked out a hundred dozen of them.”

 

-- Mike

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I'm with Hairstacker. I suscribe to the A.K. Best theory: It takes about 100 doz. to get it down so you can tie the pattern in your sleep and will never need to look up the materials, hook sizes, hook types or proportions again :yahoo:

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I'm in the 20-30 camp. By "knowing it inside and out", I take that to mean I can perhaps not tie any for months, or a year, then go and tie one exactly the way it should be. Then do it again. And again. All but the simplest patterns like basic woolly worms and woolly buggers for instance, take a while to really get down. In fact, now that I think about it, probably more than 30. A HUNDRED DOZEN? I don't know about that. I know I've never tied a hundred dozen of any pattern.

 

Why in hell do we count these in DOZENs anyhow?

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Now if I could only do the same with Genetics and Biochem....I'd be Valedictorian! :hyst:

Genetics is fascinating and biochem isn't too bad once you get pass the point of counting carbons in metabolic cycles. If molecular biology is in your future, the two finally merge in a coherent fashion.

 

Flies, on the other hand, take me longer to tie correctly at a reasonable pace; I voted in 40-60 range. By then the materials go on without much trouble and the restart time is minimal when picking the pattern up again after a break.

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Usually around the 4th or 5th one I'm at the point where I'm not changing anything to make it better or different to where I'm satisfied with the pattern.

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i voted 10 to twenty.Only because every fly is different and some r more complicated than others.But,generally speaking,after 10 or so ties or less,i am usually very adapt at tying that respective fly.

shane

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2 or 3. Sometimes less to none. If I see something in a fly shop I normally can figure it out just from looking at the fly.

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2 or 3. Sometimes less to none. If I see something in a fly shop I normally can figure it out just from looking at the fly.

 

I can do the same .

But it takes me about a doz. until I'm happy with what I tie.

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Well to "really know" down to the exact number of thread wraps, tensions, material proportions, I say 100 dozen of the same bug, same size. Most tyers, unless commercial ones have never tied that many. I have several times in one production run. Yes most good tyers can successfully produce a pattern in a few dozen, but to really have it where you can almost tie the bug with your eyes closed, try a big run some time. Say one whole Saturday for 8 hours tie as many as you can of one fly. I guarantee by the end of that day you will see what I mean.

 

Cheers, Futzer.

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