Henrik Thomsen (DK)

No worries, they will catch fish. However I would highly recommend you to ask someone near to teach you. The fly itself is not a beauty... (as my spelling). Try work with red tag pattern in size 10 and when that looks ok, move on to palmered flies in that size. But first of all, find someone near and get some teaching. :-) I still go to seminars for learning new tricks etc.

I personally use the sink as a trash bin when cutting deer hair. Open the water full power for a few seconds prior to cutting, and the moist in the air will kind of bring all the cuttings down into a pile in the sink. The moist also makes it easy to gather all the cuttings and throw them in the trash. /H

Dave, When you find out.. Try use half of that. ;-)

Use less dubbing and more "force" when wrapping. And then as you write... Practise. :-) H

Thought it, therefor I put the :-P behind it... was not ment as anything but a joke. However writing texts with smiles of irony and a bit of dark humor is hard ;-) Have fun /H

BB, First, thank you for your kind words. Second, you are not arguing... But I am... :-P Now, back to serious. On parachutes the hackle is typically one or two sizes over what you would use for classic dries. For classic the hackle should be about 1,5 times the hook gabe. For parachutes the tip of the fibers pointing towards the rear should almost reach the end of the body/start of tail, but not fully. Therefore hackle size depends on placement of wing. ;-) Number of turns... When doing a classic dry fly, a decent number of turns should be used to give enough area to hold the fly on the surface tension of the water. More tyrns for rough waters. For parachutes, the complete hackle (one round) gives the surface area to keep the fly floating. Theoretical therefore one turn is enough... But one thing is theory another fly tying. I normally do 3-4 turns depending on hackle fiber density. Hope this info helped a bit. :-) Br, /H

Ok, everybody. A long time has passed and a lot of skills have been practiced. All in all I can say that it does look a lot like all did get something out of this exercise. Not let alone the thread control, the most needed skill in any fly tying. The critic from me this final round: Stilis 1: Not much to add here. Maybe the small dent/gap between the body and the thorax. Something that can be avoided by making the body a bit too long and the cover the extra with a little of the thorax. Stilis 2: Again a super fly. The nit picking here is following; I see a thread wrap on the thorax, could be covered in dubbing. The few stray fibers sticking up from the hackle could be removed ;-) jjs89yj: Tail: On back of hook, move to top. Body: Ok Wing post: Ok Hackle: a mess... Try to tie in the hackle on the post with a few turns, then put each turn of hackle between the previoud and the hook moving downwards. Finally secure the hackle with 2 wraps on the post and whip finnish (using a thin thread or twist it to make it round and thinner... Wetsock: Tail: Goes around hook? move to the top. Body + thorax: Very nice Wing post: also ok Hackle: A bit to dense to my liking, but nothing wrong... a bit of tidying up to remove the strays would be good. (Stray hackles pointing down breakes surface tension and sinks the fly more easily) L'il Dave: Tail: A little too soft looking Body: would have liked it more hard dubbed Thorax: Good Wing post: A bit to short for my liking, wings tend to be at least the length of the body on may flies Hackle: Fibers too short and hackle to dense for my liking, but very nice wraps done... Fishingbobnelson: Tail: Missing :-P Body: A little smoother would be nice Thorax: Hmmm, hard to get a good impression of, but I would have made it a bit longer Wing post: Good Hackle: see comments to jjs89yj Idaho RC: Tail: falls down the side of the hook, and fibers looks a little on the softer side Body: Buggy but nice Thorax: Fine Wing post: good Hackle: a tine bit too long and looks again as beeing a little to the softer side of dry fly hackles. Vicrider: Tail: Placement good, try to do a single turn underneath the tail to spread it out fan like in one plane. Body and thorax : not too much shape but ok. Wing post: Good Hackle: Good, but a little tidying up would make it even nicer. Also to spread down the hackle pointing up, a foam thorax could be used (BWO Dun here: http://www.wideopen.dk/webshop/the-fish-the-fly-1-dry-flies/) jmchaughan: A bit more hackle and a broader wing will make this hopper look even better. The body could also be a bit heavier, but not needed. Mogup: Tail: Same as many above, tails belong to the top of the hook ;-) Body: Really nice Thorax: Looks like it could be done better with another material than the vinyl-rib (?) Wing post: Nice ​HackleS: Very challenging doing two hackles on a parachute, but ok here. Again a bit tidying up always helps. BB: Tail: It's on top of the hook, Hurray :-D :-D Body: Looks good Thorax: Same Wing post: A bit more length will make the fly even looking better Hackle: To many turns and too short fibers (only a little too short;-) ) + the standard comment - tidying up helps ;-) Hope you all can use the input I've given. All flies will fish and catch, but the aim is not to catch fish but fishermen. And remember, thread control and limited use of thread is the way forward. Think of your thread as the most valuable material you have, use it only as thick as needed and only the number of wraps needed to secure your material, other is overuse... (Read: misuse) Have fun and keep up the good work. /Henrik

Fibers from a laquer brush. Need to taper to a poit at the tip. Therefore laquer brush. H

https://youtu.be/PdFaDBHKvo8 (Not my video) Try use EP fibers (or similar) for the body. And maybe add a red spot of dubbing at the body, and even maybe a small clipped hackle for legs instead of the fibers used in the video... And you might get: https://www.instagram.com/p/1DEqLOq1p4/ (my first go at the mysis.)

Wetsock Your welcome. I do this of solely egoistic reasons... It is the only way we will be more fly tyers (with focus on tying) around the globe. There has long been a tendency (at least in Denmark), that fly tying is only to create lures to catch fish. The old trade of hand has kind of losts its meaning, and i'm really sad to see people gluing on plastic parts to a hook and call it tying. A little like my math teacher in first grade said. You will NOT get/need a calculator before you know to calculate by hand. If we learn to tye flies good, it is much easier to experiment with premade vings, legs, shellbags etc. And remember only a very small part of fly TYING is to catch fish. The most is about catching FISHERMEN... ;-) /H

Jokey. Depending if it is an European or African barn swallow... ;-) H

Pj2. Glad to help. And hadn't seen it as quill body... Might be the camera ;-)

Btw. The cheek are from the red spot of a Barn swallow (hirundo rustica). /h

Good spotted the bump. The light in the mirage tinsel actually creates this bump because I wind yhe tinsel from head to tail and back. It isn't actually a bump, but the mirager tinsel changing direction of turning. ;-)

Wolfrider_dk is my instagram. Uses it for flypics almost exclusive... Not all equally nice. Follow if you like. H

Just mixed some feathers, floss and tinsel and threw it on a mustad 3399 hook. Body is mirrage tinsel on pink micro floss. Tail and wings are pink goose shoulders. Hackle is a dirty white hen hackle. Who can guess the cheek feathers? /H

@IdahoRC Meant bigger hook like a hook size or two bigger. I personally prefer hackle to be 1.5 times gape and wing 2 times gape. But if you like 2 times gape for hackle it is perfect as long as you are consistent. :-) Hope that helped. :-) @stilis Yep, got that one. And it is how it should be. However I think the room left is a little on the large side. Try attach a 5X or 6X leader with a turtle knot and see if the part around the shank fits the bare hook part. Or in more technical terms the bare hook part should be around .004" to .005" (0.10 to 0.12 mm). H

Really dont like that book, sorry. ;-) But will recommend http://www.anglebooks.com/the-north-country-fly-yorkshire-s-soft-hackle-tradition-by-robert-l-smith.html The best book since T. E. Pritt.... H

Ok, once again I've been kindly asked by BB to give my comments on the flies. As usual I will go through all the flies one by one. But first, a great applause for all the very beautiful flies tied here. Troutguy: Tail: Seems to fall down on the sides of the hook. Try the pinch loop method when attaching, and do two tight turns. Body: A little thin in the end, thread visible though the dubbing, did you use wax? Wax tend to soak and flatten the dubbing making it "see-through" (for the funny guys, don't start to pour gallons of liquid wax over random girls) Wings: looks nice in height, personal I prefer a more dense wing. Hackle: very nice behind the wing, less good (a little short) in front of wing. Head: please make it shorter, will also give room for more hackle. Head 2: Very nice with the little space in front of head, but be carefull if tying turtle knots, that the hook eye doesn't "bite" the line. Idaho RC: Tail: See troutguy Body: Try to form a more even body, you might have added too much dubbing at once to the thread leading to a lump of dubbing forming an uneven body. Hackle and Wing: Perfect! If the hock where a size or two bigger. (might be angle of camera that's cheating me here ;-) ) Head: Very nice head, but it almost crowd the hook eye.. maybe a single turn shorter would have made all the difference? :-D PJ2: You have challenged yourself a lot with the two hackles style... (Use a cree hackle, although it is cheating ;-) ) Tail: Use stiffer fibers and have them point same direction Body: Cover all the tying thread, some thread is seen under the tail. Body 2: use a smaller size tinsel for rib, it is too dominating. Hackles: A challenge it was, and it is easily seen that you have struggled. Try to do the fly with first one hackle and then with two. And remember to keep the hackle stem pointing 90Degrees out from the hook at all times while turning. Wings: Looks very nice, but be sure to cover the base of the wings with turns of hackle. Head: It is very nicely short head, but try to get it small also. Jacktjl: Tail: A little short to my liking Body: Start at the tail, thread is visible Body 2: Use less dubbing, more wraps with less dubbing makes for a more even body (but if you prefer segmented body, use dense robes of dubbing) Hackle: too long Wings: Very nice wings, try to place them a bit further back, to get in the center of the hackle wraps. Head: good, but unfortunately you trapped a few hackle fibers. Wetsock: Only few comments needed here... Tail: Good and even Body: less dubbing and more wraps to get an even body Hackle: Thumbs up Wing: Same Head: Don't know the pattern, but seems a little long for my liking, make it 2-3 wraps shorter and you have it nailed! Fishingbobnelson: Tail: Thumbs up if species copied has 3 tail fibers ;-) Body: Maybe a tiny hint longer Hackle: Shorten the area with hackle, but add a turn or two to increase density (and be carefull not to trap fibers of one hackle with the other. Wings: Thumbs up Head: Material sticking out in front and a fiber or two has been trapped, but size is good as well is the little gap up to the hook eye. Jmckaughan: Please see https://donbastianwetflies.com/tag/dette-coffin-fly/ for an image of the original. Tail: Too many fibers, three is all that is needed Body: A little on the heavy side Palmer Hackle/Body Hackle: Do the turns a little more dense, the fly must look furry (not confused with fury :-D ). Hackle: A little short, and more dense will be perfect. Wing: Try to even up the fibers before tying in, the angle looks funny (or blame it on the mailman ;-) ) Head: Crowds the eye and has material sticking out of it Vicrider: Tail: Tie it in a fraction earlier, not to go down the bend of the hook. Body: Nice, but would be even more fantastic with even turns covering all the thread beneath. Hackle: Too sparse for my liking Wings: Thumbs up Head: Thrice the size (as I feel when hung over) and has material sticking out in the front (I do not when hung over...) Stilis: As BB writes, very nice fly. Tail: Thumbs up Body: Very nice Hackle: I would like a turn or two more (but that is personal preference) Wings: very nice Head: Put two turns of hackle more on the fly, and the head will locate better. Also, be carefull about the material you have in the head, that forms the funny shape. Tip: Tie in the fiber from the body under the hook and all the way under the hackle, but no into the head (if that is the case) BB: The ridiculous fly... Image quality: Out of focus (are you hiding something :-P ) Tail: Looks like it's tied in on the far side of the hook. And use a pair of pliers to pluck that stray fiber off. Body: Looks nice and fuzzy (is that the missing focus? ;-) ) Hackle: Very nice and dense, but the turns could have been even closer to one another (or so it looks on the picture) Wing: Add a little to the length, it is almost hidden in the hackle... Head: Looks a tiny bit to large and like a glob of lacquer hanging underneath the hook? Also some material sticking out in front? Ok, all of you, please don't take my word to harsh up. They are meant for you to not be better fishermen. The fish will eat every single fly presented here, no doubt. But why do we wish to improve out tying? To get more fish or to catch the eye of the other fly tiers? ;-) :-) Have a great time at the water and remember to enjoy all the nature and every experience while you are out there... /H

When I do parachutes with a wingpost, I use the wingpost to tie off on also, that way no bare thread is seen crossing the front of the body down towards the eye. But hat is up to personal preferences. More important is it to always turn the hackle below previous turns (between previous turns and hook) that way hindering the hackle to crawl up the post and unfold. When tying a no-wing post parachute I use the hackle stem as loop to secure the wraps with. A little hard to explain, will see if I can find time to post a SBS. /H

PJ2 (Dry fly): Let's begin at the rear. The Tail is very nice and even ended. However, there seems to be a tendency for the tail to drop down on the sides, not sure if it is the image that cheats. Can't really comment much on the body, hard to see on the picture, but it is a bit to short, would have liked it to be 1/3 longer. The wings are too narrow, more width to the wing will be nice, and move them forward on the hook to make room fore more body. The Hackle, right length, could have been wrapped a bit tighter to narrow the base.width of the hackle and again make room for more body. The head is a mess, way to many turns. You need just 1 turns to fasten most materials, and then 1-2 to secure the turns plus 3 turn whip finnish = total of 6 turns for head ;-)

@PJ2 Sorry for not commenting your fly. Thought is was a bit out of scope, since it looks more like a dry fly than wet fly. Let me know if you would like soime comments and if you would like them with wet or dry in mind ;-) /H

Just a link more for all of you with regards to the proportions and float line: https://paracaddis.wordpress.com/tag/essential-fly-tying-techniques/ Scroll a bit down to see the image. Most important is it that you do not have a bulk of material (thread wraps) behind the wing (especially on the underside of the hook), since a leveled hackle then easily tilts the wrong way and the float line ends tilting forward. Tried to make a few examples here. Upper Left: The foundation is level, and then a "level" hackle feather gives a level hackle float line, which is good. It feathers with a pronounce taper (cheap hackles of less good quality) is used, tie in the but in front or the tip behind the wing. Upper Right. This fly has a build up of thread in the front part of the hackle. This fly will tip backwards, and depending on stiffness and floatation properties of the tail it might end up floating as a parachute with the hook submerges. Lower Left: This is bad (although normal)! A build up of material below the hook at the hind end of the hackle part. This will tilt the fly forward! Especially if a wing helps giving the imbalance. Lower Right My best example on how a dry fly should be. This one has the body stripped away. Please see that the underside of the hook is level regarding tying thread. Number of layers is less important as long as levelness is kept. Hope these ramblings helps you a bit. /H Ps. For the persons looking into the details, please note that the tied in part of the wing is used to taper the body, but only at the top of the hook!

@FishingBobNelson Sorry for not commenting your fly. To keep it short, and actually I see no reasons not to, there are only 3 comments for your fly. 1. Very nice fly! 2. Hackle could have been shorter, I would say somthing around ½ the length maybe a tad more. 3. Head, maybe 3 turns to big, but here it is really nitpicking, and the shape and look can be solved with some layers of lacquer. Br H

If we do not count in my pearsalls gossamere I have 2! Types... UTC70 in white and a kevlar for pike flies. Then I have quite a number of promarkers to color the thread when needed (typically for the head...)