Crotalus

Buy a book, or use a website, and decide what flies you are going to start out with. Then buy the specific tools and materials you need for those particular flies. Buy the best you can comfortably afford and go from there.

We are having a neighborhood party, starts at our place and then moves to 3 other houses before midnight. almost forgot, tomorrow is brats, pork roast and sauerkraut cooked in beer. mmm mmm good

I got some materials, new fishing shirt for warmer weather and FFF Fly Pattern Enclycopedia, also a couple gift certificates for more materials. My birthday is New Years and i already know i am getting a 5 year sub to Fly Fishing and Tying Journal with the free Benchside Reference.

There are some very nice and very expensive tying tables/desks out there. Personally i use an old drafting table that my company was going to discard. It has plenty of table space but is somewhat lacking in drawer space. Also you can check used furniture stores and fleamarkets for roll top desks and secretaries desks that are very nice for tying.

That is 5x or 6x tippet at the front and rear (had a softhackle dropper tied on) The fly itself is a 20 or 22 BWO parachute

just trying out my camera for taking and posting fly pics. dont laugh at the fly, it has been fished several times and caught to trout so it isnt in the greatest shape. mods if this isnt ok posted here feel free to delete it

The most fun i had was a few years ago. I had a lady from ATT call and she was gonna save me all kinds of money. I told her that i wasnt really interested in saving money since i had a good job and saw no need to save any. I went on to tell her how money is no good after we die and that it is the root of all evil so i tried to spend mine as quickly as i could the poor lady was just dumbfounded

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good tie! Seasons Greetings from Enola, PA

yeah that has to be one of the worst feelings, the instant the scissors pass through the thread that one thought jumps into your mind - why the heck did i do that?!?!?

Jack London books are great. He was a pretty diverse writer ranging from The Great Northwest to the South Pacific. I have a large book that is full of his short stories, very good reading and almost all are outdoor oriented.

17" monitor at home = 1024x768 21" monitor at work = 1280x1024

Tiemco, followed by Mustad and I also have a few Daichi and Dai Rikis too

This book covers a lot of mayfly and caddis insects. I dont know if it covers stoneflies or not. It is a really good book but i havent gotten very far into it to know exactly what it covers. Hatch Guide for New England Streams (Ames & Tibbets)

I use Rain-x on my dry flies. After i tie a few i put the Rain-X in a small bowl and dunk each of the flies and then let them dry

So far I only have Trout Flies (Hughes) Advanced Fly Tying (A.K. Best) Hatch Guide for New England Streams (Ames & Tibbets) Orvis Fly Tying Manual (Rosenbauer) L.L. Bean Tying Handook (Talleur) so i guess they would be my five favorites. In the near future i am looking to add Benchside Reference AK's Fly Box and Production Tying FFF Fly Pattern Encylcopedia

I would like to get in if possible. Thanks Joe

Storage solutions are pretty much dependant on your tying area. When i was tying at the kitchen table i kept everything in Rubbmermaid containers. Now that i have a dedicated area i still use a couple small Rubbmermaid boxes but i also use the drawers in the table and a storage box full of small drawers designed for nuts/bolts. I am looking to add more storage in the form of a cabinet and more drawers as my collection grows. I try to keep feathers, hair, dubbing and synthetics in thier original packages. When using the Rubbermaid boxes i split stuff up by type - one box for feather, one for hair/dubbing, one for synthetics, hooks, beads, thread etc...

I never saw "A River Runs..." until after i got back into fly fishing, now i wish i had seen it earlier. I have the book on my "to buy" list, books are pretty much always better than movies. For me it is the Lord of the Rings Trilogy. I have no idea how many times i have read the books, i have been a fan for a long time, i am guessing at least 25 times. We have Starz movie channel and they are running all three movies, i always stop and watch when i see one on.

In my opinion, dont go cheap on scissors. I started with a cheap pair, then bought a sligthly more expensive pair, then finally bought the Dr Slicks and was finally happy. Now i use the first pair for cutting wire, the second pair for cutting bulk hair and my good pair for cutting thread and generally trimming of feathers and hair while tying. I have griffin bobbins and am pretty happy with them, the Tiemcos are nice also. I have never really noticed any difference in whip finishers, as long as it is the right shape. a bodkin is a bodkin is a bodkin. bobbin threaders - i dont use em, dont want to screw up the bobbin tube, i just insert the thread then suck it trough, be careful not to have too much slack though, you dont want to swallow it another great gift for family members to buy is a tool caddy if you dont already have one. I picked out a few that i liked last year and let my wife choose which one to buy.

Actually something that might be very useful would be a pattern or technique book. Make it a book that you dont already own, that way he can feel good when Dad wants to borrow "his" book.

regarding tools: maybe pick him up his own set of new scissors and a bobbin. what about hackle pliers and hair stackers. as for materials, dubbed nymphs arent all that hard to master, so maybe a boxed selection of dubbing,

Renzetti sells a couple of specialty bases, although they do run in the hundred dollar range.

The 243 is a great gun for hunters looking for lighter recoil, all the female hunters in my family use either a 243 or a 6mm. As for model well the wallet kinda dictates that. I am a Remington man myself but would have no problems shooting a Browning. A few guys in our camp have Brownings and they have no complaints. Scopes follow the same rule of thumb, buy the best you can afford, for me i like Simmons. I have had one on my Remington 30.06 Mountain Rifle for several years, although i think there might be a loose screw behind the scope

thanks DFix, i never knew what FTD stood for

I use the Griffin ceramic bobbins also. They were a vast improvement over the generic bobbin that came with my kit. They are much lighter and are easier to work with.