MIKE*A

Welcome aboard PF! Mike

Welcome aboard! Mike

Welcome aboard! Mike

I'm not sure what size san Juan worm you a re tying for bass.....? I've never tied one bigger than a size 12-14....... I anchor the worm with thread in two spots on the hook and then burn the dangly end of the chenille to stop the fraying........as far s go to flies for bass, I've always had good luck with simple buck tail streamers, clousers, and bunny strip leeches.....as far as a senior style fly, one that I discovered last year that I was very happy with that is a very simple tie is the Shannon streamer that I found on www.flyfishohio.com........unfortunately, I am on my iPad and havenot perfected the cut and paste with it yet.....if you go to that website, look on the left hand side of the homepage and click on fly videos......then scroll down to the Shannon streamer....I hope this helps Mike

I guess it depends on your eyesight.....I never needed any help in the past.....about 3 years ago i started using reading glasses.....this year I bought a magnifier w/an adjustable arm for the smaller stuff....getting old sucks.... Mike

Great suggestions so far.......one thing you have to consider with pike in the mix is durability.....the bunny strip leeches are a very simple tie and pretty durable as compared to the featherwing streamers......my three top colors when in MN., were chartreuse, olive, and black......the drawback to them is they soak up water and become pretty heavy...with a 9wt, you won't have any problem though......I have never used murdichs for pike before, but have recently been tiring a bunch of them up for a trip I have coming up to the east coast....I have to agree with tidewater fly, I think they would do well for you....tied with synthetic materials, they will shed water, making them a little easier to cast and be a little more durable than the featherwings....I'm not knocking the featherwings, I took a box full of decievers upto MN. With me last summer....I love them....just pointing out the durability issues with them with pike... Mike

I bought one originally as a travel vise because I heard/read good things about it...it come w/both "C" clamp and pedestal base....played w/it at the local flyshop first......very solid....very happy w/it..... Mike

Happy B-day Carlin and JSzymczyk! (J- Sorry I butchered the title of this post, I tried to go back and fix it and couldn't figure out how) :rockon: Mike

Great job as usual! Thanks for sharing1 Mike

Sound advice from fishinlk and Gene L.....I to started out over 30 years ago w/a Thompson "A" vise....I tied from a 1/0 down to a size 24 on it......not the best vise for either ends of that size range, but perfectly suitable for hook sizes 2 to about 18.....Since you are just starting out flytying, like most everyone else, you will probably start tying bucktail streamers, clousers, woolyworms/buggers.....Unless you are tying Northen pike/saltwater size, you can get by tying those on a $20.00 budget vise to see if you enjoy the hobby....if you do enjoy it, you will want to eventually upgrade....At tha time, go to your local flyshop and try out some of the different models and see what you like.... Mike

Pretty good for a first! It will definitely catch fish! The hackle is the weak part of the fly, one thing I do to make it more durable is after I wind the hackle on, I take a small piece of copper wire (I use electrical wire, strip the insulation off and pull out one strand)and wind it the reverse direction thru the hackle from back to front to help hold the hackle together in case it breaks.....there are actually 2 schools of thought on this....I've always gone from back to front, but many people put the wire on the front of the fly and wind it to the rear thru the hackles....check you-tube for a video, there are dozens of them on wooly buggers, that will explain it better....Welcome aboard and Good Luck! Mike

THANKS! So far, I have tied up some crease flies, bunny strips, clousers, decievers, murdich minnows, and next on the list are some merkin crabs.....I will have to make a trip to the craft store and look for some of that velvet rope...... Mike

Great post TWF!! thank-you! I am loading up for my vacation this Summer and your posts have been very helpful as i load my flyboxes.......The velvet eel looks interesting.......Is the head just epoxy or is it lead? Mike

Welcome aboard! Mike

:thumbup: :thumbsup: I guess the emoticons aren't working.....that was a "Two thumbs up" for your report! Mike

Hey gang, I am going on a family vacation 2nd week of June to the Chesapeake......We are looking at renting a house for a week on the East coast of Va. around Silver Beach, just South of Exmore.....we will be on a small bay off of the Cheapeake. I know out in the Bay and along the coast the big game fish is the Striper/Rock Bass......If I take my flyrod and kayak and work some of the smaller water off the Ches.bay, what kind of fish can I expect to encounter that time of year and what would be some good patterns for them.....I have started researching the area, but the majority of the information I have found thus far is focused on Stripers off the Atlantic side or from a boat in the middle of the Cheseapeake.......my kayak is a small water boat, not suitable for the middle of the Chesapeake, but ideal for the creeks/estuaries/smaller coves.....I'm guessing as close to the mouth of the Bay that I will be,that it is strictly saltwater with a heavy tidal influence on the depth. Thank-you, Mike

The time of year you are going is a biggy as to what species are available.......my favorite time of the year down there is early October......Check out Half hitch tackles website, they have alot of archived fishing reports....unfortunately they aren't as up to date as I would like to see, but you can check the archived reports going back several years by month......I would also send a PM to "Panama Red", he is a very active member of this site who is from the Panama City area which isn't too far away, he could probably give you some good basic advice.... Good Luck! Mike

My $.02.....You say you aren't sure whether you will like it or not.....Can you borrow a vice from someone? If not, my recommendation would be to buy a cheap one, all of the big box retailers offer some for under $20.00...you will be starting off w/the basic fly patterns, nothing too big/small or complicated so that type of vice will work fine.....once you get the basics down and know your needs better and decide you enjoy flytying, you can upgrade and save your cheapy as a spare or loaner.....as far as lack of dexterity goes, I am in the same boat, I have been tying on/off for close to 40 years....to this day, my flies will never win any contests......but they catch fish.....Here is another vice review: www.flyfishohio.com/Vise%20Review%201/Fly_Tying_Vise_Shoot-Out.html Mike

Looking good! I love the red "doll eyes" I use those quite a bit........ Mike

Here is one I found last year on the web....I've tied it in white, chartreuse, olive and black and done pretty well w/it: www.flyfishohio.com/Shannons_Streamer.htm Mike

OK.....I will probably get laughed out of here, but I have a Pflueger Supreme 1878 that I have been using for about 6 years and love it.....It is my go to flyreel when I travel North to the Boundary waters of Minnesota.....It is loaded w/an 8wt wff line and i carry a spare spool w/an intermediate line....I am far from an expert on Northerns, but have caught my fair share of them on this reel w/out any problems....it is not a large arbor, however, from my experience, Northerns aren't known for making long screaming runs,i have even used it in salt water.....i primarily use it in lakes/rivers when throwing big bulky streamers or deer hair bugs for bass....You can pick them up for less than $50.00....it is made out of gold plated machined aluminium and looks very nice...here is a link: www.pfluegerfishing.com/products/supreme-reel.html Mike

welcome aboard! Looking forward to some of your contributions. Mike

What does the or is app. Do for you? Mike

Wow! Very nice Buck! Mike

GReat Pix! Thank-you for sharing..... Mike