JoeBillingsley

Gary LaFontaine designed a dry fly with forward facing rooster and mallard flank hackle called The Mess to imitate larger mayfly hatches. It was loosely based on the Funnel Dun and maybe both were based on Tenkara-style flies. Here Davie McPhail ties a Funnel Dun. Joe

http://www.castersonlineflyshop.com/virtual-nymph-vn-nymph-skin/ I bought some, use it and like it, but it doesn't seem much different than the other "latex-type" products. Apparently it is, though, because it doesn't degrade like other similar products do. Joe

Do you think the success of the Copper John is due to the suggestive look of it and its flash or the fact that it is much heavier than most flies and gets down to where the fish are better than others? Would a lot of other nymph patterns be just as effective if they were as heavy and got as deep? I know a lot of you haven't been as successful with them as I and others have been, but you have to admit they do catch fish. It's probably been my most successful fly over the past few years. Joe

Cradles will get in the way if they are attached to the stem and can't easily be moved, at least mine gets in my way a lot. I saw or read once that a large mug or drinking glass could be used as a movable cradle. Just put it where you want it and drop your bobbin in it or over it when you need a cradle. I like the one you built, Freddo. It could be moved out of the way just like the mug. Nice idea. Joe

What is the thorax/collar materials in the Catgut Caddis Pupa? Excellent fly. Joe

Kevin Compton of Performance Flies out of Pennsylvania (I think) carries it along with many other European products. They are presently out of a few colors and sizes of the catgut. Great company. http://www.performanceflies.com/product-p/lv-cg.htm Joe

Great flies, Lucian! One of my go-to nymphs now is Davie McPhail's Catgut Caddis Pupa. Fantastic material and very easy to work with. The catgut color that you have used here, I assume, is the natural. Great effects with the different color thread underbody. Have you used the different colors that catgut comes in for different effects on these flies? Joe

Those are good prices. This place is good for tungsten beads, too. http://www.theflyfishing-store.com/beads/ Joe

I only notice the GSP being slippery for the first few turns starting it on the hook and then when tying in a hair wing. It definitely does want to slide of the wing. But, when I first started tying flies 30+ years ago I had all kinds of trouble tying in hair wings. So, I started back then painting an inch or so of the thread (not GSP back then. Regular tying thread) with super glue, waiting a couple of seconds, then tying in the wing. The thread would stay where I wanted it on the hair and cement the wings in place for good. I still do that. Also, if you put a touch of glue on the bare hook shank before starting the thread it won't slip as much, either. I was told by a veteran tier when I first started that by doing that the flies would be much stronger. I still do that, too.....when I remember to do it. I have been very impressed with the 30 denier GSP threads. Very strong and very small. It virtually disappears on the hook. Joe

Definitely not an important tool, but they do create beautiful wings. Are they any more effective than any other wings? I doubt it. Joe

The weighted brass beads you get at fly shops will have one smaller hole and one larger hole in them. This makes them much easier to get around the bends of some hooks. I don't know if you can get those at craft stores. I also don't know if you can get tungsten beads at craft stores. I'm also not sure if you can get .5mm foam at craft stores for tying smaller flies. A lot of tyers use packing and wrapping foam, too. Most threads are "relatively" inexpensive at fly shops and you can get the color, size, and characteristics you want. I'm sure those items are out there somewhere other than fly shops, I'm just not sure where. There are a lot of identical items you can get at fabric stores and craft stores, but sometimes you do have to go to fly shops to get certain items. Besides, it's more fun to shop at fly shops and you won't get snickered at for going there! Joe

Tim, If I lost all my dubbing boxes full of every new "revolutionary" dubbing that has come out and I have purchased and had to start over, I would get a preloaded compartment box of Super Fine Dry Fly Dubbing in the colors that you think you would use the most, another box of Ice Dub or Prism or Antron, and two hare's masks - one in natural and one in olive. Read about how and where to get the particular hair you want from the masks. If you want a little flash in your dubbing, mix a little of the Ice Dub in it. If you want all flash, use the Ice Dub (or whichever one of the flashy dubbings you pick) straight. Unless you tie tons of flies, those materials alone will last you a long time. And, a lot of the premixed dubbings on the market are made with those materials, anyway. Joe

Was it the Thompson's ... or the Styrofoam that caused that? I expect you found your flies covered in melted Styrofoam ... but I could be wrong. Not the Styrofoam. The flies were stuck in the rims of the cups and extended above them. Only the hook point was touching the cups. Except for the hook holes in them, the cups were pristine. I also hung a couple of dozen flies on a string tied between two of my vises to dry and they were all demolished, too. It was a catastrophe..... Joe

Years ago I read that the best "secret" waterproofing agent to use at-the-vice was Thompson's Water Sealant. I already had some so I poured a little in a cup and soaked all my dry flies for a few minutes and then stuck them on Styrofoam cups to dry. A few days later I went to put them back in my fly boxes and saw they had all turned black and sticky and they looked like they had been soaked in tar. Live and learn. Joe

I've used one for over 30 years and really like it. No problems with it at all. I just unscrew everything every once in a while to clean and lubricate it. The pros are: 1) It's a Renzetti. 2) For me, I much prefer the thumbscrew jaws. Cons: 1) The jaws are not very fine pointed, even the "midge" jaws. 2) It doesn't have great access to the back end of very small flies. Joe

Maybe I missed something, too, but a UV resin wouldn't work for this? Joe

Where is the fun in that??!! Interesting idea, though..... Joe

For those of you who use the automatic bobbin holder, do you also use the Nor-Vise or do you use another "traditional" (for lack of a better word) vise? Joe

Foam hoppers. There can be grasshoppers everywhere and I can catch fish on deer hair hoppers, Stimulators, CDC&Elk, EHC, and practically anything else that could resemble a hopper. But nothing on foam hoppers. Joe

Interesting article and comments on it: http://hatchesmagazine.com/blogs/Hatches/2010/04/19/the-adams-history-revisited-by-tom-deschaine/ Joe

I'll add that I think TMC 100 hooks have a slightly longer shank than many other companies' "standard" dry fly hook. Although I haven't compared them, I would bet that the Allen hooks shank lengths might compare closer in shank length to the Mustad 94840. Just a guess, though. Joe

Hi, Crackaig. I have done that and I, too, find it works just as well. I really think it works even better than tying the second tippet to the bend when the first fly is a dry because on so many dry fly patterns the bulk of the material to help float the fly is close to the eye. However, my leader maintenance skills - sometimes called laziness - are so lacking that many times I have enough trouble getting the first tippet through the eye much less another one. Joe

I still prefer to debarb my hooks vs. buying barbless. I like the little "nub" it leaves because I tend to fish a double fly rig a lot and attach the second tippet and fly to the bend of the top hook. The little nub keeps it from slipping off as easily. Joe

I use CDC on a lot of wet flies and nymphs, bead heads and non-bead heads. As Crackaig said, it moves like nothing else. I usually put some fibers in a split thread and wind them at the eye or right behind the bead just before finishing the fly. One of my favorites is a flashback bead head PT with a CDC collar. Joe

These look very good, too. Old cassette tape. http://www.flytyingforum.com/index.php?showtopic=77998 Joe