mybadhabit

Thanks Steve for the clarification, I thought most of the guys on here had heard of Allen Fly Fishing by now. They have a huge following when it comes to hooks, but I also know that they have some pretty good rods and reels also and wanted to check to see if there were any recommendations by any members. I get to put the 3 wt you made me a couple of years ago to some good use this summer in Colorado.

I live in Dallas, and pipes are breaking everywhere, they are thinking of giving people with plumbing licenses in other states permission to work here in TX just to help all those with broken lines. It is so bad that millions of Texans don't have water or have to boil it before use. I got lucky, only lost power for a minute or two and I have a slab home, it is all over the news that pipes are rupturing, they say that this will be the single greatest insurance loss in TX.

I am going to be in Southfork CO in mid to late July this year and wanted to pick the brains of any and all that are familiar with the area if possible. Can anyone shoot me some hints and tips about what flies and where to fish for a fun and relaxing trip for a week. Thanks. Blane

I am looking at purchasing a new 5 wt rod and am looking at the Allen Volant series, does anyone have any experience with these rods? Or the TFO Axiom llXX? Thank you for your help. Blane

I lost the phone number to Conranch Hackle, does anyone have it and want to share. Thank you in advance. Blane

sandfly, you got a fly shop sign out in front of your house?

Welcome to the forum. Blane

I bought a pair of Prato shades that have a magnifier lens built into them for around $120, and they work great. The company is owned by a local guy and I found them at a fly fishing expo but I know he is online. There are two different colors of lenses also and just a couple of frame colors but I love them. I can fish all day in the Texas sun and not have a headache or eye fatigue at the end of the day and that says a lot towards their protection of my eyes and I do appreciate them. They have been around for over a year and a half and look brand new. I have the green lenses because of the waters that I fish down here, and they sure beat the hell out of the $50 pair of "polarized" glasses that I had before that left me with a screaming headache after 4 hours of fishing. I also like that I got the sport fit glasses, so I can lean over to release a fish and not fear that they will fall off and lose them, and the built in magnifiers are a godsend. I love them because I don't have to change glasses to put on a size 20 and then switch back to the shades to fish=less shit to carry, gotta love that. Blane

A 1" square of graph paper does the trick for me, and it is also how I tie in my weed guards. Blane

Mine has been all over the place, from Aerosmith, REO, and Van Halen in the 70's to ALL the bands of the 80's. Then It was Giovanni and Enya in the early 90's until I started bartending in the late 90's then it went to really heavy metal and dance music. Now it is everything from Disturbed to Bach and Motzart and most stuff in between. No rap or country though. Steve I have to second Einaudi's stuff, I have a Pandora station with his name on it and it is on most of the time. Right now it is my Sinatra station on Pandora.

Talk to Eide, he ties hundreds of them for fishing!!!!!!!! They look like works of art though. Blane

Yes, the last one got hijacked by a couple of guys, one went to prison, the other never responded to the certified letter that I sent him asking about the box, and the third got confiscated at the US/Canada border for many items that weren't supposed to be sent without proper paperwork. I didn't know it had to have paperwork:) I tried to keep the boxes moving when I could, but it cost a bit to ship then, and it's more now, and one of the boxes was a bunch of crap that wasn't worth much when it got to me. I do like the idea of sending it to a SM, and I'd be up for it, I have materials that I've purchased and then realized that I had no use for them and they are collecting dust in my tying area, but they are new and still in the package. I like many others went out an bought too much stuff when I started, and will never use all of it, or even some of it, and I have way too much of for me to use up in a lifetime. Blane

It's not just that it's a spill, but in my opinion it happens way to often. They said it wasn't going to happen at all in their presentations to the people who's land the pipeline runs through, yet it happened and it hasn't even been a year since completion. Just like many promises that are put out there by most industries, "We are too safe for accidents" seems to be the the lie that they hope is true, but accidents happen, no matter what precautions are taken. That was a small one, but I just wonder what the cost would be if they put a better monitoring system online, or was that just too expensive to put "too much" protection in place. We still don't know just how much damage was caused in the gulf by a company that took short cuts to save a few dollars then ended up paying billions, all because it would save a few hundred thousand by cheating on regulations. Was the short cut really a short cut? I have to agree with mikechell in that we all can do more to help our planet survive a little longer, I'm as guilty as anyone due to the fact that I drive a lot for my business, but I haven't come up with an alternative, so I recycle almost everything I can. I have my own composting bin, and I don't use chemicals around my yard or home that are toxic or non-biodegradable if I can help it. The fact remains that I still have a huge footprint when it comes to my using of non-biodegradable materials that can't be recycled or repurposed.

Does anyone remember who it was that started breeding the chickens and was selling eggs? Thank you in advance. Blane

Don't leave a new bag of dyed belly hair pieces on the coffee table when you have a new dog!!! She pooped multi-colored poop for days and it made a mess on the carpet too. Blane

Although I am married ... I am SO glad I am an atheist. No such thing as "sin" so no such thing as "LIS". I like this, I've been living with my SO for over 14 years, no need to spoil a good thing by getting married!! Since I don't believe in "sin" it makes it all that much better. Blane

Ok, how is everyone doing this morning, check in so we know if you're safe. Glad to see you made it thru caloosa. Blane

Best wishes to all who have to go thru this, since I don't do prayers, and all I can say is I hope it's not all as bad as they have been think it will be. Good luck to all and hang in there for those riding this one out. Blane

Welcome Kevin, hope you continue to find it as interesting as I do. Blane

Welcome, Do you guys really have 2.5 kg brookies up there? Blane

I drove myself to stop drinking and doing illegal activities back in '90, and quit smoking in April of '91. I was sitting on the couch and had run out of cigs, and had the thought that I wasn't going to walk across the street to kill myself, and never picked up another cig again. I had tried quitting several times before, even went to outpatient therapy in the '80's while I was in the Navy, but nothing worked. I can't thank recovery programs enough for helping me kick those habits, I'd be dead or incarcerated if I hadn't quit all that crap, not to mention probably broke. I took up sunflower seeds for a few years to help with the oral fixation, but not everyone can do that, but lifesavers worked well when I didn't have the seeds. I have nothing but admiration for anyone that can kick an addiction, it's by far one of the hardest things to do, especially if you do it alone. I haven't had the desire to pick up a cigarette in so long that I can't remember the last time I wanted one, and I love that. I did put on a few pounds after I quit, but I can live with that, just don't want to go thru what I've seen others go thru. About 4 years after I quit I had a friend go thru throat cancer from smoking, he went around the world trying every type of treatment that was available. He finally lost the battle and that was like a huge wake up as to how I didn't want to go. DrVette, hope things get going better for you, and from what the docs told my dad, they say it's never to late to stop, but it didn't stop dad, he still smokes after a quad bypass. Blane

I just ordered a pair of 5X glasses, maybe now I will actually be able to see what I am doing on a size 18. I've used 2X and 3X glasses for years, now they just don't give me the detail I need for working on small flies, so I had to move up to 5X. I can't wait to see the difference it makes, I know what happened when I got the first pair of magnifiers, because my regular glasses didn't cut it even when they were new. I have avoided tying small flies because I just couldn't see with the detail I wanted to see and be confident that I was getting things done right, but hopefully these glasses will solve that problem. Does anyone else tie with 5x or greater power glasses? Blane

Has anyone else used Yak Hair as a variation, I tried it once while tying with some guys at a PHW tying session and found it to be kind of between buck tail and something like congo hair. It is somewhat coarse and stiffer than congo hair but much more flexible than buck tail. I don't recommend for baitfish patterns, but would do a great streamer pattern. Blane

Yikes $1200 Canadian or not, that's still a lot of cash.