BattenkillBum

for my electric chicken clouser i use a little red bucktail or red marabou.depends what i come across while pawing thru drawers of materials

I like red/white, blue/white,and chartruese. My fav is chartruese/white with a red throat, sort of an electric chicken color scheme. As far as eye color i dont think it matters. When im in a hurry to tie and fish i have used plain lead eyes no color. i beleive the eyes matter more about the weight of the fly and how deep it fishes.

Im looking for any input, ideas, or plans for making a DBM. Heading south soon and want to tie up some salt water streamers for redfish and specks.

I use a hackle comparadun style , no wings.I beleive if i did wing my flies i would use rabbits foot or cdc.Im more sold on the illussion school of thought.

bluecharms, i also use as cheap bustard sub. marries very nicely.

For years the 6 wt was a staple trout stick so i dont think you are going too heavy.The 6wt will also turn over bigger flies with more ease.Also the heavier rod will handle windy days better and keep you on the water.Some rods will handle two lines, maybe find somthing with a slower action that you can put a 5wt on for lighter action and the 6wt line for the days with the smallies.

maybe try some strung saddle hackle in brown, ginger ,cree etc.this hackle is relitivly cheap and should give you the sizes and colors you will need for the big drys you wish to tie. i often wished i knew someone out west. here on the east coast we tie mostly in # 20-#12 range and end up with many capes with all the big sizes left., at least i do.i can only tie and fish so many wo0lly buggers lol.

Ed Koch "Fishing the midge" <<<fav

I live in southern Vt., just minutes from the famed Orvis Co. and within walking distance of the Battenkill from my home. Anyways adding to the cookie cutter fly fisherman dicussion, i love going to the Orvis fish dept. and freaking all the oldtimers out. My tatto sleaves and face tackle always draw attenttion...lol.

if the stems on your dry fly hackle are to thick, ( metz is famous for this ) it will not wind on the hook shank correctly. Also if you are winding over previous wraps it will not lay correctly. I find hoffman and hebert capes to be the best quality as far as barb count and stem thickness. I think the Whiting 100 packs are the best value for your money. Using a rotating hackle plier or pliers may help in eliminating the twist you are experiencing while winding hackle.

Renzetti Master

I have found the best hair for comparaduns to be coastal deer mask hair. This is what is described in the book hatches.I recieved a comparadun kit many years ago at a TU dinner,it contained the spectrumized color dubbing and a 1/2 mask. The mask hair provides even tips with low flair and the colors needed, (light and dark basically). Here on the Battenkill i fish comparaduns almost exclusivly and also have great success on a hackle comparadun. Just i thought if you are having trouble aquiring good hair.

i found the video informative and easy to understand,clear visuals. i would recomend it to someone looking for instruction.

tyvm...worked

So i just purchased two of these Chi Fian reels 8/9 and 9/10. Is anyone familiar with how to change the rt/lft hand retreive?

Has anyone used the Wulf triangle tapers? I am considering trying one this upcoming season on my 3wt,(sage 8'9"3wt). I have always used DT lines.

Is there a special thread i should be using to split thread for cdc flies? I've tried 8/0 and 6/0 uni to no avail. Obviously 12/0 is out of the question as is mono. I am trying to tie 16-20 duns and emerger patterns.

The Battenkill here also has the canoe/tube hatch, glad to see im not the only one with this problem. Trico's give me the hardest time now. Age is taking it's toll on my eyes both on the water and at the vice. Such is life.

i try to keep my boxes organized by sub surface, dry, size and color. i start every season kinda organized but by the end of the season with all of the additions it is just a mess. i do keep all my caddis seperate from mayfly imitations. sub surface boxes are a mix of stonefly patterns, emergers and general purpose nymphs. i dunno , it works for me lol.

"Hunters" of New Boston N.H carries some of the best legal j.c i have found. Either in 10 packs or full capes. Bring your pocket book for the capes tho. Last one i purchaced was an "A" select and just under 300 bucks. Wife still holds that one over my head lol.

I gotta get my digs in this one. I live 4 miles from Orvis headquarters in Manchester Vt. Orvis is now just a overpriced clothing retailer. Their material is repacked from other companies, what little they carry now. I actually have more flyting material at my home then they carry in store. At one point they were having their rod blanks made by ST. Croix. Many other companies out there put out far superior equipment, Sage, Powel, Sims, Hardy are just a few of the manufacters i use now.

Thanks for all of the responces, definatly some things to think about. I think i will give the pantone markers a whirl. I will let you all know how it works out and send some picks of my modified "Usuals".

Has anyone dyed snowshoe rabbit's feet? I have a collection of natural feet and i really need a dun color, for sulfur's, BWO's, etc. I have heard that dyeing will ruin the natural oils that make it float. Any input, advice would be appreciated.

Ha Ha, this is why i try not to take cold medicine..... my bad ..ill get in next time...well back to bed.

I consider myself an advanced tyer, 20+ years at the vice. I am starting to experiment with cdc as most of the patterns I use are compara duns and parachutes. However I am having issues with this material when trying to tie duns. I am looking for any pointers, advice anyone might have on taming this unruley material.