tctrout

It's great to see a variety of examples of "hot spots" being used, and I prefer to use them for points of contrast. Some of the thread collars behind beads that many tie can be difficult to see (for me, no clue for the fish), typically because there are only a few wraps and they can get tucked away. Many times I prefer to place a hot spot "tag" on the fly, which tends to look like a fluorescent egg sac.

This pattern has a hot spot "tag" (or is it "tip" because I don't tie salmon flies...yet!), and a disco bead. Basically, I'm trying to blind the fish! ;-)

Tim, I agree with you on just about every point, but there is still one big reason I don't have one. It is a bench top only vice. I can't set it up at a height where I can use it. At least not without building a new bench specially for it. I have tried a friends and it does what it says on the can. The lack of height adjustment rules it out for me. Which is a shame as I can see it making a significant difference to tying speed.

 

Please think about how much thread you waste leaving a tag long enough to snap off each time you start the thread. Some of those bits you discard are long enough to tie a fly. I go through about 8 to 10 spools of UTC70 in black a year, Tying mostly in the 14 to 18 size range. That costs me about £18 ($27), doubling that cost is a significant hole in my profit margin.

 

I noticed you break the tip of your peacock herl after tying it in. A way to avoid this, once you have admitted the tips will break, is, rather than trim the tips off, (guesswork) hold the herls over your thumb nail under moderate pressure, and, holding the buts firmly, run your thumb nail down them. The tips will all snap off at the first weak point, leaving you a nice even bunch that doesn't snap off when tied in. I hope it helps, by now it has saved me hours of wasted effort.

 

Cheers,

C.

Thanks for your thoughts, Craig, and you always bring up some great talking points. For the notion of thread, it does come down to a speed versus cost and it's something that I appreciate you mentioning. Regardless of if tying for profit or passion, everyone adopts a style and at the moment, that's mine. Thanks for bringing it to my attention and I'll consider a change in the future.

For the peacock herl, I will definitely try that versus guessing the weak location...thanks for that tip!

Tim

Cool to see the youth tying flies. Good stuff!!

Thanks for the kind words, and I'm happy to promote Andrew!

You can use large head thumb-tacks to set your extra bobbins on...All it takes is something to wrap around to hold them. My thumb-tacks are on the side of my desk box.

Great suggestion!

BTW, I have yet to tie on the Jvice, but it's definitely on my short-list to try...

TC

Tim,

Why are you holding an empty mug?

Not surprised you get lots of questions about it.

The mug dosn't bother me. It's a prop he wishes to use. When I would speak in front of a small group there was usually a table around. I would set on or at least lean on the table. Something I wished to do. I found it helped me to better connect with my audiance.

 

Senator Bob Dole was injured in WWII and his right arm and hand was paralyzed. He always had a pen in that hand. When he was asked about in an interview his response was, to paraphrase, I felt my hand should be doing something.

 

So Tim, keep the coffee mug, if people want something in it, spill out some confetti every now and then.

Very comical! Sorry to disappoint, but there is always coffee or water in the mug. It's never filled to the top for obvious reasons (though in part I can blame my Italian heritage for my "talkative" hands!).

Tim

Andrew Dang is the guest tier on my newest fly tying video and does a great job sharing the Diamond Caddis. It's even cooler that he's only in 10th grade! Keep it up, Andrew...

TC

I still remember the first fishing "celebrity" I met, in 1971. Ann Strobel, she did casting demonstrations for Garcia Conolan Rods. Not only was she a good caster, but she was also good speaker. Only Lefty Kreh was better with one liners.

 

The manager of the large sporting goods store knew I could fly fish, and asked me to "help" during the demonstrations, and do some casting with her. She started with spinning gear, knocking down stacks of cups that I had to keep setting back up. Then she moved on to fly rods.

 

She started with one rod, but she has several more on a rack beside her. She then asked me to strip out about 30 feet of line and hand her a second rod. She started casting that with her left hand. She asked for 2 more rods with line out. Now she had 2 in each hand. and soon 3 in each hand. One by one then had me take each rod from her.

 

With the last rod, she started breaking down the sections (4 piece rod,) until she was casting with just the tip.

 

Finally Ann asked me to join her and cast along side her. We started casting in unison, and she asked me to keep on false casting. Keeping up a steady stream of one liners, she was soon casting in opposition to to my casts. I am left handed, so I was on her left side. She ducked behind me while keeping up a steady stream of false casts, and moved to my left side, and then ducked in front of me, and then back to my right side. All the while extolling the properties of her Garcia Rods.

 

Once she got back to where she started on my right side, she said, "Now that's what I call casting circles around a man."

 

Needless to say, my next cast ended up in a pile on the floor, as the whole crowd laughed and applauded.

 

I learned a good lesson in humility that day.

WOW! That was great...thanks for sharing!

TC

Gray and pink, it looks cool, just wish it caught fish.

 

 

I like it for sure, and glad to hear it works! ;-)

I use bobbins from Tiemco, Griffin, and Anglerhaus along with few other "cheapos". No real difference for me.

 

I tend to tension my bobbins a little loose and squeeze them when I need more tension such as spinning dear hair or tying in calf tail. How do these bobbins preform in a situation when you need more tension only for a few wraps?

They perform as expected, being that you can simply tighten/loosen in a second. When you find the most common tension you need, the adjustment from that point tends to be minor, and easy to return to your "zero" point.

Tim

Do you feel that there is enough of a difference between them to warrant a Rite owner to

give Stonfo a shot ? I know it a matter of perception but since you know both bobbins what is your perception?

This is the big question with so many things in tying and fly fishing. The answer really depends on the type of person you are and your desire to try new things. My best example is wading shoes: I found a pair I love a few seasons ago and now own four pairs...but if I see another pair that intrigues me, I will still take the plunge just because! Is there that big of a difference IF you're already vested with another bobbin you like and are happy with? I don't believe so. But if you're like me and love many aspects of tying (especially the tools),then you're always ready to try another product for the sake of checking it out.

I hope that makes sense, and if you decide to try one, please let me know your thoughts...

Tim

Tim I very much like the Rite bobbins. The Stonfo seems to have basically the same design as the Rite. What are your impressions of the Rite bobbins? Nice informative video by the way. Thanks.

Pretty much the same as the Rite Bobbins, don't you think, Tim?

The Stonfo bobbins are similar, but by no means the same. They have different characteristics, with their main similarity being a tension system. Being that Rite are such a popular bobbin, they are the "one" that many others get compared to. I try to steer away from comparisons and point out the features of each, as both are excellent bobbins for us. Here's a great article by Martin Joergensen related to the various bobbins out there he was familiar with:

http://globalflyfisher.com/tie-better-tying-tools/bobbin-holders

TC

I've always used burners and have limited experience w/ cutters...would be interested in what others have to say.

TBH, I only use the burners occasionally at best and prefer impressionism over realism.

TC

I'm glad you mentioned that about the half-hitches, Nick...the large-diameter Stonfo MAY have that ability. I've never tried it, but will investigate a bit. Thanks for the reply and sharing your bobbins.

Tim

tctrout, you live in a different world than I do if you can calmly recommend a $290 book USED, $630 new. I try to save up that much to make a trip with, not buy a book.

 

I'm unsure how you knew if I was calm when making the recommendation...but I simply copied and pasted the first link. Thanks for checking, as I recently added that link to the "Resources" page of my website!

 

tctrout, you live in a different world than I do if you can calmly recommend a $290 book USED, $630 new. I try to save up that much to make a trip with, not buy a book.

 

 

Wow! I think I paid $20 for my copy, new. I'll have to take better care of it.

 

Ha ha...me too! It's a great book, but now maybe I should list it! ;-)

Great comments so far, and I'll add this book by Mike Harding to the list:

https://www.amazon.com/Guide-North-Country-Flies-Step/dp/1845134893

TC

Nice and informative

Retro

Thanks for the kind words, Retro! Is there a bobbin you prefer?

Tim

Oh! Good...!

I thought this was going to be another reason to feel bad about my waist line...

Ha ha...trust me, I will never go there! ;-)

Nice!!!

Thanks!

In my newest video, I did a review of the Stonfo Elite series of bobbins. If you've used them, I'd love to hear your thoughts...plus any additional comments related to other bobbins out there you would recommend.

Thanks!

TC

Lots of great stuff said, and I'll throw in that I've used wood duck hen wings, and have done well tying with them. The quality of the duck wings does matter, though this is a pattern that requires practice to tie proficiently. When first learning to tie it, I went through a lot of feathers, simply practicing the wing over and over, cutting them off with razor blades and retying until I got it right.

The other piece to note is that this pattern fishes well after getting separated over time (from fish, casting, etc.), thus if your fly doesn't match the pictures/videos exactly, don't worry about it as the fish still love these (just be sure your proportions are on).

TC

One of the newest Fly Fishing Team USA members, Josh Miller, tied for my YouTube channel, introducing all of us to one of his newer creations, the Beach Body Stone. Fishing all throughout Pennsylvania, Josh has had success with this pattern, and is happy to share it with everyone else.

Enjoy!

TC

For those of you that fish spring creeks (I live in PA, and fish a few ;-) now and then), you know the Cress Bug is a great producer throughout the year. In my newest fly tying video, I feature a simple one tied on a jig hook; enjoy.

I'd love to hear about any variations you make to yours, especially on the creation of the body. Additionally, any information related to their entomology would be welcome..thanks!

TC

Now that the sulphurs are in full swing, though nearly gone on some streams, I wanted to share one of my favorite patterns to fish during the hatch, the Sulphur Comparadun.

I'd love to hear what some of your favorites are, too, during this fun hatch!

TC

Love the look of this one...thanks for sharing!

TC

In my newest video, I completed a review of the Norvise System, focusing mainly on the standard vise and fine jaws. I know many on this forum tie on a variety of vises, thus would love to hear your thoughts on this one. For those that do tie on a Norvise, let me know if I've hit the major points, and please feel free to add to the discussion.

Thanks!

TC

Not a bad price at all at that place! I have gotten mine primarily from Allen Fly Fishing for the last couple years:

http://www.allenflyfishing.com/tungsten-ball-beads/

TC