djtrout

trying to paste an image into my reply posts. I see the pics others post. I managed to attach a pic file so that a thumbnail shows in the post, but how do I paste the image in the post space?

I love spinning hair, it's relaxing. I also enjoy getting better at it, feels like a true art form. sculpin below, work in progress but I'm 90% there, we'll see how it fishes. tail is sparse by design, but I'm thinking it's a bit too sparse. I've attached a pic file to this post, but I don't seem to know how to paste in the picture like the others in the thread. I'll ask admin folks how to do this unless one of you kind folks can give me a pointer.

yes, NoSlack, that's a beaut!

I have just finished tying up a few deer hair sculpins in size 6 for a planned attack on some local monster brown trout. I really enjoy tying with hair; but I got to wondering today, how many of us dabble in hair anymore? My bass popper go-to's are simple foam or cork jobs, though I have a collection of hair bugs too. I prefer to use hair/foam combos on my hoppers, and I enjoy fishing with the traditional hair muddler. So - who still uses hair anymore? Anyone get the same "kick" out of it that I do? Of course the creativity of all fly tying is why we're in this ...

started with a Dyna King, very happy with it (sold it since). I now have Renzetti Traveler rotary, pedestal mounted. I love it, have had it for 10 years and don't see changing. I'm not defensive about any of my tying stuff. The only ethos I practice religiously is that I insist that I fish with my own tied flys. That's kind of the point of all this after all. My tying personality is a "scrounger." At first, I ran out and bought any new material that came on market, and followed patterns assiduously. I think it was necessary to develop some skill. Now, I have so much accumulated material, I focus on seeing what I can do with what I have. Kind of a dumpster diver with my tying anymore (the dumpster, of course, being my bench and drawers full of legacy stuff ...). I really enjoy that. Love a rotary vise.

Renzetti Trraveler, pedestal.

I do a lot of smallie fishing in small to large rivers in VA. I use a 3 tier system: one pattern for top, one for mid-depth, one for bottom. My top is usually a popper, but in Cicada hatches I like that pattern; my mid is a baitfish (and my primary fly); bottom is crayfish (I use Clouser crayfish). I think the specific pattern is not so important, and there are so many, rather the method is the key. I get most of my results, and large fish, on the baitfish (CK baitfish, but any streamer is good). I tie baitfish on #1/0 - #2 hooks, crayfish on 6-8. The key to the baitfish success seems to be to strip as fast as I humanly can; they love to pursue. I have also "sight" fished it by letting it lie, nose down, in the water column (calm water area around rock shelves) and watching one pick it up. The crayfish I dead drift.