Freddo

Hey All - I re-read many of the replies and the "fly" itself might not always be the issue. "Where:" we put the fly in the water column, in the pool, close to the bank, etc. all matters. Learn where the fish lie and cast to those spots. Sorry if I'm preaching to the choir but fish need to eat and in my book, they'll take a bug that looks like a bug (or a steamer too).

THANKS ALL! I plan to try the steam but tied a bugger with Senyo's dub and like the results a lot. I won't be tossing or no longer use the chenille I have on hand, but I will tame the material before it gets to a hook shank!

Thanks and very interesting. I soon might have a "shoe box full of now pretty much useless chenille" too....! This is also great because it helps me and other tiers learn to tihnk outside the "pattern" / "recipe". This is my 4th winter tying and the first I've just grabbed materials I've accumulated and picked this and that and built flies. Now for the Woolly Buggers. Thanks again for the pointer to that great read!

Thank you -- it makes total sense! I keep my all my ear buds stored wrapped in a figure of 8 and I show this to band members and call it a life hack! never thought to apply it to chenille - nice idea and thanks again!

Thanks! Found it here: http://warmwaterflytyer.com/bench.asp?page=6 Steam it is... Thanks to Flytire too!

Hi All - The last time I tied woolly buggers, I was wondering and never asked how to get the fibers to not look like the material has been wrapped around the card the material comes on for years. When wrapped on the hook, I'm after a fuller body. Does anyone know of a method? I'm buying the standard material you all probably have from the same great fly shops and stores. So far, the fish have not been concerned but as I up my tying game, I want a nicer looking fly before the fish teeth change all of that! Hee hee! Please let me know - thanks!

I haven't even fished every pattern I've tied "yet" but have caught fish on wolly buggers and my first trout on a fly ever was on a Zug Bug (peacock herl is like crack to fish; no doubt). One thing for sure, and I've read a lot of this in this thread, is about fishing a "confidence" fly. I bass fish, and sorry upfront about this, but with "other" types of baits meaning not always flies. I knew they'd catch fish - they do for others. So I purposefully went out with ONLY that one type of bait, taught myself how to fish it, and "built" confidence in it. Some of those are "go to" baits now. My son kicks my rear with a bait I don't often use (again "yet"). Same with flies. We carry boxes full of them, some seem to work, others don't. The fish might be picky that day, color might matter, size might too but I'm not sold on the size thing (not in "small" increments anyway). If you're fishing and it's your passion, just keep trying. I would imagine with some flies and the fish, the materials and how they react in the water might trigger a strike or not. There are some well seasoned warm water guys here that would be able to tell me why, in a lake I fish, a fly I put in front of a school of bluegills would not get a take. They're not too line shy so I ruled that out. I fished a river with a caddis emerger pattern and I don't think it was ever refused by the redbreast sunfish I was into one afternoon. Have fun, keep trying, and be safe!

Great information here and in that link you provided - thank you! I (unfortunately) parted ways with some old superb/fine classic Nikkor lenses a while back to "go digital". Had I known I could have used my old macro lenses on my newer DSLR body (even knowing I'd lose the metering), I'd have retained them. I placed a bid on eBay earlier for today to try to get one. I've always loved close up photography and now I'm feeling like my flies have got to the point where I feel "comfortable" shooting close-ups of them (and want to because I love photography too). The images might actually help me see flaws I need to work on with my tying (double benefits)!

Hi - A buddy gave me a 7' 6 wt Fenwick rod he built in the late 80's (I was surprised at the size/wt combo). I didn't see this post before I attached my only reel to it so I could fish it. The reel is loaded with 5 wt line. I attached a 7.5' leader and it was fun and worked like a perfect match. That said, you must know that I've only owned "one" 9' 5 wt rod for about the last 3-4 years now and only know what that was like before heading to the river with this setup. If it works for you, the fish won't care what you're using to get the fly to them! I mentioned to a friend in the forum that I'd like to try a true 7' 3 wt setup though. I need a program!

My son and I squirrel hunt (grays only in NJ) and I'm interested in dyeing the pelts and tails too. I have a post here in the FTF for salting a pelt that works great; now off to learn dying techniques to see if it's worth the time/effort. Trial and error is a great learning opportunity but we don't limit out on every hunt but I want olive, tan, and maybe others.

That does look like a killer for crappie fishing; esp. in chartreuse!

Check out this post for using table salt to preserve the squirrel skin: http://www.flytyingforum.com/index.php?showtopic=82966&p=654315

Great stories... My dad worked his tail off when I was a kid and he "rarely" took me fishing but his legacy ended with me, I made a vow of that. My younger son and I cannot get out fishing enough. My older son is more of an indoor cat (as the younger says in jest; but actually hikes and loves that). The common thread I read is that spending time with those that are important to us is what really matters most. Fishing is great, the stories of the personal bests and the incredible flies tied all are relatable to us. But at the end of the day what matters is our relationships. On my last day on this planet, I won't be asking for pix of those amazing fish I 've caught. I'll want family and friends to be with me. On July 23rd I fished with a "friend". It was the first time I'd fished with a buddy in almost 25 years since I moved out of the town I was raised in to head out on my own. All my buddies moved away. For the last year or so, me and this friend talked about getting out. Listen, "good intentions don't get things done!" Finally I said we need to set a date in stone and "GO"! We did and it was one of the best blessings ever. A new lake to fish (for me). Time outside on a gorgeous day...etc...etc...etc... Oh and we did catch fish, many! But the time with Matt trumped a personal best I experienced that day. We had a great time donig what we enjoy together. I'll forget the regular fishing outings I've gone on alone quicker than ever, but not those with the people we care about.

Hi - Maybe you've started buying tools already... If not, check out Dr. Slick. If I had only one (1) pair, it would be the all purpose 4" period. My collection grew over my first year tying but mostly Dr. Slick tools. I'm absolutely sure I'd like other brands after trying them but until these poop out, I'm all set.

HI All, Here are the bucktail jigs I tied so far for the upcoming trip to use in the surf... hoping for tight lines!

Thanks again to "ALL".. @Fisherboy0301: I'm not surprised at the replies to your questions. My son does not yet have a fly rod. I tie wooly buggers and all sorts of patters on small jig heads for him and he catches a lot of fish. He's done well fishing nymphs behind a float too. There's no laws to fly tying and what a "pattern" is or isn't. I've grabbed my vise and tossed together a few streamers I thought would look cool and they caught largemouth bass. JUST HAVE FUN! Be a pioneer. But "do : stick around here. The people here are awesome mentors!

Thanks Guys, Well for now, I'l use the UTC 140 because it's what I have and pick up some more glue for the hair and not trust the wraps alone. I was able to cinch down quite tight with the 140 I used for my first try last Saturday. I hope to tie more later this week and post pix ASAP. I "hope" fish teeth are a huge problem for me (snort!)

Thanks guys! I will be tying a bunch and i'll try to remember to photograph some for you to see. @ Tidewaterfly: Yes - I agree that the fish aren't always as picky as the guy tying the flies / jigs (especially me). When I first started tying, I thought the flies wouldn't produce and I was wrong. But practice and a LOT of repetition make us better at the bench, I've learned that already. As long as we get the hook ups ... @ Poopdeck: I'll be trying the Sharpie tip you shared thanks! Question for all please: Are bucktail jigs more durable if multiple smaller bunches of bucktail are tied on in sequence than just a couple of larger bunches? I want mine to hold up. What does your experience teach? Thanks!

Thanks poopdeck! The thread spools I ordered are UTC 140; I've been a fan and the collars are flat and smooth. So do you just use white thread and the Sharpies to color the thread? That seems like a cool idea to save on the number of colors to keep on hand. And for the record, I don't see myself tying anything heavier than 1 oz. for now (maybe up to 2 oz.).

AGAIN and AGAIN... THANKS! Thank you to all that are sharing here; greatly appreciated and a huge help! Yesterday morning, I tied a few bucktail jigs onto jigs heads that are white with eyes (1/8 oz.) to get a feel for it. I tied with black and white and added a little (4 strands) of Krystal flash to the pattern. Red thread was used to tie it all together and form a nice neat collar. Done! I must admit that I was a little confused out of the gate tying these for the first time because of the "hook up" deal. So - yes... the black and white bucktail material were tied in upside-down relative to the hook (OOPS!). I didn’t untie them (it happened twice) and figured I'd fish with a bait that swims upside-down (hee hee). Having never fished a bucktail jig and learning jigging now in general, I headed out to the lake for a test drive. I was going to fish from what we call "The Boardwalk" here that spans about 50' of a dam at one end of the lake. Just off the boardwalk where I went, the water is about 5' deep. I tied on my first ever bucktail jig and dropped it into the water to get an idea of how it looks in the water. The jig didn't move more than 5" before a 12" largemouth shot out of "somewhere" and creamed the jig. Moral of the story, I'm as hooked as that bass was. Totally thrilling. I went on to catch lunch with it too (to 11" black crappie). I suppose now I'll be off to find other crappie patterns. Now I'm waiting for some heavier thread I've ordered in other colors to arrive for tying some heavier jigs for our upcoming trip. My son and I will be surf and pier fishing in the saltwater.

Thanks for the details Capt! Your images and the images other's have posted here are quite inspiring and getting me all riled up. I'll be sold after the first hookup I'm sure (like that first trout on a fly I tied [sO SWEEEEET]). I may play around with smaller freshwater jigs before I head out on vacation but this might be a "new" fun gig for me too! I don't get to fish saltwater enough because of where I live but when we do, it's game on trying new stuff and this year I want to try some bucktail jigs!

Hi All and THANKS / THANKS / THANKS for all the input and the suggestions. I'll be looking into them all! @Flytire: Precious machinery that man built! I like it. My son welds... I may need to show him this if I ever want to go teh production route (hee hee)! Again - thanks to all that shared! I'm off to do some shopping! We may stop at a BPS on the way to our vacation spot so maybe I'll pacy tying goodies and tie 'em while away...

Hi All, What better place than here to ask this? I've been fly fishing for over a year now and tying everything I use. This summer, I took a break from feathers and fur to fish other baits with my son on some lakes and they were productive (please KEEP reading). I don't want you fly tying die-hards to get all upset with me for using (ah-hem, other lures) but it might have opened a new gig for me... "bucktail jigs". They're like a streamer with a built-in anchor up front - right?!? I want to tie some for freshwater and for saltwater. But for saltwater, the fly shops I frequent don't carry heavy jig heads (over 3/8 oz.). Anyone care to set me off into the land of big and heavy please? Your input is much appreciated and if there's a specific place here in FTF, please point me there too. Thanks all!

Hey Steve... I didn't mean to start a firestorm but thanks for the new pictures! It's wonderful to surround ourselves with the things we find valuable to us. When my dad was alive he loved trains. Imagine your "space" if trains was your gig and that was my dad's place. I can appreciate the work you put into that place...ENJOY your v10.0!