breambuster

Great, Vicrider. That’s the idea. I went to Sportsman’s Warehouse and bought a nice fly box to do the same thing. I’m going to load up a fly box and drive up Long Creek toward Dillard, Ga. There is a State Park right at the SC, Ga line on the Chattooga River, (think the movie “Deliverance,”) a wild and Scenic river, and see what I can do. I figure that with some nice nymphs, Emergers, Catskills dries and some parachutes, I should be good to go.

Hey Everyone, we got a set of Emergers today from Niveker, and you can bet your bottom dollar that this one is going into my Well-stocked fly box. Man, I like the looks of this fly. I’ve got to learn this pattern. Nice. R dorlac. I got your message. I always hand deliver all the fly swaps to the PO. Just part of the process. BB

It is really rare to see that kind of damage, but it does happen because the USPS uses so many machines today to do what people used to do. I use a padded envelope. I get a package of them at Walmart, sometimes they have 5 in a pack and sometimes 10. I think the padded ones are less likely to get hung up in those machines. I use the ones that are about 5” X 7”. They are large enough, and again I think that size gets the the machines better than a larger envelope. I’m pretty sure that the corner of your Altoids box got hung in the machine and started the tear in your envelope. BB

Wowzy, wowzy, wowzy. Talk about a close call. I think this is the closest I’ve ever seen in all my years of swapping. Pickin6ofem’s flies arrived today and when I picked them up along with my pocketknife to slit the envelope, I noticed a large, jagged rip halfway across the large envelope. Then I saw that the rip was right at the corner of the Altoids box inside. I reached through the rip and had no problems at all in sliding the box out through the rip. The rip was way larger than large enough for the box to have fallen out at any time. I opened the box and all the flies inside look to be intact. They’re here Pick, but you should thank your lucky stars. BB

Well Guys, I was awakened this morning by NOAA telling us that we were under a severe thunderstorm warning with high winds and tornadoes possible. But I had places to go, things to do, people to see; and my first stop was the USPS. The flies are in the mail and they turned out to be a great set. Hope you enjoy them and catch you a trophy fish with them. Enjoy. BB

The first set fo r Round 2 arrived today and the winner of the extra fly for first in is Woodenlegs again.

Ok Guys, first, Thank you Bob. Sorry yours went missing, but I do, so much, appreciate your willingness to go the extra mile. I am anxious to have a Casual Dress fly in my box, tied by a professional. Second, Guys, this has been one of those “Best laid plans of mice and men” that so often go awry. I have the flies divided up and there is a set saved back for Fishingbobnelson. But I didn’t get to the Post Office. I will do my best to take care of that tomorrow. I will let you know. If you are in Round 2, don’t forget the SASE. Thanks BB

OK Guys, I have closed this swap with 10 participants. Each swapper will need to send in 10 flies for this swap. I have just added Fishingbobnelson to this swap. I have been waiting for his flies, but they haven’t arrived yet, so I have worked out a deal. He is going to tie up another set of Casual Dress flies which was his pattern for Round 1 and send enough of them to me for anyone who was in Round 1 and also in Round 2. He will mail the rest of the Round 1 flies to those swappers individually. So, remember, 10 flies for this swap.

Ok, Guys. It has taken some work behind the scenes, but I think I’ve gotten things worked out. Bob’s flies are out there somewhere, but I’m going to go ahead ASAP and mail the rest of the sets out. Bob has agreed to participate in Round 2 and he is going to tie up another set of Casual Dress flies for all of you. If you are in Round 2, you will get both of his flies at the end of that swap. If you aren’t in Round 2, he will mail your fly to you individually. If you aren’t in Round 2, you will need to PM Fishingbobnelson your address. If you have any questions because you aren’t clear on this, I’ll be glad to try to answer. I will let you know when the flies go out. Thanks BB

Hey Guys, I know the deadline has come and gone, but I am waiting on fishingbobnelson’s flies. He mailed them on Monday of last week and I haven’t seen them. I am trying to work something out, so I’m asking you to be patient with me for another day or 2. I promise that I will keep you informed of developments as I am able to do so. Fishingbobnelson, check your PM box if you haven’t already done so. BB

Right now, there are 9 signed up, but there has been a snafu and I’m hoping for 10. Count on it being 10. BB

No, jburge, take a deep breath, a sigh of relief. Yours and Stabgnid’s both arrived today. Two excellent sets that will definitely grace the well-stocked fly box. Bob, yours are still AWOL, but I’m working on an idea. More shortly. BB

No Bob, I haven’t gotten them and I’m getting a bit concerned. They haven’t shown up on Informed Delivery either. We get our mail mid afternoon and I’m hoping they come today. It’s been a week since you mailed them BB

I'm looking forward to seeing it Vic. Where do you find your "good qualilty CDC?" I had never heard of it and had to look it up. I watched a YouTube video and, as you say, it looks simple enough, but I don't think I have any CDC that looks nearly as good as what I saw on the video. BB

Ok. As promised, today, Feb 5th, I have posted Round 2. Emerger. If your flies are in my possession, you are welcome to sign up. If not, you will have to wait until your flies arrive in my box. The deadline for sign ups is Feb 10, next Monday. Even though you may have said that you are in for all 4 rounds, I need you to confirm that you want in on Round 2. You can do it here or on the new thread. BB

THIS SWAP IS CLOSED I tried to change up the title somewhat to avoid confusion. This is Round TWO of the Well-Stocked Fly Box Swaps. This swap is open to ANYONE up to 12 swappers. Swappers who participated in Round 1 whose flies have arrived here are welcome to sign up now. If your flies arent here yet, you have to wait until they are. Even though you indicated in Round 1, I need you to confirm that you want in on this one. If you didnt participate in Round 1, you are welcome to sign up for this one now. The final due date for this round is March 10. Sign up for Round 3 will open on March 5 and I must have your flies in hand in order for you to sign up for Round 3. The flies for this round is an Emerger pattern, your choice. A well-stocked fly box will need some emergers. All of the normal rules apply. Be sure not to forget the toe tags. Also a return envelope with proper postage is required. Thanks for joining us. The deadline for sign up is Feb 10. On Feb 10 we will close the swap with what ever number of swappers we have on that day. My goal in these swaps is to keep things moving. Sign up only if your are serious about getting things done. If you sign up and dont get the flies to me by March 10 and dont have a VERY good excuse, we are going to close the swap and move on without you so be warned. So, if you are interested, sign up, tie them up and get them in. Swapmeister - Hendrickson Emerger 1. Vicrider - IOBO - Received 2. R2732 - Snowshoe Hare Emerger - Received 3. Johnw1986 4. Nikever - Sparkle Emerger - Received 5. Samsonboi - 6. Woodenlegs - Top Secret Emerger - Received 7. Stabgnid - TBD - Received 8. Pickin6ofem - Caddis Emerger - Received 9. r dorlac - Received 10. Fishingbobnelson - Received THIS SWAP IS CLOSED

Ok, Guys. We received 2 more sets today. The first set is from Johnw1986. In fact, John sent 3 flies for everyone. Three different patterns. And all are very nice ties. Thanks Johnw1986. There is a small problem with the 2nd set. They are nice ties, but the swapper forgot the toe tags. I can take care of that, but, Wyatt from New York, please let me know your screen name on the forum. Thanks BB

Just a reminder guys that the hard and fast deadline for ALL participants to have your flies in my possession is just 10 days away, Feb 10. I will be posting Round 2 on Feb 5, and your flies from Round 1 must be in my possession before I will add you to the list for Round 2. So, if you haven’t finished your flies yet, it’s time to get busy. BB

The USPS must have read my post from yesterday, because in the last 24 hours the package that was supposed to be delivered yesterday has been moving like priority mail. Every 2 or 3 hours, it passed through another facility and was delivered today. Turns out that the package was dflanigan’s flies here safe and sound. The other possibility is that someone opened the package, saw what great flies they were and decided they were to good to drag their feet getting here. Man, this is a really nice nymph and that fly box is going to be WELL stocked. BB

Things are looking up, Guys! We received 2 more sets today. First of all, Pick6ofem’s long awaited flies have made the cross country journey and arrived today. (Deep sigh of relief, Pick.) I don’t know what’s going on with the mail. It moves pretty good when it gets to our area, but another package, which I think must be flies, that was supposed to be delivered today is still several hundred miles away. Go figure. The 2nd set today was from Vicrider, and as he has done before, he has tied up 2 different sets for everyone so, a double thank you goes to Vicrider. All of the flies so far are definite keepers and should be included in a Well -Stocked Fly Box. BB

Hey Guys, we received a set of flies today from New Hampshire. The toe tag is a return address mailing label. Since they are from Ryan, I’m guessing they came from r2732. Mighty nice set of nymphs. You guys will like this one. Very nicely and neatly done. BB

Vicrider, as r2732 has corrected deduced, the next swap which will be posted on Feb 5th and close on Feb 10th will be Emergers. Guys, you might want to remind me on our about Feb 5 that you have said in this thread that you want in on the next one. I'm sure not to remember every post. I'm getting too old for that. Be prepared to send me a reminder. BB

Hey Guys. I’m a bit behind, but Woodenleg’s flies this past Thursday. First set in. Congratulations. I’ve just thought of another small incentive, and Woodenlegs will be the first. I’ve decided that on my swaps, whoever gets their set in first will get an extra fly for me. It will be a random choice on my part, but it will be something different from the swap pattern. Congratulations, Woodenlegs! BB

Lucky dog. I won the very first one, but it wasn’t hand forged, I don’t think. Have always wondered what a hand forged blade would be like. I collected pocket knives for several years. Nothing like a good knife. If I have my pants on, I’ve got a knife with me, BB

So, who was the lucky winner of this year’s knife? BB