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How Long Have You Been Tying?

How Long Have You Been Tying?  

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First fly at 9 years old vise grips for a vice , moms black nylon sewing thread , Eagleclaw bait hook and some feathers I stole from granny's prized rooster.

Trout and panfish flies 38 years Salmon fly experiments 10. I call them experiments because I feel I am not worthy to be called a salmon fly tier ( Just Yet!)

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QUOTE (RoyChristie @ Oct 13 2004, 10:25 PM)
Since I was about 8 years old, now I'm 51 ... going on 16 ohmy.gif

Seems as if Roy and I are in the same general category- only I'm a wee bit farther along in my lifetime! blink.gif

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biggrin.gif Since Dec. of 2000 when my wife got me a kit put together by a local flyshop for Christmas. Earlier that same year I got my first flyrod for fathers day. I have been addicted since! Little did my wife know what she was getting herself into! It makes her shopping for me easy though laugh.gif I can't honestly say I can imagine fishing any other way than with a fly that I have tied myself. When someone gives me one of their patterns that really works, I go home and whip some up like it! My only regret is that I didn't get started with this wonderful hobby (obsesion) in my youth!

 

A.A.

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I guess about 30 years now. It's only been within the last 8-10 years that I've tyed on a regular basis. Before it was just a means to catch fish and not an activity within itself.

 

The change in fly tying material and instruction over the last 8-10 years has been unbelievable. With all the step by step instruction on the web, books, viedo, and web sites like this cool.gif Someone can become a very good tyer in a short period of time. When I started there were very few books, or flyfishing mags. Let alone videos/DVDs and the web.

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I've been tying since sometime in '93...not so good with anniversaries wallbash.gif

 

I started out with a handed down vise & a bunch of cheap scraps from my ex-father in law (see above) and a beat copy of Jack Dennis' "Western Trout". Not too long after that, I was sneaking out of the house regularly to head to the fly shop for a fix. I'm afraid to think of how many $$ I've put into materials & tools, but I don't reget any of it...well, except for that gudebrod thread...blech!

 

I'm pretty much self taught, and lots of my first nymphs had wire trailing shucks, buggers with no eye left to thread on a line, and humpy's with wings like end-zone uprights. Lots of vise time helped me get all the standards down, with lots of experimentation since then. I'm always looking for new materials, and a couple of roadkills were hard to resist.

 

The internet was a goldmine discovery for my tying, and I started swapping, and have made lots of friends that way, as well as adding some great stuff to the arsenal. One of the things I chose to do with swaps was to create a new pattern just for the theme. I found it more fun with that challenge, and I loved hearing reports of success (sometimes failure too) on the patterns.

 

Two years ago, after recovering from my divorce, I met my girlfriend on an internet group fishing outing. After two brushes with death and a run-in with the law that day, she decided to allow me to date her. Sometimes a date is an afternoon on a river, a nice dinner, followed up by a tying session.

 

My life changed drastically when I met Stef. First, she loves to fly fish, she used to be a production tyer, has worked in a couple of flyshops, and even ran the Rainy's tying factory in Thailand for a couple of months. She introduced me to Rainy Riding, and one day before heading to a tying demo, I showed Rainy what I was going to tie. She loved them, & asked me if I wanted to become an Innovator for her. Well, um...YEAH!!!! I was flattered, very excited, and Stef sometimes says I got a huge head from it (but she still always outfishes me). All that led to a couple of patterns with my name on it, and a job offer as one of Rainy's reps. Things are working out well, and we're looking forward to this spring. A honeymoon in Belize sounds pretty good!

 

 

A word of advice for a beginning tyer...save your first few flies. Put them in a case & safely store them. Every now & then, pull them out & see the progress you've made!

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QUOTE (nightfish @ Oct 15 2004, 07:37 AM)
I've been tying since sometime in '93...not so good with anniversaries wallbash.gif

I started out with a handed down vise & a bunch of cheap scraps from my ex-father in law (see above) and a beat copy of Jack Dennis' "Western Trout". Not too long after that, I was sneaking out of the house regularly to head to the fly shop for a fix. I'm afraid to think of how many $$ I've put into materials & tools, but I don't reget any of it...well, except for that gudebrod thread...blech!

I'm pretty much self taught, and lots of my first nymphs had wire trailing shucks, buggers with no eye left to thread on a line, and humpy's with wings like end-zone uprights. Lots of vise time helped me get all the standards down, with lots of experimentation since then. I'm always looking for new materials, and a couple of roadkills were hard to resist.

The internet was a goldmine discovery for my tying, and I started swapping, and have made lots of friends that way, as well as adding some great stuff to the arsenal. One of the things I chose to do with swaps was to create a new pattern just for the theme. I found it more fun with that challenge, and I loved hearing reports of success (sometimes failure too) on the patterns.

Two years ago, after recovering from my divorce, I met my girlfriend on an internet group fishing outing. After two brushes with death and a run-in with the law that day, she decided to allow me to date her. Sometimes a date is an afternoon on a river, a nice dinner, followed up by a tying session.

My life changed drastically when I met Stef. First, she loves to fly fish, she used to be a production tyer, has worked in a couple of flyshops, and even ran the Rainy's tying factory in Thailand for a couple of months. She introduced me to Rainy Riding, and one day before heading to a tying demo, I showed Rainy what I was going to tie. She loved them, & asked me if I wanted to become an Innovator for her. Well, um...YEAH!!!! I was flattered, very excited, and Stef sometimes says I got a huge head from it (but she still always outfishes me). All that led to a couple of patterns with my name on it, and a job offer as one of Rainy's reps. Things are working out well, and we're looking forward to this spring. A honeymoon in Belize sounds pretty good!


A word of advice for a beginning tyer...save your first few flies. Put them in a case & safely store them. Every now & then, pull them out & see the progress you've made!

Yea, I was self taught also with only this forum and the tutorial at troutflies.com to help me after I was tying for three months.

 

I still have the picture of my first fly and man it looks sick.gif

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I have been tying since June of this year and I have invested a good bit of money in it. Not a small fortune yet, but I am working on it. Just like Fly Fishing and Kayak Fishing, it is extremely addictive. The next item is going to be a new vice to replace the kit vice my buddy gave me to get me started. Some friend huh. Thats all I needed was another expensive addictive hobby to go along with the other half a dozen or so I already had. biggrin.gif

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I've been tying about 2 1/2 years and love it. I'll be the first to say if you can take a class DO IT it really helps.

 

Fatman

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I started in July when I bought my starter kit for a late fathers day gift. Wife said that I needed a hobbie and that this would be good for me. Its been good for me but not for my wallet when I come across something I think I can use.

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I tied my first fly five years ago this month. The same friend who started me fly fishing, started me tying. My first fly was an egg. Flies two through fifty were also eggs (we had a Steelhead trip planned). From there I have three friend who tie, they would show me basic techniques. I would pick a fly and try to tie it, they would then tell me what I did wrong if anything. They are all good to excellent tiers, so I really pushed myself for the first couple of years to become better.

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Since Feb. 1996.

 

My ex had seen the episode of Northern Exposure where some of the women were tying and she said she wanted to try it. I knew the local shop had a class coming up so I signed us both up. I had always wanted to give it a try since I was about 13 but never really had the chance. We both had fun and learned alot. When the divorce came along the tying stuff came with me since she had lost interest.

 

In Feb. 2004 my then fiance wanted to try it and only if I came along with her. The shop owner had no qualms and I even helped him a little with some of the class one night. She liked it but decided it's not really for her but she did ask if she go use the desk sometime and of course I told her whenever she wanted.

 

She's supportive and has no problem when I go to tie for 3 hours or so with a small group from the local TU. She even bought me the materials for some flies when she learned about the donations to Casting for Recovery we were tying.

She is even willing to do it again this year coming up. Maybe I can get her to do a few with me. If not, I'll keep her anyway!

 

I will tie for warmwater as well as for trout, "I am not prejudice.....I will fish for almost anything!"

 

 

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Well, I 've been flyfishing for over 30 years.

 

Started tying back then but took up tying seriously about 1992--you do the math.

 

I'm new to this list and just have been "looking & listening". I thought this was a good idea. Sometimes we forget just how long we have been doing something.

 

tidbit

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I started 3 years ago and really am obsessed with it. If I'm not tying I'm thinking about what to tie. How to modify my desk. arrange my materials, hooks and tools.

I really would like to tie professionally, but don't know how to get started. Could some one help me with that? Everyone who sees then tell me there good. Any ways maybe someday.

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