krueger 0 Report post Posted March 10, 2011 I've used pieces of certain ropes for flies. Some are made out of materials that look like the flosses and fibers we use to tie flies. You might check them out next time your at the hardware store. Many are sold by the foot. Just unravel them and you get nice long strands. This is a rope used with horses or boats. Some of the ones for climbing are also nice. Click on the picture to make it larger and you will see what I mean. The large bundles in this rope can be broken down even farther into individual strands or combed to make a fine strand or chopped up to make dubbing. i like the looks of that, ill have to pick some up Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
O2fsh 0 Report post Posted March 11, 2011 PM me your address and next time I blast geese I'll send you some feathers. I also find lots of turkey feathers during my work in the summer. Walk around the woods, you'll be surprised what you find. O2Fsh Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
clemmy 0 Report post Posted March 12, 2011 If you have old dc adapters that you don't know what they go to anymore, or old broken electronic junk in your garage, you could strip the wire out of the cord. You can use dryer lint for dubbing. ziplock bags like shredded cheese come in can be used for shellback. old bobbers can be renewed into popper boddies. And don't forget magic markers/sharpies you may have around for color changes, stripes etc. Also old toothpaste tubes can be cut intro strips and would to add weight. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kirk Dietrich 0 Report post Posted March 13, 2011 another tip here on weighting, not sure i should let it loose...tie a loop knot onto your fly, then squeeze on a small split shot onto the top or bottom of the loop. *edit* go get em'! Jam, recently, I was able to see Gary Borger tie flies. Someone asked him about weighting his flies/streamers. He said he prefers to tie without weight but add a split shot to the tag end of his loop knot on his fly. He puts a little overhand knot in the tag end near the tip to keep the shot from slipping off. He said with the weight on the tag end hanging a few inches away and on a different plane from the leader that the fly really darts around when stripped/paused. Also, he can take the split shot off to fish shallower without having to change flies. Kirk Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
riffleriversteelheadslayer 0 Report post Posted March 13, 2011 nylon bungee cords are a great source of rubber leg material most are white but sometimes you get lucky and hit a rainbow one that will have just about every color you will ever need family pets make great dubbing throw pillows like for your couch often have a fiber fill that makes a great coarse wet dubbing feather pillows are made from duck feathers and many times its the barred mallard feathers in them Mardis Gras masks for other types of feathers including peacock, pheasant, and grouse talk to your local taxidermist they usually will give you the scraps from almost any animal they mount Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
krueger 0 Report post Posted March 15, 2011 If you have old dc adapters that you don't know what they go to anymore, or old broken electronic junk in your garage, you could strip the wire out of the cord. You can use dryer lint for dubbing. ziplock bags like shredded cheese come in can be used for shellback. old bobbers can be renewed into popper boddies. And don't forget magic markers/sharpies you may have around for color changes, stripes etc. Also old toothpaste tubes can be cut intro strips and would to add weight. i like the way you think. thanks Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FlyFishin'Jam 0 Report post Posted March 15, 2011 Jam, recently, I was able to see Gary Borger tie flies. Someone asked him about weighting his flies/streamers. He said he prefers to tie without weight but add a split shot to the tag end of his loop knot on his fly. He puts a little overhand knot in the tag end near the tip to keep the shot from slipping off. He said with the weight on the tag end hanging a few inches away and on a different plane from the leader that the fly really darts around when stripped/paused. Also, he can take the split shot off to fish shallower without having to change flies. Kirk Sounds like a very similar method, an easy way to get a fly deep in a hurry. Have used this method around 'FAD's' not sure if you guys have the same things up here basically a bouy or floating thing with a rope, fish attraction device. They get placed offshore and attract all sorts of marine life to them, often find mahi mahi's around. Make sure if you do this with your flies use an open loop casting stroke and be wary of 'clousering' your rod or your head. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
flyderaght 0 Report post Posted March 15, 2011 http://trashflies.blogspot.com/2011/03/diy...medium-and.html the owner of this site does post on the forum. great ideas. marc Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
krueger 0 Report post Posted March 17, 2011 http://trashflies.blogspot.com/2011/03/diy...medium-and.html the owner of this site does post on the forum. great ideas. marc this looks cool. thanks for showin me Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
flyderaght 0 Report post Posted March 17, 2011 the window caulk foam is great for poppers. for 5 bucks you can make alot of flys. I have some bungee aroun somewhere... marc Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
krueger 0 Report post Posted March 20, 2011 New stuff- Been busy lately, finally found some time to look for stuff in the garage. im sure i have some coarse rope somewhere, but i couldnt find it. I did however find an old bungee cord. unraveling it to get the rubber, (which was old and weak) i found that the outer layer, threads, would be amazing for tying flies. So i further unraveled it, which took time, and produced these. The one with the eye was the first, and best. its the closest thing to something id pay money for ive come so far. the only problem, which i realized after it was done, was that the darker colors on bottom, which is unnatural. so i made a few more in different sizes. And also i made the popper with an old cork, my last zonker, and a spinnerbait skirt i found in my dads tacklebox.... i unraveled about 6 inches to make all of those. thats rediculously cheap for that kind of material, with the only downside being time to unravel it. open to comments. thanks. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
trez 0 Report post Posted March 27, 2011 Good looking flies, glad your having fun :yahoo: . Trez Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
krueger 0 Report post Posted April 2, 2011 Fresh out of head cement. not sure how youre Supposed to use it, but i put it on my knots when im done with a fly to make sure everything stays put, and it works well. does anyone have a cheap (household) substitution for this? Thanks. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
trez 0 Report post Posted April 2, 2011 Finger nail polish or super glue (a very small amount) work well. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
krueger 0 Report post Posted April 3, 2011 sounds good. thanks. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
