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FlyPoppy

Craft Stores

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Greetings all, 4 years ago my friend did something really dirty to me and got me started on fly fishing. Maybe I will forgive him eventually. Anyways I am always looking for material or accessories in places other than fly shops. At Micheal's I have found small parts containers that have 4,6 or 8 compartments. They are great fly boxes for my midge, nymph or dry flies. These little boxes don't take up as much room as regular fly box. The best part they sell for about a buck a piece. My other haunt is Hobby Lobby. They have have an assortment of peacock herl, swords and eyes. Also they have lots of feathers and foam sheets. The ostrich herl they sell I don't recommend, it has a tendency to break. This for folks who are starting out. If you have any idea's yourself pass them around.

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Hobby and craft stores are great sources of fly tying materials and have been discussed in many threads on this forum

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I pick up a lot of stuff on Ebay, much of which isn't really aimed at fly tyers. A good thing for beginners to keep in mind is that fly tying is a relatively small niche market, and a lot of materials, particularly synthetics, are manufactured with other uses in mind. There's a lot of good stuff out there at good prices for anybody who wants to do a little digging.

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I pick up a lot of stuff on Ebay, much of which isn't really aimed at fly tyers. A good thing for beginners to keep in mind is that fly tying is a relatively small niche market, and a lot of materials, particularly synthetics, are manufactured with other uses in mind. There's a lot of good stuff out there at good prices for anybody who wants to do a little digging.

Thanks Peterjay. You made the point better than I did. New to this forum and trying to help out fellow fly tiers who are starting out.

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The other thing new tiers need to know is that you can substitute many different types of materials if you don't have exactly what it calls for. So there is no need to obscess on ebay tyring to buy EVERY deal you can get ahold of to build a huge hoard of materials, some of which you'll never use. Just a little advice from life's experience, you really don't need EVERYTHING that is made for fly tying.

 

Blane

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I pick up a lot of stuff on Ebay, much of which isn't really aimed at fly tyers. A good thing for beginners to keep in mind is that fly tying is a relatively small niche market, and a lot of materials, particularly synthetics, are manufactured with other uses in mind. There's a lot of good stuff out there at good prices for anybody who wants to do a little digging.

Ebay is pretty much my go-to for materials now. The nearest fly shop is a 45-minute drive from my house, and as much as I like to support local businesses, a $10 car ride for a $3 package of material is hardly cost-effective for me, especially given that the shops don't have what I need about half the time. Whole rabbit skins made for the garment industry were my specialty for a while. Craft stores are great for yarn, organza, raffia, cork, magnets, storage boxes etc.

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And if you have a relative that knits, a local knitting club, or a shop that makes garments lots of uses for short sections of wools in fly tying. No such thing as a bad wool. If you can find some mohair or angora all the better.

 

The metallic threads in craft stores are great for buzzers. Especially if you use a bit of clear mono over the top and some nail varnish. The tinsel in the thread shines through but doesn't tarnish.

 

Googly eyes for salt water / pike flies are cheaper in my craft store too.

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Hook boxes in the beads section and the beads. Make sure you get the kind without the removable sections. We use a lot of small magnets at work too and I toss one in each hook compartment. It saved me a few times when I dropped it.

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My wife makes jewelry. She recently changed some of the materials she uses so I inherited thousands of different glass beads that fit my hooks perfectly. How many have looked at road kill only to have the wife say no? Or is it just me? I also use the magnets that come in the TMC packs for my hook boxes.

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Just log the place away and return later. Its skinning them in the back of the kitchen she seems to object to. Just can't please some women.

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You may want to check your state laws regarding roadkill as they vary from state to state. For instance in IL you cannot pick up roadkill, the only exception is whitetail deer, other animals are illegal to posses due to the fact that they were"Not Legally Taken".

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i have personally "harvested" just short of 20 bucktails just in the past 3 years via roadkill.

 

not to derail the topic, i find the ribbons,laces, textiles to give neat look under a clear scud back.

 

also i like all the paint and epoxies section- lots more and lots cheaper

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Yes, so so many deals to be found at craft stores. 3 & 5 mm foam for instance 8"x11" sheets .49 cents and so many colors! I keep my hooks and dubbing in those round containers for beads that stack by screwing them together.

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I am going to try to talk my wife into holding a fly tiers wife retreat where she teaches other wives how to cope with our insane need for materials and how to help procure them. My wife will stop and pick it up if she thinks I could use it she even carries a knife in her purse just in case.

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