Anglers ID

Back when I actually enjoyed tying, I'd copy, or slightly modify flies I'd see in magazines or shops. Some were duds, but some actually caught their fair share of fish. I pretty much only tie out of necessity now. I try not to get too anal about the details, because I would eventually lose the fly. That hurts when you spend a lot on time on each of them. Here's a few that have worked out well for me.



Sorry for the poor lighting.






briansII

Nice!

I especially like the first and last patterns, but they all look good!
Thanks for sharing your work with us.

Nice looking bugs!

Very nice ties. Love the biot wrapped bodies.

Did that hopper end up in a swap on the flytyingforum? It looks awfully familiar!

Hi,
I am looking to possibly get into tying my own flies. Any thoughts from you guys as to a good starting point for someone who knows nothing about it? I might as well spend the winter tying. I spend so much $$ on buying flies that I usually lose anyway.
So yeah any info that you guys have would be greatly appreciated. I looked at a kit online and some of the tools were foreign, do they show you how to use them and for what?

Thanks

Hey Urs, thanks for signing up! I bought a cheap little Cabela's kid for starters, and it got me going. However, I outgrew it quickly. They have a bargain bin @ Sportsmens Warehouse right now, I saw some nice vises in there for pretty cheap.
There is a little instruction book on how to use the tools, and what they are called, in the kit I bought.
I also bought a book, called "The Fly Tying Bible" which made more sense out of everything, but I outgrew much of the instruction in it, as well. Really not a great book in some ways, but extremely helpful when I was a beginner.

If I had to do it over again, I'd buy the same cheap kit , and immediately upgrade to a good name-brand vise, some Dr. Slick scissors, and 3 ceramic bobbin holders. That way you have everything you need, and the important stuff is quality. A lot of the materials in the kit are less than awesome, but that's OK while you are learning. They give you enough hooks to start with, and you can start your tying junk collection process. My goodness I have a lot of tying crap! It's great fun once you get the basic techniques.