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First published January 1st 2002
The Hyper-Compleat Guide to Getting Started in Flytying
By Steve Schweitzer
Preface
There are many intended uses for this guide, namely as reference to ensure you have a
fairly complete compendium as to what you will need to get started in flytying or to use
when dropping the perfect holiday gift hint. But more importantly, it is meant for the
budding fly tyer, in hopes that the years of wisdom gained through trial and error from
myself and my tying buddies will steer the newcomer down the right path
Please note: This guide is not intended to indicate one vendor is superior over another,
nor one retailer has better prices over another. For the most part, all tools and
materials mentioned can be found at most any finer shop that specializes in flytying tools
and materials. The best way to obtain a list of shops in your area and shops that do
business via mail-order or over the Internet is to grab a copy of one of the leading
magazines in the industry such as "American Angler", "Fly Fisherman",
"Fly, Rod & Reel" or "Fly Tyer" or visit http://www.flyfish.com. They maintain a fairly complete
list of flyfishing magazines.
For the price-watchers: this article isn't for the faint of heart. I'm an advocate of
quality tools and materials and the guidelines below follow that thinking. Don't expect to
pay $19.95, or $39.95, $99.95, or even $129.95 and get into a total-quality flytying
package. It pays big dividends to buy pieces and parts individually, meeting your specific
needs. For example, are you left-handed…then be sure to buy a vise that is designed
for left handed users. Some vises are universal, but others are intended for the vise jaw
to accommodate right-handed tyers more comfortably.
Assessing Your Interest Level and Your
Tying Needs
| ASK YOURSELF: Are you
interested in tying? |
| Take a continuing education or life-long learning class at
the local high-school or college or take flytying lessons at a local fly-fishing shop.
Learn the tying basics and learn from someone who has made the expensive mistakes of
buying the wrong vise or tool from time-to-time. And most importantly, learn about
yourself, whether you want to continue learning the art of fly tying. It doesn't make
sense to purchase hundreds of dollars of tools and materials just to leave them sit in a
drawer. I'm sure you can find better uses for your money. |
| ASSESS YOURSELF: You've tied a
few flies and you really want to dig in. |
| OK, you've taken a class and you've casted a flyrod, maybe
you've even caught a fish on a fly of your own creation. Now you've caught the fever and
you need more. Take it from one who has spent literally thousands of dollars on materials,
tools, furniture, etc…, start slowly, building your collection of materials and tools
over time and work your way into the hobby, asking questions of the more experienced ones
along the way. Don't over-do it. You may decide at a later date that you don't care to
continue your once-fevered passion for fly-tying. Just remember, if you decide to
liquidate your materials and tools, people like me would jump at the chance to get them at
a fraction of the cost of what you paid for them! An option to consider is to borrow the
necessary tools and materials for awhile, just to test the waters, so to speak. |
| ARE YOU ADDICTED? You've tied
for awhile and you've decided to take it one step further. |
| You're now inducted into the fraternal rank-and-file of
fly-tyers! The rest of this article is for you! |
Best Purchasing Methodology
Know your material before you jump in and buy! A few years
back, I had no idea how to select golden pheasant crests for proper shape and color for
use in salmonfly veilings. It took several (frustrating) sessions at the bench, lots of
wasted money on trash crests and time sitting around with more experienced tyers to
actually see what qualities make for a good crest. Now I can confidently select and buy a
golden-pheasant crest without wasting my money. I wish someone had told me these silly
little clues along time ago. I thought all material was the same.
The same should apply to you. When you buy a good neck for
dry fly hackle for example, ask questions, understand what's good and what isn't. Many
times, a #3 $40 neck has better quality feathers for your needs than an #1 $80 neck.
It’s all how the chicken necks are batched together and graded. Just like fine wine,
there are bumper crop seasons where batches of necks will be better than others. It
certainly pays to know a little bit about the material you want to buy. Plus, if you team
up with buddy, you can evenly split the cost of materials, sharing the quality and the
expense. Ask questions before you buy!
Discussion of Quality
First and foremost, you’ll find a gamut of quality in flytying tools and
materials. As with any sport or hobby, the range of quality is from "unacceptably
poor" to "over-priced for what you get". With any luck, this discussion
will lead you down the straight and narrow. In no way, shape or form can this article
begin to train you on how to look for quality material, you’ll just have to go to a
store and learn by looking. However, there are some good tips in the materials section to
help you get started in selecting quality material. Get the best you can afford.
Keep this in mind: Don't let your equipment
hinder your performance. A friend of mine who is an avid bicyclist and racer
lives by this motto. But it didn't come without the enduring training and quest for
knowledge of his sport. The lesson to be learned is in his years of experience with his
equipment. It is his experience that formed his life-long belief that inferior equipment
leads to inferior results. How true, especially in the micro-fine art of flytying.
Quality of the Vise
Specifically, when it comes to vises, don't skimp…I said…DON’T SKIMP!
Other than possibly the quality of the hook, a vise is the critical tool which
holds the hook securely without marring the finish, allowing the flytyer to maneuver
around the fly effortlessly. Invest in an above-average vise and the frustrations
experienced by a new flytyer will be minimized. There have been many articles written
about vises and this expose' isn't intended to out-do or even duplicate them, it is meant
to merely co-emphasize the importance of purchasing a quality vise. Some considerations
when looking for a quality vise are:
- Will the finish of the vise resist rust, corrosion and the
occasional flytying glue spots that otherwise could seize the working movements?
- Does the vise come with the option of either a weighted
pedestal or C-clamp base?
- Does the vise have true 360° rotation, meaning the hook
shank stays in the center of the rotating vise jaw and hook?
- Does the vise jaw accept a wide range of hooks sizes, say
1/0 to size 22?
- Does the construction of the vise jaw limit the tyer's
mobility around the hook?
- Can you get replacement parts?
- Is there at least a 1-year warranty?
- Can you attach accessories to the vise, such as a bobbin
holder or a tyer's waste trap?
Although there are many fine, museum quality vises on the
market, some of the all-around time-tested vises on the market are made by Renzetti,
Dyna-King, Norlander, Regal, Thompson, Orvis, and A.K. Best. Look to spend from $60 to
over $250 with $125 getting you into a nice quality keep-sake tying tool. |
Quality of the Materials
Again, the quality and choice of materials is of utmost importance. Buy a cheap $8 hen's
neck for dry flies and the webby feathers will absorb water, sinking your dry fly. On the
other-hand, that same neck may make for great streamer feathers. All materials are useful
to the fly-tyer, but each are best suited for specific situations. Again, get to
understand the material you want to buy and get the best you can afford.What do I mean by "understanding and knowing" the types of
materials you need for tying? For example, if you want to tie a few nymphs, the material
quality is less important than materials for a few dry flies. The nymphs should be buggy
looking and absorb water nicely. Fortunately, most inexpensive materials are great for
nymphs. On the other hand, when tying dry flies, the neck hackle should have good stiff
fibre density and be free of webby material. Additionally, the body dubbing on a dry fly
should contain naturally water-resistant tendencies, like that of muskrat or beaver fur.
Ask questions of an experienced tyer when buying materials to add to your collection. That
discussion may save you hundreds of dollars down the road, plus, some materials are easier
to get and to work with than others. That’s getting to know your materials.
Once you get adept at deciphering quality materials vs.
junk scraps, you'll enter into the genre of material collectors like a friend of mine, Bob
D., who collects rare and exotic fur & feathers just for his "viewing
collection". He also has a duplicate set of materials he ties with. He is one of the
more knowledgeable folks around on the tying qualities of most any material. It's good to
find a gent like Bob to ask questions of from time to time. |
The Basic & Required Tools
- vise
- bobbin
- bodkin
- scissors
- hackle pliers
- hair stacker
We’ve already discussed some of the qualities to look
for when selecting a vise and the same apply when looking for tools.
Your tying bobbin should allow for tension adjustment. Some
incorporate fancy torque devices and others simply bend in and out of shape, allowing the
tension on the spool of thread to be adjusted. The tube on the bobbin is another critical
area to consider. Some lesser quality bobbins have metal tubes with sharp openings which
tend to sever the thread more easily. Others have ceramic, Teflon, plastic or ruby inserts
to prevent from shearing the thread at the tubes’ tip. These are the ones to seek.
Additionally, consider the length and thickness of the tube. If you will mostly be tying
saltwater flies, a larger and longer tube will accommodate the larger thread sizes you
will tie with. On the other hand, a small thin tube is great for tying midges and small
size 22 flies.
A quality bodkin will have a sturdy needle firmly attached
into the handle and the handle should not be cylindrical in shape. That would allow the
tool to roll right off your tying table. Get tools where the handles are notched or
octagonal in shape, preventing them from rolling away.
Scissors will most likely be your second largest
investment. Dull scissors make for dull flies. Look for these qualities:
- Micro-serrated blades are nice, but not necessary. It sure
helps to have those little micro-serrated edges grasp the materials as one cuts, however.
- The finger loops should be large enough to accommodate your
thumb and finger.
- The points should be sharp and not rounded. The sharp points
allow you to get into tight places to cut away excess material.
Hackle pliers come in many shapes, many innovative designs
and many sizes. But over the years I’ve stuck with the tried and true $3 kind. I look
for a large loop to allow rotating the pliers around the vise on a finger and strong,
sturdy jaws that will clamp the material without breaking it. Some pliers tips are rubber
coated to assist in grasping the materials.
A hair stacker comes in handy to align ends of deer hair
and other long hair fibres like moose, elk, bucktail, etc. The stacker should have an
opening to accommodate a pencil-thick stack of hair and the inner tube should move freely
inside the outer tube. Some stackers are a work of art in themselves and are prettier to
look at than to use. Stackers come in a wide variety of sizes, some big enough to hold all
your tools! A $5-$10 stacker generally does the trick.
There are other tools that are worth mentioning, such as a
dubbing twister, a whip-finish tool, a bodkin threader and others. These tools aren’t
necessary, but sure make tying easier. (Learn how to tie a whip finish knot by hand and
you won’t need the whip finish tool.) Buy these tools at a later date, they
aren’t needed in a start-up kit. Save your money for tying materials!
The Basic Materials
I’ll stick to the basic materials needed to outfit a starter flytying kit. The
materials listed below have been selected to provide the beginning flytyer a wide range of
materials to tie the largest selection of common patterns which are accepted and useful
worldwide. For certain, I have listed quite a few items, not all is needed right away.
Pick a few patterns that you’ll want to tie and buy the materials to get you going. I
suggest patterns like a woolly bugger, hare’s ear nymph, pheasant tail nymph, an
Adams dry fly and a Royal Wulff. I have listed the flies, for the most part, in a
"tying ease" order, easiest first. We’ll refer to them as the "Basic
5" and reference the materials needed to tie just those. (The materials needed for
the Basic 5 are bolded) This will help you buy the bare minimum materials to get started
and yet have materials to tie quite a few patterns. Now, on with the complete
beginner’s list.
FUR
- A Section of Hare’s Mask
- Squirrel Tail
- White Calf Tail
- Zonker Strips (center cut rabbit strips: black, brown,
natural, olive, rust)
- Natural Deer Hair - Long for spinning and short
for hairwings like a caddis or compara-dun.
- Natural and Bleached Elk Hair
FEATHERS
- Fine Quality Necks, or a selection of different sized
feathers plucked & matched according to size (These are the most popular variants: grizzly,
furnace, black, white, dun) Don’t buy whole necks until you are comfortable in
knowing what to look for. Necks are expensive.
- Pheasant Tail Feathers
- Partridge or Quail back feathers
- Marabou (black, brown, olive, white)
- Peacock Herl
- Turkey Tail Feathers
- Goose Biots (black, brown, olive, rust)
MISCELLANEOUS CRAFT MATERIAL
- Chenille (black, brown, olive, & white to start
with)
- Gold Tinsel (oval, flat, twisted rope)
- Brass & Copper Beadheads, & lead dumb-bell eyes,
varied sizes
- Red yarn
- Krystal Flash (pearlesent)
- Brass & Copper Wire, a few different sizes
- Antron yarn (cream, brown, tan, rust, olive)
- Pearlesent mylar
- Egg glo-bug yarn (red, yellow, pink, etc.)
- Floss (red, yellow, green, orange, white,
purple)
Free stuff from around the house
- Plastic shopping bags (white, clear, tan)
- Colored rubber bands
- use your imagination!!!!
Extra’s
- Larvae Lace (black, brown, clear)
- Rainy’s Float foam or the craft foam mention above
- Wood Duck or substitute
- Guinea feathers
- Turkey Flats
- Micro-fibettes
- CDC
- A whole pheasant skin
DUBBING MIXES
Consider colored mixtures including rabbit
fur, muskrat or beaver fur, and squirrel fur dubbing. Rabbit, beaver, muskrat and squirrel
are too hard to beat when it comes to natural fur dubbings. Some new synthetic blends on
the market are wonderful supplements to your kit, but can be expensive. SLF is an example.
I prefer SLF as a replacement for seal’s fur for salmon flies and steelhead flies,
but the cost is prohibitive of buying every shade made! Dubbing also can be found in the
form of shredded yarn or your (gasp!) dog or cat. Be creative!
As mentioned above, beaver and muskrat fur make great
dryfly bodies due to the fur’s ultra-fine consistency and of it’s natural
water-repellent nature. Rabbit fur makes for great underwater water flies such as nymphs
and leeches. It absorbs water quickly and has a seductive undulating motion when
underwater. Other under-furs such as fox, coyote, weasel, and mink all are good
substitutes. Even the fine wool-like fibres under the rich coat of a winter deer-hide
makes for good dubbing blends.
Try to build your collection of dubbing furs around the
colors below, starting with the natural colors first.
Natural Colors
- Black
- Brown
- Natural Tan
- Rust
- Olive
- Cream
- Near-White
- Grey
- Caddis Larvae Green
- Pale Yellow
- Dark Green
Spectrum Colors
- Red
- Orange
- Blue
- Yellow
- Pink
- Green
- Purple
With the above colors of dubbing, you can custom blend
almost any shade or variant needed. Combining the above dubbing colors and furs with
synthetics such as krystal flash can make for some very interesting and attractive
dubbings as well.
TYING THREAD COLORS
Generally, spools of size 6 & 8 will do the trick.
Don’t use sewing thread. It isn’t manufactured to be underwater for any duration
and it isn’t manufactured to withstand the tension stress when tying on materials to
a hook.
Common Tying Thread Colors
- Black
- Olive
- Brown
- White
- Cream
- Red
- Grey
HOOKS
Stick with tried and true name brands. A
quality hook is going to be expensive. That’s not to say that you can’t find a
deal and get hooks in packs of 100 on the cheap. Generally, a quality fly-fishing hook
will cost $0.05 to $0.15 a piece, depending on the quantity at which you buy. Quality
brands to choose from are Daiichi, Gamakatsu, Mustad, Partridge, and Tiemco. A good
selection in sizes 8-16 will get you comfortably started. Buy a selection of dry fly,
nymphs and streamer hooks. (To tie the Basic 5, stick with dry fly hooks size 12, nymph
hooks size 12, and streamer hooks size 8 3xl. As you want to tie smaller or larger flies,
you can add the hook sizes accordingly at a later date.)
One of the most popular hook manufacturers in the U.S. is
Eagle Claw. I generally don’t recommend Eagle Claw hooks for fly tying, I feel their
hooks suit the spin fishing genre’ more aptly. The hooks are designed to hold
plastics and live bait, and are generally tempered with a softer consistency than
fly-tying hooks. You tend to break more at the vise. I do like their larger size hooks for
bass bug tying and deerhair spinning, however.
Your Tying Bench & Storage
This area is as private and personal as it gets. Each tyer has
his or her own tying tendencies and storage nuances. I started out with a paper bag from a
local grocery store. Everything I owned fit nicely in that bag. I could tie anywhere. But
soon, I started collecting more and more materials. I then migrated towards a large fly
tackle box. Still, I could go anywhere. Now I have over 30 large plastic sweater storage
boxes full of all types of material, neatly organized and labeled, and more material
hiding in all kinds of cracks and crevices of my house. I picked up an old dentist’s
stand at an antique auction (the beautiful piece was built around 1908) as the place where
I store all my tools and accessories. I fitted a piece of white DuPont Corian countertop
on the top of the dentist’s stand and now I have a repairable tying surface. It all
takes imagination. Most any antique desk makes for a great tying desk and is nostalgic as
well. There are several manufacturers of flytying desks and storage units, all which are
beautifully crafted. The costs range from $500 or so to well into the thousands.
You’re investing in fine furniture at this point. If I had the extra money, I’d
probably look into getting one of those desks, but for right now, I’m completely
satisfied with my dentist’s stand. People ask what it is and why I have
it…that’s one of the neatest things about owning it.You’ll devise your own way of storing and organizing your
"things", you don’t need an article to tell you that. Maybe I’ve just
put a spark into your own creativity, if so, that’s the intended purpose. |
I’ve Got all These Materials, Now
Where Do I Find Patterns To Tie?
There are literally hundreds of pattern books on the market, but only a few stand out
as being a continual reference to have.
- The Orvis Fly Pattern Index
- Randy Stetzer’s "The Best 1000"
- "Flies for [Trout/Salmon/Bass/Saltwater]" series
by Dick Stewart and Farrow Allen
- Fly Patterns of Umpqua Feather Merchants
How to Find Tying Material Values
Roadkill Warriors
I have many friends who won’t hesitate to take some fur or feathers from animals
and birds who fell victim to a car. While this is OK, and nothing is wrong with it, I have
experienced otherwise. I once witnessed a mallard hit by a truck. The poor thing went to
waterfowl heaven that instant, and I, well, decided to reap the rewards of some of
nature’s most beautiful feathers. I forgot to take the bird out of my trunk that day.
What a surprise I found the next day. I have taken fur and feathers from other poor
roadside victims, but let me warn you, don’t put those materials next to any of your
"good" stuff until you know the new-found material is free of those little,
nasty, reproductive insects. I found out the hard way, loosing a good bunch of fur to a
minuscule colony of fur dwellers. For the trouble it takes to thoroughly pick through a
roadside victim and clean the material properly, I’d rather buy it. You be the judge.
It’s All Around You
Flytying materials are all around you. Look around you right now…I bet there are
at least three materials you could use to tie a fly with. That’s not to say that they
are readily accessible, however! For example, I am writing this piece on a commuter train
from work. I see naugahide covered seats. Naugahide makes for great nymph backs and
crayfish claws. I see a piece of clear-plastic shopping bag I could use for scud backs and
mysis shrimp imitations. I see a woman’s fur collar. Wait, I’ll stop there, I
definitely could get in trouble with that one! But you get the point.
Other Ideas
For other tying values, try going to the same place many smaller tying material firms
get there stuff. I get all my tying fur from a northwoods furrier and tanner. He sends me
scraps at pennies per pound. I get bird feathers from local hunters (all legal, by the
way). And I get craft materials at a local craft store, many times at a fraction of the
cost of the marked-up price of "flytying" materials.
Join a flytying club. Most all clubs sponsor a bulk
flytying material order at least once per year at wholesaler prices. This is your chance
to get materials you would otherwise not buy.
Start a flytying club. When you get a bunch of tyers
collecting together, it’s amazing what people find that you can swap and trade for.
Search the web. It’s about the best world-wide
resource for connecting flytyers together. Post questions and requests on flytying sites.
Leave e-mails for the "webmasters" of your favorite flyfishing or flytying
sites. They most certainly answer your question or can get you to the right people.
Some other ideas:
I find Christmas to be one of the best times to get all the
sparkly and pearlesent material I could ever want. And don’t forget the after
Christmas decoration firesales. You can pick up various colored/sized beads and tinsel to
last you a lifetime.
Salvage and second-hand stores have old furs and feather
hats.
Overstock Liquidators often have hardware-type items like
colored copper wire and various types of glues, not to mention corks for popper bodies and
storage bins for materials.
Cigar stores have great mahogany boxes for storing
materials.
What Will a Quality Tying Kit Cost Me?
I won’t get into this trap! Quality means different things to different people.
But, to answer the question directly, I’ll break up the estimate the following way. I
stress to the beginner not to buy everything on the lists above, but to add to his/her
collection over time. Buying the basics, with the help of a flyshop professional or friend
will cost you the following for a beginning kit. Consider sticking to buying tools and
materials for the Basic 5.
Quality vise = approximately $100-$130
Quality tools = approximately $20-$50
Small selection of furs = approximately $20
Quality Feathers (not whole necks) = approximately $25
Selection of dubbing = approximately $30
Modest selection of hooks = approximately $50
Miscellaneous materials = approximately $15
Total estimated range: $250 - $350!! Sticker-shock?! Now
here’s some real advice. It doesn’t have to cost that much! Ask your local
flyshop what kind of package discount you could receive if you custom-designed a kit with
their assistance. I once worked at a flyshop where we custom designed tying packages,
giving pleasing discounts off the materials and a modest 5-10% of off tools. This brings
the price down to a palatable sum. For $200, you can get into a quality-laden outfit,
complete with most all materials you will need for months to come. That still may seem
like a lot as compared to the "kit" pre-packaged fly tying kit seen in mass
catalog merchandisers. (psssst….stay away from the kits! The more costly ones may
lean on the side of being marginally OK, but for the most part, you get what you pay for)
Like I said, work into it, buy only quality materials and tools, a little at a time.
How to Expand Your Tying Skills
As mentioned earlier, join a club. It’s the best way to increase your knowledge
and skills, bar none. But first, flytying classes are a great way to start. Especially
when learning how to use the tools, understand the basics such as tying a whip-finish
knot. Other ways to expand your skills is to rent videos from your local library, school,
tying club or flyfishing store. Some are even worth buying as life-long references. The
tying club I belong to has a library of over 50 titles to check out at no cost. Al I have
to be is an active member of the club.Certainly
there are classic books that will always stand the test of time. Many of them have been
re-printed and updated to include modern day photographs, making them an invaluable
resource for the flytyer. I have found that over time, I’ve amassed a fine collection
of flytying and flyfishing books, many of them signed by the author. It’s another one
of those "habits" that has spawned from my hobby of flytying. Classic salmon fly
books from late authors Kelsen and Tannent-Pryce are must have’s for the salmonfly
tyer and modern day authors such as Rick Hafele, Skip Morris, Eric Leiser, Gary
LaFontaine, Dick Stewart, A.K. Best, Lefty Kreh, Dave Whitlock offer a wide variety of
collective tying knowledge. If I were to choose two books I would buy for the starting
tying kit, I would choose a tying methods book and a tying patterns book. I chose
"The Art of Fly Tying" by John Van Vliet, published by Time-Life books and Randy
Stetzers book, "Flies The Best One-Thousand". I’m a "pictures"
type of person where I learn better by viewing. Both of these books incorporate hundreds
of full-color photos. They have to be a couple of my all-time favorites. There are other
fine quality books out there; be sure to ask your local fly tackle dealer for
recommendations. |
Tying Flies For Profit
Be warned, don't think tying
flies is going to save you money, and don't think that you can make any
money tying flies. Basically, if you have money, you don't tie, and if you tie, you don't
have money. I'm not here to say that you won't (or aren't) good enough to tie flies and
make some money at it. I'm here to say that just like pro sports, only 1 in a 10,000 have
the time, are good enough, are consistent enough, and are fast enough to tie flies for
profit. The key word here is profit. (A simplistic approach to the profit model: Revenue -
costs = profit) If you've sold any flies, I bet your revenue never exceeds your costs!
Sure, I sell a few flies now and again where the revenue I gained from the sale exceeds
the cost of materials for manufacturing the flies I sold, but what about the cost of my
time and the cost of all the excess materials I didn’t use? I would have to sell a
gadzillion flies to recoup the cost of my time, materials and accessories.
Let’s treat this idea like a start-up business seeking
venture capital. The average cost for materials of a production fly is between $0.07 and
$0.16. (Don't ask me where I got those numbers, I just remember them from some article I
read a few years back.) Let's split it right down the middle and say the cost per fly is
$0.11. Let's also assume I want to make a modest living my first year of tying and clear
$25,000 in the bank, net of the cost of materials but before taxes, healthcare costs, rent
or mortgage, food, transportation, flyrods, more materials, etc. I can sell flies to shops
and retailers for around $0.50 to $0.65 each. So let's assume I get a generous average of
$0.60 per fly. The net profit of each fly is then calculated to be $0.49. Now, divide .49
into $25,000 to see how many flies you need to tie per year to make a go of it. Just so
you don't have to break out your calculator, that's 51,020 flies per year, or 4,250 per
month, or 981 per week, or 140 per day, or 17 per hour on an 8-hour day, 7 days per week.
(Twelve flies per hour is considered good production for the hobby flytyer). Working only
5 days per week, 8 hours per day, you would have to tie 24 flies per hour. But, to be
realistic, jump your income expectation to $50,000 to help support yourself and a
family...now your bogey numbers have doubled! Could you tie 102,040 flies per year? If I
were a venture capitalist, I probably wouldn't invest in a flytying business! Most
professional tyers have other interests that feed them money and they only tie part-time,
to supplement their existing income.
More on GFF
Try our pattern section for tons of fly patterns
We also have a section on tying tips and methods
We have more on vices, tying thread, tying tools and much more.
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Submitted June 19th 2006
Daniel,
Don't worry about the "Extras" for now - focus instead on everything else, particularly the bolded items. As someone who certainly isn't an expert, but who was in your situation a couple of years ago (I've taken two fly tying courses offered by my local Trout Unlimited chapter) I must completely agree with the author. He has listed the most common fly tying materials - and you truly are better off buying them individually. Don't buy them all at once - pick a couple of patterns you wish to tie (such as an Adams dry fly and a Muddler Minnow streamer - the latter was recommended to me as THE ONE FLY to tie if one had to practice as it involves so many techniques) and the materials needed.
Books: either don't buy one (take a look at the section called "Beginner's Fly Tying" at www.flyanglersonline.com) or get the recently released "Benchside Introduction to Fly Tying" by Leeson and Schollmeyer. The book will help you with material selection, too.
Threads: I recommend Uni-Thread, especially if you're a lefty. It's stronger for its diameter than regular nylon thread.
Kits: stay away from them, or if you really must have one, get the materials-only kits. (I started with a materials-only kit in order to save money, but even then eventually I only used half to two-thirds of it, the rest was either too low-quality or not useful for tying trout flies.) By all means, do not get a kit/cheap vise - the only good vise under $100 is the Danvise (Danica vise;) I have seen friends' vises from kits become almost useless - and very frustrating - after a few dozen flies.
Good luck!
P.S. Don't get into fly tying if you think it's going to save you money in the long run - it won't.