I feel there are 2 types of fly tyers. You have those who tie for themselves and those who tie commercially and neither one ties to save money. The fly tyer who ties flies for themselves does it because it is relaxing and a very enjoyable hobby for them. They do not have to have the "top of the line" material and they cut corners where ever they can. Tying flies gives them the chance to be creative and the satisfaction of catching fish on their own patterns that cannot be purchased at a fly shop. The cost of material for them is an investment in a hobby that they really enjoy and they are not that concerned with making money or saving money. The only savings to them is their time looking in fly shops for a particular pattern which probably does not exist or would not be tied the way they want. For instance, most flies in a fly shop are not tied with any weight incorporated in the fly and maybe the local waters requires the fly to be fished deeper. Tying your own flies allows you to tie a particular pattern in the color you want and the size you want. The only person who ties to save money, in my opinion, would be a fishing guide who furnishes flies for his clients and this person would not have a room full of tying material.
The commercial tyer ties flies to make money and not save money and if you consider the many hours they spend each day at the tying vise, I question just how much money they actually are making. I would venture to say that a commerical tyer does not fly fish much because they just do not have the time. They do enjoy tying and making a little money from their many hours at the tying table. They also enjoy going around to different shows and tying and giving demostrations and lessons and making a little money from them.
So, neither group ties to save money. One group ties because they love doing it and it relaxes them and the other group does it to make a little money. The only person who saves money with tied flies is the fly shop owner because his only investment is in purchasing the tied flies and he has no money tied up in vises and tying material.
The casual tyer who starts to tie their own flies because they think they will save money usually does not stay with tying for very long once they see how much of their time will be needed and space. These are the tyers who save me money in material because it will not be long before they "dump" everything they purchased either on a "For Sale" board or e-bay. A commerical tyer will save me some money on material after the many years of tying has taken the toll on their health and they just cannot tie the many thousand flies required and when they sell off their material, it will be of the highest quality and at a price I can afford. To give as example would be the wonderful gentleman that posted in the Classifed Section of my latest Fly Tyer that he must, due to health reasons, stop tying commercialy and needed to unload a lot of his material that he would no longer need. I have purchased a good bit of his material and I must say, I am impressed with the quality and his prices. I posted a link here for him and I think several members here have purchased some of his tying material inventory. If anyone missed this post, just send a request for his material and prices to: materials@q.com and he will send you a PDF listing of material and prices. I can vouch for him and I think I have him convinced to become a member here on FAOL. We have shared many e-mails and I consider him a "friend" I never met.
Warren
Fly fishing and fly tying are two things that I do, and when I am doing them, they are the only 2 things I think about. They clear my mind.
Originally Posted by Allan
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