I've been tying for two years, and it's developed into an entirely separate hobby for me. I really enjoy tying almost as much as I do fishing. That said, there have been many times when I'll take a fly I'm really proud of to a stream and lose it to a tree ON THE FIRST CAST! Since I usually fish alone, there's no one around to see me cry, but losing flies goes with the territory.

I don't tie to save money, and although I'm proud of the progress I've made in the last couple of years ( and I do really try to get a pattern "right") I'll never be the guy who is super-fussy. That's fine if that's you're thing, but to me, that way leads to disappointment. I'm curious about the super-realistic flies, but I have my doubts as to whether they're any more productive.

There have been some great responses to this thread! One last point: I've always loved fishing partially because it's a great equalizer. The rich guy with a zillion dollars in his gear may be no better off than the common man who bought an inexpensive setup and fishes a crappy wooly bugger. It's about learning, practicing, thinking, reading, talking, and reading forums like this, not blowing a ton of dough!