Since I’m going on the 14th to the shop for some goodies, I need some pointers. I got thinking about it tonight, and I really have no idea of what tying materials I want/need. If I go on my own with no suggestions, I’ll be coming home with a whole lot, probably a lot I don’t need haha.
I’ll mainly (this year) be fishing panfish, but I’d like to tie anything, since next year I’ll be fishing for bass, pike, panfish, trout, salmon, and always carp:)
I won’t be making anything with rubber legs or any poppers until next year either.
I guess as far as Nymphs, wets, dry’s etc, I’m looking for good flies that hopefully use similar materials, if it’s possible.
As always, any and all info is appreciated. I just need to make a list and go through it. I’m just completely lost at the moment…as usual:)
For mostly panfish flies I would get several colors of marabou. especially black, olive, red or orange and yellow. You can use it for tails on woolly buggers or to make leaches. Shredded a bit and put in a dubbing loop it makes a very buggy nymph dubbing. Hen necks make inexpensive soft hackles and can be used for collars or beards. You will want some chenille for woolly buggers and to make some nymph bodies also. Get some peacock herl and a hares mask because they just plain catch fish. Add a couple of cheap saddles some floss and an assortment of hooks. Then go to the craft store and get some ribbing wire in the beading section and some craft foam sheets in assorted colors for gurgle pops (see fly of the week archives). You could get a lot more and some folks will suggest other things but that will get you a lot of panfish flies for not a lot of money
Otto,
One of my go to nymphs is a pheasant tail, various sizes for trout and a little bigger for bluegills. If you have a hard time finding them, send me your address and i’ll send you a nice Iowa pheasant tail clump.
Well, rainbowchaser pretty much described my fly tying collection of materials to a “T”. You’ll end up buying more of course, but that is all you really need to create panfish magnets.
Rainbows list summed it up nicely, add a couple of spools of size six and eight thread in black olive and brown and any tools you are lacking in, a good pair of scissors and bobin holders (aka bobbins) are always nice to have a few of.
You may want some “flash material” as well, for bass and pan fish flies. Gold, copper, iridescent,blue, red, colors are endless. A few strands, tied into a marabou tail can add a lot to a fly. (See “The WOW”, by WarrenP.under the fishing reports thread, "I owe it all to Warren). When picking your chenille’s, you might also get a few colors of “ice” or “crystal flash”, chenille.
Coonriverdog, I’ll look for it when I’m in the shop. Thanks so much, that’s very generous of you. I’ll let you know how it goes:)
Betty, haha, well, the owner is very kind and helpful. He does love to help me when I’m there, but he also loves my money!! And like last time, I know he’s going to talk me into things when I’m there haha. Seems it’s not hard to talk me into buying things lol. He’s a good guy though, he doesn’t shove items onto people like the last shop owner did. The reason for posting here though, is I get many opinions, not just one.
What about Go-To flies, for Trout and Salmon? The river I’ll be fishing has Rainbow, Browns and Pacific Salmon. I know there’s a massive variety of flies for these species, but I wanna start tying flies for these species sooner than I “need” top:)
If you are planning on pike fishing I would get some magnum rabbit strips and tie some of Barry Reynolds bunny strip flies. Easy to tie, last a long time and highly effective. The only downside is that they get heavy when we and you need a good pike rod to cast them easily. I also tie up smaller versions for bass.
I use a lot of punch yarn when I tie. It works as an easy alternative for dubbing. Give me a PM and I’ll send you a bunch of it.
BTW, if you are ready for a swap, let me know and I’ll set up a panfish/bluegill swap for you to try out. Take it from me, swaps are a good way to get your skills improved when you are getting started. And you get great ideas from the flies coming back to you.
Can’t help with the salmon, but I can give my opinion on trout.
Pheasant tails and gold ribbed hare’s ears are tough nymphs to beat. Woolly buggers catch just about any species out there. Most of my trout fishing involves a PTN or a variant of a PTN.
Thanks a lot for the suggestions, I’ll send a PM in a few. I’m going to look for the pheasant for sure, and I’ll lookup the ribbed hares ear too. I don’t think I’m quite ready for a swap yet. Still too sloppy with my tying. But when I’m ready, you’ll know:) Thanks a lot Greg, I appreciate everythign.
Rick,
Thanks for the suggestion, I’ll look it up and see what I need. I do have a 7wt, but it’s crap, with crap line, and crap reel:) So I’ll build something up during next winter for my pike trip next Summer. Thanks a bunch!
Speaking of dubbing…I hate it! Takes some practice huh?
