Yeah, this definitely jogs the memory. That is just about the era that I really started to get into tying flies. I never tied on any of the Partridge hooks but I still have a few of the old Mustad paper boxes hanging around with a few hooks in them that FI made reference to. Heck, I didn't even know what a size 26 hook looked like back then.
It is kind of refreshing to think back to how simple it was way back in the day. I could pretty well make due with a box of Mustad 3906B and a box of Mustad 94840 in both sizes 12 and 14. If I was tying a wet or nymph it was the 3906B and anything I wanted to try to fish dry was tied on the 94840. A big fly (size 12) and a small fly (size 14). Simple, huh?
The simplicity even transferred over to my fishing. Fishing on top .....if the naturals were darker - I used an Adams. If they were lighter in color - the Light Cahill was my "go to". I caught a lot of fish during those early years on a size 14 Light Cahill before I even knew that there was such a thing called a Sulphur. As far as nymphing went, I was pretty well set with a Hare's Ear and some Muskrat nymphs in sizes 12 and 14. Boy, things have changed an awful lot over the past 30+ years in fly tying and fishing. I guess they call that progress, right? Cool thread! Thanks for bringing back some of the memories.
