What to tie

[mkoloch]

Seems life is very busy these days kids, two jobs, etc... When I have time to sit down at the tying table often times I don't have the serious want to tie. Other times lack of brain power. On fussy days, I don't feel like tying this or that.

I struggle greatly with "What to tie" very often when I sit down at the vise. Last night I found myself rummaging through materials for 20 minutes to try and come up with ideas. Ended up calling it a night and not tying anything. A frustrating experience, of my own doing.

My question then to the PAFF world, how do you handle your tying needs? Make a list of what your fly boxes need and bang through it? Tie by materials on hand?

Looking for some ideas...

 

[dubthethorax]

Usually tie for my next planned trip. If I dont know when that will be, I fill holes in the fly boxes, or just check Danica, blogs, or Youtube for some new pattern ideas to try out. Recently, it's been tying those goddamn mealworms nonstop because so many people placed orders for them. SO SICK of whipping them up.

 

[mike_richardson]

I have been tying up a stock pile. Get a 30 compartment box or so. Sit down and tie a dozen or so of one patern and put it in the stock pile box. It makes it nice to have all the materials for one fly in front of you. Put it away then go to the next. YOu can really get fed up with having a messy material bag. I would suggest keeping nymph stuff together, streamer stuff together, etc.

If you sit down to tie lets say a simple pheasant tail. All you need in front of you is 1 pheasant feather, a pack of peacock hear, hooks, beads, and wire. It makes it really easy to stay focused when the only material in front of you is for a specific fly. Keep the rest in the box unitl you are ready to switch. I find I will jump all over the place if I do not do this.

Just my .02.

 

[SBecker]

I jave been tying a lot. I will choose one pattern, be it Princes, Rainbow Warriors, caddis larva, copper Johns, or brush hogs, tie a bunch of the original pattern, then experiment with a few. Keeps it interesting. Right now I am trying to stock up on Frenchies of every size. I tend to tie in the morning before class. Keeps me from thinking about important stuff. Lol

 

[mike_richardson]

Im with you on that becker. Its too easy to lose your morale after working a full day of work. Plus its nice to enjoy a coffee and do something you love. I played hookie today with tying. My philosophy class is killing me. Have to step up my A game.

 

[Love2fish]

I do what everyone has said wether it be tying "hot" patterns for an upcoming trip o filling holes in my box. Than I'll play with new patterns. Most of my tying lately has been at work either when I've been working overnights or weekends helps the time go by.

 

[mkoloch]

Very good advise. I need to clean off the desk, cause I like the idea of laying out materials for one specific fly and blowing through a bunch.

 

[dubthethorax]

Anyone else have occasional ADD when it comes to tying? I'll start with some caddis, then come up with some crazy idea for a BWO to try out, then move on to a big double hooked streamer with a half a chicken on it, then on to eggs. I dont know why I do it but my desk looks like a sh*tstorm at the end of the night.

 

[lv2nymph]

Staying on task with a cetain pattern or bug without going into something else before I've finished has been a challenge for me. I did just finish a round the year stonefly box without getting side tracked :-D Working on a midge box now, I'm finding myself getting distracted but I'm trying to stay the course. So many flies... That's the issue I think.

 

[Phish_On]

I only tie out of necessity. Ill let my box run low, then ill restock. I dont carry or use all that many different kinds of flies. Maybe 2 dozen patterns. So its easy to restock.

 

[Fishidiot]

dubthethorax wrote:
Anyone else have occasional ADD when it comes to tying? .

Yeah, I think so. At least I sometimes get distracted and don't tie enough of the basics I need.

I tend to tie what is in "season." This time of year, I mostly fish limestone streams so I tie a lot of scuds and cress bugs. In the summer I'm usually after bass so it's poppers etc; fall is for saltwater flies....and so forth. Sometimes, I'll even have an idea that seems to come to me in my dreams or at night for some new fly concept. I greatly enjoy fly tying and almost never get bored or lose my inspiration to tie something, even if it's basic stuff like PT nymphs or something more elaborate like fancy salmon flies or muskie flies.
Ask yourself: where and what will I be fishing for next? What flies will I need? There's always something new to tie.

 

[tyeager]

could always try the dry dropper swap

I usually will have 10 or so of my go to flies then start working on where I will fish next or what hatch might happen next.....once I run low on the essentials I will bang them back out.

 

[FrequentTyer]

When I tie to fill my box I figure out what I need and then prep all the hooks, material etc so that I can't move on to something elese until I complete the task. I've been on a kick lately where I am trying to tie my way through classic books. I'm working on Art Flick's Stream side guide right now. Not necessaily tying every pattern, but representatives. That then gets me thinking about some of the materials and how to substitute more readily available materials (e.g. moose for peccary) or adapt the materials used on a classic pattern into a different form (e.g. catskill style to parachute). I find that this to some extent constrains my experiments to proven forms. I'm too far to the OCD end of things to give into ADD, but that has probably made me a less creative tyer.

 

[Dale49]

Like some on this thread said, I tie for what I believe will be productive flies for the seasons except for Frenchies, Rainbow Warriors, CDC BWO soft hackles and midges-those are my staples. I really don't like to tie for any lenght of time. I struggle to tie more than a dozen flies at one time.

Dale

 

[Chaz]

I tie for need first, so if I'm going on a trip in May, I make sure I have the flies that should be hatching and some flies that may be hatching. Then I make sure I have my favorite flies.
My next sesion will be tying # 12 royal wulffs for mynext brookie trip. Cause I'm out.