I was curious about how scaning a whole box of flys at once to compose a poster would come out. The attached picture is my "dry fly" box after a season of use. Now the question I have for you is how does this rate next to yours.
All of mine are worse than than I have too many flys, but Lee Wulff says the fly angler with the most varied patterns and knowledge to apply them, is perhaps the most deadly angler of all !!
"Mine would be much worse, but I keep losing 'em off my fleece "drying patch"!
If I could edit the poll it would be added.
Bob your onto something that may be worthy of Striblues 10 worst products list. A fleece patch is worth 3 lost flys/trip minimum and foam patches are worse than fleece especially with barbless hooks in my experience.
What I've ended up using is a flytrap. It's attached to your vest or bag and has a foam pad inside a vented aluminum body that encloses the fly. Now a picture of the inside of that would be really ugly.
John - I am no stranger to dragging a swimming crayfish pattern through the Y pool when the selective sippers have stumped me :devil:
The closed cell foam patches that Sims uses are far superior to the traditional fleece. Plus they'll mail you a new one for free when the old one wears out.
I think mine is messier, but that's mostly due to the fact that I don't have a real fly box with ripple foam or some other means of securing the flies. My flies just get dumped into the various compartments. Here's what it looks like at the moment, and I haven't even put the swap flies in there yet!
Q
BTW, I voted even though most of my flies aren't trout flies, so maybe my vote doesn't count :hehe:
Thats fairly orderly, maybe I will post up one of mine, if I can reduce the picture with out having to spend 30 minutes of my time.
I like to commingle my flys in each box/wallett there fore if I lose it I will not be out of all of the patterns of one type. Been there and done that, lost a big steelhead and trout nymph book 10 years ago which had all of my black stone flies nymphs in it.
I still have night mares about losing that box. Could not find it on the trail or river section I fished that day.
Well I don't use one of those drying patches. Barbless hooks don't stick to good. And my fly box always looks like hell. But I can find any fly in it. But the back of my car is another story. Everything has it's place but in the back of my car nothing has it's place. I tend to just as I takes my gear off just throw in in the back. Waders one place,boots another,sweatshirt,wool socks,vest,rods in cases. It's just a total loss. I just can't be neat as that is no fun.
Heck John
My fly box looks like that after one good trip
Here's a trick for flies that you want to keep.I use an adjustable fly box with all the dividers taken out and then put in a dessicant pack like you get in electronics to keep them dry. When I am done with the fly I put it in this box till the end of the day and then open it up and let the flies air dry (no rust)
Brad, that looks like how mine started the year. It shouldn't be long on the midge swap, most are in. Looking at the box pictures makes me think that it might be a good idea to take pictures of all my boxes in case they somehow end up lost or stolen.
Sigh ..... Bob's only close to the 'wasteland' of my boxs.
Bob Pauli said:
John
(To 'retext' the quote: :>) fae)
I didn't "vote;" no need to further .. never mind. Only in my dreams did my fly boxes never approach the neatness and organization of yours.
My fly walletts have so many flies in them they are continually falling out. Never know how many I may lose on a trip due to those just falling out, never mind the ones lost to the "River Rock and Wood Gods"
C'mon, guys - get a touch of class. Fortunately, my wife likes "Altoids" brand Cinnamon mints. They are made in Britain. They come in a neat metal box 2 1/4 X 3 1/2 X 3/4+ inch, and it locks up tight. I confiscate all the empty boxes. They fit neatly but snugly in the small pockets of my vest. I label 'em, and stuff 'em with various categories of flies. Cheap, efficient, and works well.
Now if I can just remember which pocket I put what fly in ???
:hehe:
The Altoid boxes are okay, I use a couple of small cigar box tins also. I don't need a fancy Wheatley incraved fly box. Serious fly fishers see such things for what they really are. Plus if I dide have a good fly box I would end up loosing any way.
Just got some 99 cent plastic hobby craft plastic compartment boxes at Michaels craft store, check them out. They work. My fly shop wants $ 10 for them. :chuckle: :chuckle:
LOL
It will be a cold day in xxxx before I buy one of those.
I've thought about the Altoids boxes but prefer to spend the money on the Morrel boxes because they are unsinkable. Of course when you chase one down river you are not. :hehe: The zip lock baggy method works well with flat streamers. put something that is 3-dimensional in it and it becomes flattened.
I like the cheap foam boxes because they float, last forever, hold on to tiny barbless hooks and weigh nothing. I can easily fit 5-6 of them into my vest and they are so light you hardly know they're there.
Only thing you need to be careful of is to open them up and let them dry out after you get stuck in the rain, etc.
Can't beat a compartment box for dries though.
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