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My Fly boxes are a mEsS

3K views 19 replies 14 participants last post by  jeffg 
#1 · (Edited)
Was going through my saltwater fly boxes this morning. Yikes what a mess...a chocolate mess.
I got tattered juvis, frayed deep eels, sideways deceivers, crooked clousers. REminds me of the last days in Nov. struggling to find a fly to get me through. I need to make a list of what I need for the spring run and get tying so that I have a nice balanced assortment.

BTW, what do you guys do with old beat up flies?
Sharps containerize them, or just huck em in the trash (after you stick a few in the viser of yer truck of course). I'd like to have a mix something like this:

a few of each:

Deep Eels
Sparse Chart Clousers
White Decievers
Deep Eels
Poppers
2 shrimps (as if I'll ever use them)
Couple black flies for the dark predawn cricket stompin (as if)
What else? Hmmmm....

Lefty
 
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#2 ·
My two favorite options when dealing with ratty, overused, and occasionally poorly-tied flies (from loooooong ago, of course :D ) :

1) bluefish flies- why waste a good one when you know it's gonna get chewed to bits?

2) cod teasers (I did very well this fall on mangled deceivers and hi-ties)
 
#4 ·
Ditto on the bluefish comments. Sometimes they'll hit anything moving through the water. :rolleyes:

Also, I used a few bedraggled flies to drum up a couple of hickory shad at the end of last season. There wasn't much left on the hook, but it had color and was moving.

As for throwing flies away (which I always hate to do), I just put them in a plastic baggie or similar container, then put them into the regular trash. No complaints yet from the sanitation department. :)
 
#7 ·
Terry... I try to razor off the used material and save the hook... resharpen and retie.... (or put it on my hat... but I am running out of hats)... how about this one... go to Christmas tree shops and buy a clear glass bowl that has been made into a lamp... they sell for about ten bucks and are usually bought to put stuff like shells in them... put all you old flys in it ....Looks good... anyway, you shoulds add a couple of all angel hair Squid which I will give you... wait till you see that action in the water... and they have big red eyes.
 
#12 ·
Lefty,

I have been tying up some flatwings after seeing Todd Murphy work his magic at the Marlboro show. I tied a few in white, yellow and pale blue (per Todd's recommendations) and the long thin hackles in this fly really dance and swim in the water. I look forward to dead drifting them at Joppa come May. It will be an interesting experiment to see if my shorter flatwings outfish the longer ones early in the season.

The real reason that I bring up the flatwing is because I am thinking about tying a few in orange and brown and gold. That way when the guy next to you is throwing a rootbeer/orange sluggo you can keep up with him and feel good about the long rod.

The sluggo flatwing will be an interesting experiment.

And don't forget Ray's Fly. For this fly the effectiveness to ease of tying ratio is too high for me to ignore. Plus I know that you have had success with them too.

-Mike
 
#14 ·
Ah... yes... I am starting to remember... somewhat... you... brought me to a tyers booth...ah.. ya... I remember now.... Seriously Jeff... I have done it different but with the same concept. I have divided the mantel from the bottom and tenacles. Also.. I put some large saltwater pearl flash . But you did drag me over ther and they were something.. I put mine in the sink and the action was incredible... not sure about durability though. Doogue.. I picked up Abrames book and he has a lot of recipies that have all kinds of colors.
 
#15 ·
Fly boxes are all nice and tidy now, but last night I removed 27 flies from the patch on my vest. Guess what there`s sheep skin under them! Old flies are thrown into a giant jar which I keep swearing I will get to some day. As for restocking, I wouldn`t leave home without a pink shrimp or a chart. + white Rats Ass.
Slinger
 
#16 ·
Every winter I go throuth the same ritual. Throw out the and tie new stuff. I razor off the material and try the hot new pattern pickup from the various fishing shows. I learned my lession . Only tie a few new patterns and see if they really
work before you tie a dozen and it fails. Seems like every season someone comes out with a pattern which requires
an exotic material which is impossible to get. You got to love.
FishHawk
 
#17 ·
I have a similar philosophy Fishhawk. I actually enjoy tying up patterns for specific trips - its always been part of the fun. However, this year I plan to be fishing on a regular basis and participating in various swaps so building up a few tried and tested patterns will be on the cards.

I actually got round to sorting some of my gear out from my last trip a couple of weeks ago. I would make a great field tester for any manufacturer out there who's looking for someone see just how much abuse and neglect their product can tolerate - so far Loomis is doing rather well!:rolleyes:

For patterns tied in natural materials, holding them under a very hot tap for a minute or two (you may want to use forceps) and placing on a paper towel to dry seems to work quite well unless the materials have been seriously creased. I dont bother to re-use hooks - although its probably the environmentally-friendly thing to do!
 
#19 ·
Yer right Jeff. I was at a wedding in Toledo last summer and was able to slip away to the Cabelas store. Wow they had some awesome green griz saddle hackle. Here in the northeast the shops were cleaned out. So I bought some with the thought of learning a nice big tinker pattern this winter. Whadaythink? Heavily dressed deciver with green griz? Where's Bob Pink? He'd know what to tie with the green griz.

LEfty
 
#20 ·
Oh that I could enter the technology era and post some fly pics :confused:

I bought some green grizzly saddles a while back for mackerel patterns--it's not the best and kind of synthetic-like but does the job. I have messed around with a few mackerel patterns: big eye baitfish styles, half 'n halfs, and some smaller tinker patterns that are really streamlined with lots of epoxy up front.

I experimented with traditional deceiver ingredients but never like the color of the green bucktail I can get. My best patterns have been with yak hair, and sometimes I tie the grizzly saddles both in the tail and up by the head running down the sides, kind of on the outside (like a wing on a freshwater fly).

I tie 'em bulky, 'cause they're not exactly a translucent baitfish.

Maybe I can bring some to Stonybrook.

There is also a really cool tinker pattern in the Veverka book too...
 
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