buy flies in bulk???

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blakew510

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I'm a college student so obviously I'm hard on money. I can't keep buying flies at $2 a pop at fly shops. Are there any shops online where I can buy flies in bulk at a cheap price?
 
blakew510 wrote:
I'm a college student so obviously I'm hard on money. I can't keep buying flies at $2 a pop at fly shops. Are there any shops online where I can buy flies in bulk at a cheap price?

These are the cheapest fly prices I know about > Big Y Fly

You may want to consider tying your own at some point.

 
There are plenty of places on the internet to get them - like Big Y Fly (see afishinado's link), The Fly Shack, Fly Deal Flies, The Fly Stop, etc. The cheaper the fly, the less quality materials used though - and likely made in a 3rd world country. They won't last you multiple fish - especially dry flies. There are other companies that have quality flies from overseas (see Fulling Mill), but they are your standard $2.25.

As a word of caution to Big Y Fly, but I have seen multiple people disappointed with their flies on Facebook with regards to quality, and the fly actually resembling the pattern they wanted...I haven't had a problem with The Fly Shacks flies - but they are a little more expensive (89 cents on average I think) than the cheapest ones available.

Or you can tie, as mentioned above...but that likely won't save you much in the long run. :lol:
 
blakew510 wrote:
I'm a college student so obviously I'm hard on money. I can't keep buying flies at $2 a pop at fly shops. Are there any shops online where I can buy flies in bulk at a cheap price?

what kind of flies do you use most?
 
https://www.theflystop.com/fly-fishing-flies-discount
 
i use a lot of wooly buggers, san juans, and whatever my fly store recommends for the day. lol. My most successful fly of all time however is an elk hair caddis
 
All very simple flies to tie. I like to think I buy my flies in bulk but I have to assemble them. Tying your own is far and away cheaper then buying. Unless of course your someone who likes to hoard flies and materials. Contrary to what most will tell you, I will tell you you can save a bunch of money if you tie what you fish when you need it. Thtats what I've been doing for years. In time you will have quite the collection of stuff and not know where it all came from without wondering where all your money went.

I will also tell you you can spend 50 bucks and have every tool you need. I will also tell you the cheap tools work just as good and last just as long as the most expensive tool. I have a 10 dollar vise that I have been using for 35 or more years. I also have a couple vises that cost a couple hundred dollars and they all do the job just fine. For a hundred bucks you can have the tools and the material to tie years worth of woolly buggers, San Juan worms, and elk hair caddis.

Give it a try. There is a plethora vises out there that will provide you with decades of trouble free service for the price of 15 flies. A bobbin for the price of 3 flies. I could go on forever. It's not expensive and it's not difficult to learn if you don't want it to be.
 
I agree, tie your own. And buy more materials as you need them. Try and buy things in person to start out so you know exactly what you are getting and you can judge the quality of the items first hand. As you get more familiar with things then you can buy online.
 

I do flies on the cheap myself. Orvis has had some nicely discounted flies recently. The other online stores also have cheap flies. I bought the Cabelas starter kit about four or five years ago. Most material lasts a really long time. I still have all the buck tails and will for a long time as it goes a long way.

Also, I pick up tons of stuff at flee markets/yard sales and the like. You can score some old craft material that is built much better than the new material. The discount craft stores are also good.

Currently, the bulk of my material comes from Orvis and local fly shops. Most are reasonable and offer a wide variety. There are many options so you should shop around whether you buy or tie.

Cheers,

 
blakew510 wrote:
i use a lot of wooly buggers, san juans, and whatever my fly store recommends for the day. lol. My most successful fly of all time however is an elk hair caddis

I could tye you a ton of SJW for free.
What size,color etc. do you use?

Weighted?


Buggers etc are cheap and easy to tye.

Send me a PM with address
 
Try anglersdream.net
I get flies there and they are inexpensive and quality. Never had an issue with any of them. 60 cents a fly and less if you buy more.
 
I get mine at Fly Deal Flies - They have a great selection and I have not had any disappointments with their quality.
 
Big Y

Rapid, accurate service. Great prices.
Ordered flies on Friday. In my mailbox on Monday. Not too shabby, especially considering that they're located on the west coast.
 
+1 for Big Y fast accurate shipping.
 
blakew510 wrote:
I'm a college student so obviously I'm hard on money. I can't keep buying flies at $2 a pop at fly shops. Are there any shops online where I can buy flies in bulk at a cheap price?

Precision Fly Fishing often has good deals on a dozen or so patterns.
 
Before you start grabbing flies...find out what hatches are happening in your area and when and try to "match the hatch" as best as possible.
 
PennypackFlyer wrote:
Before you start grabbing flies...find out what hatches are happening in your area and when and try to "match the hatch" as best as possible.

While generally good advice, I think it's better to find out what *patterns* are popular and effective and go that route rather than strictly matching the hatch.

Mathcing the hatch is all well and good until you figure out that a green weenie will work better and more often on the waters you fish. Flies that imitate a wide variety of insects are also a better bet than trying to be hatch specifics, PT's, GRHE's, Adams, Light Cahills and such in a couple sizes each are a quick route to covering a lot of hatches and not getting lost in the weeds trying to match very specific or localized hatches. I think it's very easy to end up with a lot of flies that just aren't going to get used much by focusing on hatches.

If I had to build a trout fly box from scratch, aside from the flies I've already mentioned, Lightning Bugs, Copper Johns,
Walt's Worms, Prince Nymphs and several others would all get a place in my boxes before I started to consider flies for specific hatches.
 
Just make sure it's a reputable place. I ran into a couple of bulk orders where the flies were tied with soft hooks that would flatten out when fish would take them. Be wary of poorly reviewed Amazon orders.
 
Some times I think sales people are encouraged to encourage you to buy the less bought flies.

There's been numerous times that I have bought flies based upon what the salesperson says the fish are hitting on. Only to leave me to practicing all day.
 
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