how many do you tie

F

flytyingfred

Member
Joined
Mar 1, 2009
Messages
247
I am wondering how you go about your fly tying when you have a saturday at your bench after all the chores are done? Do you tie one pattern and if so how many of that pattern? do you just tie what comes into your head or just the ones you like to tie? Just wondering so I can start getting a strategy going when I go over to my bench. I sometimes tie one of each pattern when I am there and its not very productive. I dont know if I can sit and tie say two dozen soft hackles without changing. I will try if it is a better way to learn since I am fairly new at this and also I would think it more productive. responses appreciated Fred
 
I find myself only tying when I have to lately. This means that I'll sit down to tie no more than a dozen or so flies the night before a trip.

When I had time to tie for enjoyment, I'd usually do maybe 20 in a session before my eyes got tired.

I usually tied what I'd be fishing next. Usually some pheasant tails (terrestrials in the summer) and a few adults of whatever's hatching next.
 
It's best to tie all of what you need of a certain pattern at one time. For me, that's usually at least a dozen of whatever at a session.
I usually get on a roll afer the first fly or 2, and start really cranking them out. I think that's a lot better than jumping around tying a few of this and a few of that
 
Yeah, I get going on one pattern and crank em out. My crank is slow though, it takes me entirely too long. My first one or two are always pretty poor but once I get the hang of a pattern I'm alright....
 
I usually go in with good intentions, but end up tying about 2 of whatever I wanted to do. Then I move to something else.

My back gives out on me after about a dozen (which sucks because I'm not very old).

The longer I sit at my desk the more crappy patterns I come up with.

I am like Jay because I usually tie for what I need next (and prbably should have had more of the day before).
 
I am usually tying for clients requests. So, I usually tie an extra few for my own box too. They start looking better usually the more I tie of that pattern, so I keep the first couple and sell the good ones.
 
When I am tying I usually try to do 10-12 of one pattern when it is a fly that I dont have at all.
 
Lately tying bores me. I can't do more than two or three of a single pattern, then I switch to something else, tie a couple and quit. I'm placing an order on-line today for some Spring flies because I just can't see this tying funk lifting any time soon.

I'm wondering whether the psychology of having my tying desk facing the wall might be having this effect. How many have their desk facing out into the room or have the desk in a room with more activity such as a TV or someone to talk to?
 
JackM wrote:
Lately tying bores me. I can't do more than two or three of a single pattern, then I switch to something else, tie a couple and quit. I'm placing an order on-line today for some Spring flies because I just can't see this tying funk lifting any time soon.

Glad it's not just me. I'll probably place an order for a box or two full of flies soon, and just tie the staples.

Edit: since you added your question, I can say that I have found that tying with others around is way preferable. I have also found tying with a mild buzz greatly improves the enjoyment I take from the task. With those two factors considered, I'll be bringing my tying stuff to the jam.
 
I've been sneaking home for lunch about once a week for the past month or so just to tie. I did it today and tied 2 grannom dries, 1 tiger midge, 1 black stone nymph, 2 caddis emergers in a little over an hour. I grab a few hooks of the same size intending to tie them all in the same pattern, but I get bored after about 2 and try something else. I know they will look better if I keep it up, but I don't have the attention span to do so. The only time I sit and tie a bunch is if I have a lot of time and plan on just tying, for maybe 3-4 hours... but I take a tv tray out and attach my vise to it, bring out all the materials I need to tie that pattern, and pop in a DVD in the living room and tie. I tie slower because of being distracted from the movie, but I get my goal accomplished.

I'm so far behind on my ties it's rediculous. Especially because I told a few people I'd show them how to fly fish this year, and I know I'm going to be giving out a bunch of flies this year. I barely have enough for myself to start the season, let alone give some away...
 
jayL wrote:
I have also found tying with a mild buzz greatly improves the enjoyment I take from the task.

I'm gettin' old...tying with a buzz now gives me a headache :-(
 
If I'm tying a new patern or one that I've seen and think it'll work on my regular fishing grounds, I'll tie no more than 6. But when it's a proven pattern, I'll tie a dozen as I do with all the staples of my boxes. How many I tie at a sitting varies with how much time I have. I usually tie on my lunch hour, so it's three or four there and maybe one or two after work before I go home. I tie one pattern at a time, so I get only the materials I need for that pattern. This is a result of a wife that hates it when my stuff is sitting out( but not hers!), a three year old daughter who is exploring everything see gets her hands on and two blasted cats that love my tying materails as toys!! Hence I tie @ work where none of the above is a problem!!

JH
 
How many depends on how many I have left in my boxes and where and when I'm going to fish.

As far as how many I produce when I tie, it depends on how you look at it.

Years ago I got a hold of a large chest of plastic drawers with slots to create dividers within each drawer.

Then I labeled each drawer according to fly pattern.

In the pattern drawer, I put the hooks in the model and sizes I need, and, depending on pattern and construction, prepared dubbing, hackle and wing feathers.

For sucker spawn, it's much easier. I cut up lengths of the yarn and have them ready to go and the hooks.

I keep my threads and several loaded bobbins on the pins on a recycled tape board from a paste-up room from an older newspaper back shop.

The pins are really aluminum nails with the heads cut off after they are nailed into the plywood. Mark up a grid for the nailing points, after measuring and accounting for the diameter needed for the spools, etc.

I also got some of the old newspaper paste-up counter (it's a light grey) and use that for my bench. It's wide enough so I can mount three vises and tie three flies, in varying stages, at a time.
While I'm waiting for cement to set on the initial wraps, I can start wrapping the next hook, etc.

It works out pretty well for knocking out what I need.

But I can't get anything done happily if I got to start from scratch with each fly anymore. And I kind of enjoy just spending a little time one night picking out hackles, or mixing up an amount of dubbing, or cutting up some wing cases, and then stocking up the drawers for the nights I feel like tying, which are always very close to when I need them.

This system really worked very well for me before I got married. Then it still worked, but my time at the bench was less. Then we had a daughter, and my time is even less. Then the area started being used as a general repair center for beheaded Barbies and other toys, and now it's a darned mess, so currently I got to spend a night or two or three cleaning it up so I can reorganize before I can even begin to sit down to tie.

Hope that helps.
 
Generally I sort thru all my flies and see what I'm low on. Then start with whatever patterns is needed first and tie them til I'm sick of it or have enough of them--whatever comes first. That seems to be the best for me--don't have to keep foraging around for different materials. That's the productive way. The more fun way is to tie whatever and spend time foraging in materials til my heart's content.

I have a weather radio and tv in the room and usually have one or the other on.
 
I usually tie every day. Most days I'll tie two dozen, except on the weekends, especially in the Winter, I'll tie perhaps four dozen. They are almost always the same pattern, but in different sizes. For example, this evening after work I tied two dozen soft-hackle pheasant tails. They were: six #12, twelve #14 and six #16.

I'll generally prepare all of my materials before I actually begin to tie. For example, if I were tying Parachute Adams', I would have my turkey t-base feathers sized and prepared for each fly, and I'd have my brown and grizzly hackles in whichever size I was tying set out. Then of course, I would begin to actually tie the flies.

-Darryl
 
For some odd reason I tend to tie in sets of 3. I think I started that from tying for salmon and steelhead where you have so many color combinations. 1 or 2 is a waste of time pulling out the materials and threading different color threads. 4 or more of the same color seemed to overfill my fly boxes. I've already had to sit down and tie 2 dozen of the same fly for a fly swap and got really bored, I guess it's whatever keeps you interested. Main thing is to have fun tying unless it's your full time job.
 
FishOnCamp wrote:
For some odd reason I tend to tie in sets of 3. I think I started that from tying for salmon and steelhead where you have so many color combinations. 1 or 2 is a waste of time pulling out the materials and threading different color threads. 4 or more of the same color seemed to overfill my fly boxes. I've already had to sit down and tie 2 dozen of the same fly for a fly swap and got really bored, I guess it's whatever keeps you interested. Main thing is to have fun tying unless it's your full time job.

Im the same way. Never tie more than 6 of one type at a setting. I typically spend 15 minutes to an hour at the bench then take a break. I probably average 50 - 100 flies a week.
 
Quote:

jayL wrote:
I have also found tying with a mild buzz greatly improves the enjoyment I take from the task.



Would that not be tying some up while tying one on?
 
I'm wondering whether the psychology of having my tying desk facing the wall might be having this effect. How many have their desk facing out into the room or have the desk in a room with more activity such as a TV or someone to talk to?

I keep my boxes on my desk and replace flies as i need them. I will do some bulk tying buggers and the like.

I have my desk in the corner of the family room. The kids will play wii and watch movies. They will climb up and tie a fly with me. I really don't like watching TV so having my bench in the family room keeps me in the middle of things.
 
I like to tie for specific trips. Right now all I've been tying up are bwo's and blue quills. I'll tie about six at a time and head for the stream. I know a lot of guys tie all winter and have the bulk of their supply finished before April. It's just hard for me to put my heart in to hoppers are even sulfur patterns that I won't be fishing any time soon.

I prefer tying stream side when I camp and fish too. I've read some where that a blue back groud is easy on the eyes when tying. My tying desk sits right in front of a window
 
Back
Top