Fly Box Sneak Peek

[Fishidiot]

Like many of you this time of year, I'm going through fly boxes and culling out old flies or ones that never get used to make way for winter tying. I enjoy magazine articles where the reader gets to see the fly boxes of some of the sport's top practitioners and tyers. I like a chest fly box for nymphs, streamers, conventional dries etc, while having separate boxes for terrestrials and midges. For what it's worth, here is my terrestrial box. There's usually more beetles but, since this is my go-to summer trout fly, I know what I'll be tying in the near future.

 

[JustFish]

Nice flies. What are the ones on the right side, top left? Are they suppose to be bees?

 

[tabasco_joe]

Just went through my vest to get ready for trip to central Pa later this week. I've been lugging one box of terrestrials and one of tricos around the last couple weeks.

 

[tomgamber]

Terrestrial heaven...

 

[dryflyguy]

Every year at about this time, I take "inventory" of all my fly boxes. I go thru them, pull out all the mangled flies, and put them all in a separate box of "reties". Many of them just need a little repair work - retying the body or adding a tail is often all that is needed. If a fly is beyond repair, I just cut everything off, and recycle the hook.
I also make a list of how many flies I need to tie of each size and pattern. This gets me ready to start my winter tying, which I usualy begin in early January. Then I build up my stock for the coming season

 

[Fishidiot]

Just,
Yeah, the little guys on the right side, upper left are bees - or "hornets" as I call 'em. I find that a small, realistic, hornet fly works well on pressured fish that have become jaded to all the ants and beetles thrown at them by fishermen. Hornets are also very common insects in October and I think trout can sometimes "key" on them. I rarely search with a hornet but usually save 'em for finesse situations.

 

[Crotalus]

Great looking terrestrial box

 

[JustFish]

Fishidiot wrote:
Just,
Yeah, the little guys on the right side, upper left are bees - or "hornets" as I call 'em. I find that a small, realistic, hornet fly works well on pressured fish that have become jaded to all the ants and beetles thrown at them by fishermen. Hornets are also very common insects in October and I think trout can sometimes "key" on them. I rarely search with a hornet but usually save 'em for finesse situations.

It looks like they have an extended body...is that chenille?

 

[Fishidiot]

They're extended bodies although tied with foam rather than chenille. All the flies on the left side of the box are floaters and all tied with foam. Since I like very small foam hornets, these are tied with yellow foam that is striped with a fine paint brush. You can buy black and yellow foam bodies for hornets but the colored bands are too wide IMO for small hornets. For surface terrestrials I rarely use fur and hackle anymore as foam is so much easier, floats all day and, I think, makes a more realistic fly that floats low. If you watch terrestrials (esp hoppers and crickets) in the water they tend to float low with their legs submerged - rather than up on the tension like a mayfly. Getting a hackle fly treated with floatant to sit in the water like this is difficult.

 

[ryguyfi]

just wanted to bump this post. I saw this box when I fished with FishIdiot during the Jam. I'm always looking for new terrestrials and these are some good ones. I especially like the grasshoppers and hornets. I'll def tie a few of those for some summer fishing.

Great ties Idiot!

 

[Fishidiot]

Thanks ryguy.
Most of the crickets/hoppers in this box are tied with commercially molded hind legs. This adds a very realistic shape to the fly that appeals to me. However, the plastic legs are a bit on the pricey side and you can get pretty good results by tying a knot in rubber leg material to "joint" it. When it comes to catching fish, I think the manner in which the fly floats (see two posts up) is more important.

 

[ryguyfi]

I tied up a grasshopper over the weekend. I def need some longer hooks, but I gave it away as a gift so my brother in law will have to find out if it works or not. For the legs I just cut small strips of foam and knotted them myself. Not the easiest thing to do, but it worked (eventually). Mine kind of looked more like a frog lol, but I know it will catch fish.

I need to go get some orange foam. I've heard so many raves about orange ants, and thought I had orange foam, but don't. Looks like a large purchase of 40 cents at walmart is in order to get a sheet of orange foam.

 

[pete41]

I never ran into a hopper or cricket feeder in the East that turned down the Letort style of either-simple and inexpensive ties.
They are a little too small and light for most western waters.
You should see the Florida hoppers-they are so big they are scary .
Take a 5/0 to tie one.Thankfully they are scarce.