Tie or buy your flies?

We need a third answer, "tie some, buy some".
 
Tie all of mine.

Deer hair poppers would be the only flies I would buy though.
 
I was told by a guy at TCO that tying doesn't really save you any money.

any truth to this?
 
Yeah, I have all the equipment and I'm about to start tying wooly buggers. Just have to buy the material. I even have about 20 spools of thread.
 
I voted "tie" because that's what I do for most of my flies. (I tie about 90% of what I fish.) Most are flies that I can't buy, others are flies that I refuse to buy because they're too simple to tie (I can't see paying good money for a Green Weenie, for example.) I'm much more willing to fish a fly that I tied in cover where's there's a good risk of losing it, because there's always more where that one came from.

The flies that I buy are usually examples so that I can copy them, or something that I didn't have time to tie before a trip. A few are at shows where the price is just too good to pass up; if I can buy a dozen Prince nymphs (for example) for $10, I'll do it. My time is worth something, I'm a fairly slow tier, and I just don't enjoy tying something that common enough to justify not buying them.
 
Buy dries, tie everything else
 
TimRobinsin wrote:
I was told by a guy at TCO that tying doesn't really save you any money.

any truth to this?
Click to expand...

Yeah if you buy a $300 vise and an assortment of $50 rooster necks right off the bat.

You can get twice as many (or more) Hare's Ears tied for $20 worth of materials than you can buy for $20. It gets cheaper per fly if you tie even more since hooks wil be the first thing you need to replenish. So for about $25 you can have +50 depending on hook brand.

Now, if you don't fish much, and thus, don't lose many flies, tying might not make sense and there are a handful of places on the web selling flies much cheaper than actual fly shops do.

Of course, there are other factors that make tying worthwhile too.
 
Tie most of my simple frequently used flies (PT's HE's, GN's etc) buy some more complicated.
 
Dear brain,

I tie about 65 - 75% of my flies.

I tie some dries but I buy more of them than I tie. If I tied better flies I wouldn't buy as many. I tie all of my bass and panfish and warmwater flies. They seem easier to me and the fish they get used on aren't as selective so I can afford to tie crappy flies and toss them out at the warmwater fishes.

Regards,

Tim Murphy :)
 
TimRobinsin wrote:
I was told by a guy at TCO that tying doesn't really save you any money.

any truth to this?
Click to expand...

I just priced the material needed to produce wooly buggers and although I did not do a spreadsheet analysis, my estimation is that it does save money after your initial cost of the equipment.

Time needed to cover cost of the vice and tools is dependent on how many flies you tie.

It is a hobby so it's not just about money.
 
I have just started to tie thanks to Mr. Murphy. Regarding cost, would anyone like to buy a Zebra Midge for $834.00?
 
Tie almost all my flies except some dries.
 
Tie
 
TimRobinsin wrote:
I was told by a guy at TCO that tying doesn't really save you any money.

any truth to this?
Click to expand...

Said the guy who sells flies.....nuff said.

to add to Penn Kev's analysis, add in the time spent and it may be a loser but when you need a dozen of a pattern and don;t want to leave the crik to go to TCo in the middle of the day when they are open it sure is convenient to spin them off the night before. And after the investment was already made, you save $20 on that trip.
 
I bought some flies at the Jam for the first time in probably 20 years. Was just too lazy.
 
tomgamber wrote:
I bought some flies at the Jam for the first time in probably 20 years. Was just too lazy.
Click to expand...

Me too, a dozen at FFP...it was exhausting at the register though. Now there is a reason to tie.

Maybe a vending machine. Now there is a million dollar idea!
 
very good points.

I am just getting into tying. with everything I had going on before now I just didn't have the time. Now that school is on the back burner, I will have time to tie. I think with some practice I will see things the way the tiers here do.

I enjoy creating variations on patterns and it is very relaxing.

that said, I will be watching this thread closely for any tips on places to buy flies. I am currently in the middle of placing an order to FlyFishersParadise. I have 180 flies in my shopping cart and my total so far is $332.25. while I know there are other places to buy from that are cheaper, I also want to support that shop because of all the shops I have been in it is one of the two coolest I have been to, slate run being the other.

 
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