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How many flies do you tie?

4K views 27 replies 20 participants last post by  kelvin 
#1 ·
So the last several years I have tied a dozen of each of about 8-10 patterns that I can't find in shops but love to use. Last year I got really frustrated not having the right size or color in several patterns so I resolved to tie all the sizes and colors. Well now I am spending about 10 hours a week tying flies and I have about 80 dozen tied and I just did the math and I am going to end up with a round 220 dozen flies by the time things thaw in March. I have thought about tying fewer flies of each type but it takes me a dozen or so to get into the grove and really get a patern down. So is this too many flies or should I just suck it up and know my fly box will be full all year next year?
 
#12 · (Edited)
But you can have too many patterns, if you don't leave 'em in the box and fish the ones that actually work. Constantly changing flies is a recipe for getting skunked....'patternitis' is a terrible affliction.

I generally tie 10 to 20 of one of my favorite patterns, then another 10 to 20 of one of it's variants. I tend to stick to one or two patterns an evening, striving for a perfect specimen....which is, of course, never achieved. When I fish I don't give a shit about losing a fly fishing aggressively, bottom banging, in the weeds, and around sunken logs....because I've got a shitload of each pattern. Presentation is more important than pattern, anyway.
 
#3 ·
When it comes to trout flies that I know I'll fish, I like to tie them in bunches like you have been. Not only do you build up a nice stockpile of favorites, but they get better and better the more you tie them. The other day I tied about 3 dozen rubber legs after not tying any since last spring. The last dozen were definitely better than the first 5 or 6.
 
#7 ·
Let's see, just mentally did a count. So far.... I've tied 147,887,234,022.5
flies.

:)

Seriously, I don't care that much as to how many flies I tie. I'm more interested in coming up with a different pattern that catches fish than tying multiple dozens of patterns that I already know works. I get bored tying the same pattern over and over again.

It would be similar to painting the same subject over and over again. Or catching the same fish, over and over again.
 
#9 ·
I'd hate to do an inventory on my stash.
I probably have 3-400 clousers just for coho fishing. yet I still tie more trying different materials, sizes, colors etc.
One of the things I really find rewarding about tying is giving flies to friends or strangers you meet out in the field, then watching them catch fish on them.
SF
 
#20 ·
Onefish, that's what I did until this year. I'd give a buddy a fly or two or worse yet decorate some fish with my last of the fly that was working and then have to tie a few when I got home which I always dreaded. This year my plan is to tie a dozen of about 200 different flies that I use and just put the ones I will use that day in my box.
 
#24 ·
I used to tie a couple of a dozen of each pattern at once. It built up a large inventory. Twenty years later I still have plenty so I do not tie as much.

I got into a pattern in yester years of always buying the latest, slickest and best materials as soon as it came out. I now have enough materials to last me the rest of my life time, well except for hooks. If I had to do it over, I would not buy as much of the latest and slickest material just to try it out. No wonder why I have enough materials for life LOL.

Now I tie only when I am on a fishing trip. Those sunny, hot afternoons when fishing slows down is a perfect time to grab a beer or two, something to eat, and time to tie in the shade. I just enjoy sharing patterns and techniques with my fishing buddies. The added benefit of tying outside is I do not have to sweep up all the materials from the dirt. The wind just blows it away. After-all, who knows if the deer/squirrel/rabbit/caribou/elk hair is from a local animal or not?
 
#25 ·
I can only do "batches" of two each... So to keep things interesting if I do need to tie more is that I will rotate. Say I tie 10 different patterns, I will tie two of each and then rotate and start with the first pattern again. I'm a variety kind of guy, so this guarantees me variety. And relaxation. It's why I hate swaps....I get bored!
 
#26 ·
I find that makes for a messy tying bench.

I try to pull out the materials I need for a particular pattern; tie 8 (because that's how many slots I have in a row in my fly box); fill that row up....then put those materials away; bring out the materials for a new pattern and...

DANG IT... my tying desk is messy again!!

Like I said... "I Try..." :D
 
#27 ·
I find that makes for a messy tying bench.

I try to pull out the materials I need for a particular pattern; tie 8 (because that's how many slots I have in a row in my fly box); fill that row up....then put those materials away; bring out the materials for a new pattern and...

DANG IT... my tying desk is messy again!!

Like I said... "I Try..." :D
The Doc prescribed me pills for this shit... I just refuse to take them. My desk doesn't get messy because I can't let it. ;) There's a method to my madness. For me, fly fishing has become about tying my own variations of certain flies and even using non standard flies for whatever species and trying to catch fish with them. So I'm always experimenting at the bench and on the water. I catch fish, I'm happy, sometimes I don't and leave frustrated. As long as things remain interested, I'm happy. repetition to me is boring, even repeatedly catching fish... sometimes all it takes is one fish on a particular fly and I feel satisfied... hell, I've gotten bored catching fish before... ;)
 
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