Fly Fishing Show Breakdown

It’s the winter fly fishing show season in Texas once again, and I thought I would pass on some advice about getting the most out of the shows you attend.  Shows break down basically into five categories: Keynote Speakers, Classes, Products, and Fly Tiers.

Keynote Speaker:

Flies from Dave Whitlock's seminar

These individuals are usually of national or even international renown for their skills. In other words, they were likely paid to come speak and did not just volunteer to help the hosting organization. As an attendee these should be priority one. They represent both a unique chance to learn something as well as an investment by the hosting organization. Thus, attending these seminars is critical to the event as well as making a good impression on the invited speaker. Few things are worse then speaking to a nearly empty room. Really well known speakers will have a crowd get to their seminars early if you want a seat.

Admittedly, scheduling conflicts will occur and you will have to decide which of the two seminars you want to attend. I always consider the likelihood of seeing a speaker again or if I can directly contact the speaker later in the show or at their shop.  In all cases the goal is to learn! I usually have a notepad or someway to write down important points in any seminar I attend. A lot of information will be taught by speakers during the whole day, and staying organized will make referencing it later much easier.

Classes:

            Classes represent a means to learn a skill. A class is led by a skilled volunteer from the hosting organization. These usually include casting, fly tying, and perhaps more unique courses such as tenkara or entomology. These are usually happening throughout the event and will over lap at least a little with other events, but the classes are often small with mostly one on one instruction in the subject being taught. These are a great way to get a foundation in something new or get advice on something that has been troubling the past.

Products:

            Shows usually include a number of product dealers or company representatives. These people and the items in their booths are a great way to examine new products or even purchase items not regularly found in your area. They are also a great way to test and learn about items that are technically complicated.

Fly rods are a great example. Will you cast better with an $800 dollar rod? What does a fiberglass or bamboo fly rod cast like? Casting areas are standard at fly shows. Get one of these rods in hand and cast it.

Fly Tiers:

            There are whole shows dedicated to this facet of fly fishing, but in general the tiers will be featured as a gallery with several tables each having a tier or two present. Alternatively, they may be spread out with the organizations to which they belong. Often clubs keep a skilled tier at their table to attract people. Be sure to find a local club and chat with them in you are not already a member. 

If you enjoy tying be sure spend the time watching a fly being tied from start to finish and if you still do not understand the tricks…sit there and watch it again. Tying is about the details. Often it is the minor touches that give a fly its eye appeal, not the big obvious things. It is not uncommon if you are willing to spend the time watching the process for a tier to give you the fly. Admittedly this is entirely up to the tier, but it does happen frequently.

The winter shows are very good in Texas I hope to see you there.

Feb. 7, 2015

Dr. Ed Rizzolo Fly Tying Festival

Bethany Christian Church, located at 3223 Westheimer Houston, TX.

From 8:30 am - 4:30 pm. Admission fees are: Adults $10.00; Students (with valid I.D.) and Seniors (62+) $5.00; Children under 12 Free; Family $15.00.

http://www.texasflyfishers.org/ftf1.html

Feb. 20-22, 2015

GRTU Troutfest

BANQUET AND AUCTION:

6:00 PM Friday Feb 20th 2015

EXPOSITION: Free Admission

Saturday Feb 21st 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM & Sunday Feb 22nd 8:30 AM - 4:00 PM

Fly Fishing Film Tour Feb. 21st

Doors open at 6:00 PM, show is from 7:00 - 9:30.

Purchase Tickets ($15/adult, $12/children 12 and under) at the GRTU booth in the expo tent.

http://www.grtutroutfest.org/

Under Appreciated Hen.

           Under the theme of being a poor student, I am always looking to cut corners in fly tying, but still produce excellent flies. Sometimes this approach, just does not work. There is no substitute for DRY FLY HACKLE!!!! Suck it up, buy one light and one dark pelt and your bases will be covered.

            As I step off my soap box, I can return to the point of this article: Quality hen capes are incredibly versatile feathers for the frugal fly tier. In general, a Whiting Herbert Miner cape runs about $10. If you consider the high number of feathers on a cape this will be a worthwhile investment. Hen feathers seem under appreciated because everyone wants rooster hackle for flies like woolly buggers and dries. Admittedly a full high quality rooster saddle is a beautiful thing to just look at let alone use to tie flies.  However, with a price point of about $50 for a middle grade saddle, I do not use these feathers on anything that does not need them.  Thus, I love versatile feathers at good prices.       

From left to right: Rooster saddle, Brahma Hen cape, India hen saddle, Coq de Leon hen saddle, and Herbert Miner saddle.

Hen represents one of the more recent additions of my “often used” materials list. A hen cape feather can do many different things, when loosely palmered it makes for a very buggy woolly bugger hackle, when tightly palmered at the head of fly it can make the legs of a nymph or the collar on a soft hackle. The fibers can make a beard on streamer patterns. Paired with other feathers, they can be made into a classic wet fly wing, or form the entire wing as four feathers do in matuka style flies. They are also commonly used to make claws on crawfish patterns and the legs/tails on top water patterns.

            There really is not much that these versatile feathers cannot do. Hen feathers also come in a variety of types, and I have come to use them in different ways. I have recently been tying Tenkara flies and using a Whiting Brahma hen neck because the fibers are soft (as hen should be), but lack the webby fibers that cling together like the aforementioned Herbert Miner. However, that all depends on the look and action I want in my fly. I have tenkara flies tied with both types. Additionally, I have used olive Coq de Leon hen capes to make collars on a bugger/softhackle style pattern I found online. The Coq de Leon is heavily mottled and makes great bug like legs on a fly.

            On the whole I think hen has become one of my favorite feathers and the price point works for me personally. I figure as long as teen idols do not take any interest in using these feathers for fashion, we fly tiers will be ok. Now go chase some capes down and hit the vise.

Grab and Go Boxes

(Republished from the Alamo Fly Fishers Aug. 2014 Newsletter)

by Nick Bertrand (primary contributor to Siren Flies)

This will probably not be a new concept for many of our members, but a “Grab and Go Box” for flyfishing has become a must for myself. I also know for a fact several of our members keep these boxes ready to go.

The idea is simple: One box that I can grab and then go fishing because I know it will have all I need for a day of flyfishing.

This box allows me to centralize the gear I use most and ensures some essentials are always with me.

The recipe for the box’s contents will very from person to person and certain things do will have to change seasonally.

Year round:

·      Fly bag

            The bag I will actually carry on the water with all its necessary contents.

·      Wading boots (if they fit in the box…mine do not)

·      Spare polarized sunglasses

·      Flash light

·      Spare glow sticks

I keep one of these in my bag incase I end up fishing late without a flash light)

·      First aid kit

I like the one or two man camping sets. They come prepackaged in small bags and come with all the essentials to deal with most small first aid needs on the water

·      Bug repellent and Sunscreen

I keep fluids like these in a plastic bag to protect against leaks. A reel covered in greasy sunscreen is not fun to use.

·      Multi tool (leatherman)

                        It can deal with all kinds of potential problems.

·      Waterproof Rain Shell Jack

I use something lightweight without insolation in case I decide I need to carry it with me and so I can use it any season.

·      Spare reel

                        I change it to match the rod and circumstances of the trip.

·      Spare fly box

Usually a box of big meaty flies.

Summer:

·      Buff style face cover

·      Sun Gloves

Winter:

·      Waders

                        If they fit in the box that is great mine usually don’t.

·      Spare Change of Clothes

The first time I ever fished with a club member in winter, I went five steps into the water and I went down. Completely soaked clothes end a day of winter fishing…period! However, a spare set means you change and get back on the water once you have emptied your waders.

·      Additional clothing layers

I usually keep a down vest available as a very warm core inner layer.

The goal of the box is to keep life simple, over packing it is easy and keeping the physical size of the box small enough to move without a buddy is a good rule of thumb.

            Also remember to properly dry any wet gear that goes into the box. I usually leave the lid off my box for about 24 hrs before repacking it.

Hopefully this will help stream line your fly fishing.

New Materials make New Flies

This happens fairly regularly, but often as tiers we come across some new material in either our own exploration or because a dealer comes out with something new.

For myself these moments are just another opportunity knocking.

However, opportunities always come with the possibility of failure.

Thus I try to approach new materials with a bit of critical thinking.

So lets break it down:
1. Do I have a plan on how I can first use the material?

I won't buy a material without at least one use for the material in mind already. Often tying with the material will inspire other applications. Think Jujubee midge .

2. Do I just need one or several colors?

This goes back to the planned application. I'll give a real life example.

I recently picked up some of Fly Fish Food's Bruiser Blend dubbing.  I knew I wanted to use it to make a head on a baitfish pattern and use in a similar fashion to Senyo's laser dubbing. Knowing this I can assess the usual colors I make my baitfish patterns and purchase those: White, black, grey, chartreuse, olive, cream.

Alternatively I might need only need a specific color to represent a certain feature on a fly that I have been working to prefect for a while.

After playing with the bruiser blend for a while I discovered that its length and fluid nature would be ideal for crawfish claws. Always keep your eye open for unseen potential with fly tying materials.

#3 A small Carpenter's square

I keep a Carpenters square at my tying desk mainly because it works great for cutting 6mm foam. But it also doubles as a ruler and straight edge whenever it comes up.

For 6mm foam I can get really nice level cuts because the 6mm fits just under the ruler. An under used technique in fly tying is simple measuring. You will discover that you can produce very consistent looking flies by taking a few measurements along the way.

Item #2 for your Tying Desk: Sharps Container

This item is probably coming directly from my experiences in the ichthyology lab.

I keep a sharp item disposal jar in my tying desk.

Anyone who works with razor blades knows being careful while using them is important, but so is dealing with them once they are dull. I use an old wide mouthed prescription bottle as my disposal place for razors and craft knife blades.

Once it fills completely I can throw the entire jar away with out fearing the razors could cut a trash bag or a blade unexpectedly getting somewhere it shouldn't be.

Finally it means I don't have to leave dull blades lying around my desk if I get into a marathon tying frenzy and go through several blades. It can also alleviate wondering which is the new blade or dull blade.
Add one to your desk and see if it makes your life easier.

Things you didn't know your tying desk was missing...Item #1

The boar hair shaving brush.

This is the first of a series of short posts about things I keep at my tying desk that are a little out of the ordinary.

One of the other hobbies/endeavors I enjoy is classic wet shaving with a straight razor. As a consequence of this hobby I picked up a cheap boar hair brush for use with shaving soaps (FYI: the best of these brushes are badger hair).

Awhile back, I found myself needing to dust off my desk after some marathon tying escapade. I looked over and saw this brush which I never shave with and thought "I bet that would work." Sure enough it works great for sweeping off all the little bits that accumulate on my desk.

If seeking out a shaving brush for this purpose look for a cheap boar hair brush. Inevitably some sort of adhesive is going to get on it, and shave brushes (usually badger) can be very expensive. Leave the pricey ones for shaving. Go cheap...this is for sweeping up garbage.

Oktoberfisch A Texas Must for Fly Fishers

I would like to follow up on my experiences at Oktoberfisch (Oct. 18-20, 2013) this year. It was the first time that I was able to attend and I had a blast.

Oktoberfisch is put on by the Fredricksburg Fly Fishers on the Llano River outside of Junction, TX.

Due to weather conditions I got up to Oktoberfisch and met up with the Alamo Fly Fishers very early Saturday morning (I can't comment on any mischief before then). Temps were in the upper 30s when I arrived.....way to cold for a native central Texan as far as I am concerned. Needless to say I was in waders the whole trip....

Testicle numbing water aside....We killed a bit of time walking around the camp seeing old friends from other clubs and making new ones.  As one of the local fishing gurus likes to put it...."Central Texas stream fish are very gentlemanly and don't wake up until after 10:00 am." This is true in a mid Texas summer and more so at the 30-40 degree temps we were experiencing.

So I took my time, go registered and examined my way through the tables of raffle items and booths. Throughout the day many different  classes were going on. They ranged to from beginners casting an entomology crash course put on by Texas Parks and Wildlife.  Beginners and more advanced tying courses were offered too.  For myself the course in two handed techniques was a must....and I even had my "never got the chance to use it" switch rod with me. However, it was an afternoon class and the sun has warmed enough for me to loose a layer of clothing.

Gentlemanly fish might just be waking up.....

Bullys Blue Gill Spider

So down the river my fishing buddy and I went.  Kayaking the Llano during this event is very common, but we decided to wade it. Both of us are avid "perch jerkers" and find wading to be our most productive method to work a shore line. Its a game of numbers and only occasionally something of size shows up.

Rio Grander Cichlid

We went up to the first road crossing from the park and worked our way down river for several hours. It was slow at first, but as temps rose fishing got better. Unexpectedly Texas Cichlids were the dominant catch for me.  A couple species of sunfish snuck in to the mix too, but no bass for me
personally.

Time came to return for my class. The instructor discussed the techniques and various set ups on the demo rods he has for the students to try. I got to cast a "Ballistic “ Vector”  Series" from Ballistic Spey lines on what I think was a 9wt. The fly line functionally was a large shooting head with an integrated running line. It was a cannon....Definitely thinking about its possible jetty applications. The instructors transitioned over to working with individual students so I went and got my Cabelas LSi Switch rod  (an 11 ft  7wt). I have this rod set up for Skagit style casting and Rio lines (ask on Facebook if you want more details).

I walked up to the instructor and flat out said "I bought it on special and I don't know how to use it?"

The instructor said let me cast it and after a couple more details about how it was set up we were off and running. He showed me the basics and had me get into the water work through the casts.

Below is a a video after I had been a casting a while and it wasn't the best cast I made but it illustrates how much I got out this little course and the consensus was that all the coursed had results like I got.

After the class it was time to go cast some rods.....most of which are out of this poor grad students price range....so when else would I get to cast them.

The guys from Living Waters Fly Fishing brought an assortment of rods out cast. The rod me and friend just HAD to cast was the Scott Fiberglass rod. The had the 2wt.......I felt like Tinkerbell casting it.....like waving a fairy wand. Don't get me wrong it could cast very well, but it was so light in the hand I would take me a while to get used to it.

The evening was concluded with a steak dinner and a raffle.  I won  a fly line in the raffle and there were rumors our table might have had the rowdiest bunch of guys there.....but I cannot confirm or deny such information.

Sunday morning was met with a mild hangover....good scotch does go with fly fishing.....

But no hangover shall eve keep me from fishing!

So we journeyed on the confluence of the Llano and James rivers to fish.

Again we waded through the waters.


This was good fishing.

I pulled 28 sunfish out of a single overhanging tree and just kept catching the further I waded.

Water clarity was pretty poor from recent rains so it was all about dark sinking flies.

The event as a whole would be a great way to bring new fly fishers in to the fold. Complete novices can learn from scratch and more advanced fisherman can pick up some new tips and tricks.

Lessons on Old and New Scissors

Assorted Scissors 

The scissors at your fly tying desk are a really critical part of your tying arsenal. Admittedly, it has taken me a while to get a good grip of what scissors I like and how to make use of different types of scissors. I give full credit to my various local mentors, online videos, and some good old trial and error. I hope this article will pass my lessons on to others.

All Purpose Scissor

Terra Fly Tying Kit

Like most folks, I started with the basic scissors that came with my fly tying started kit. At this point I would never buy scissors like that again. That has little to do with any fault of the scissors themselves, but there are scissors I find more apt for tying.

Obviously, scissors are all about the blade shape and size.

The basic fly tying scissor is an all purpose shaped blade of medium length. These are solid scissors, but they are almost always bound together by a non-removable screw/rivet and can't be easily sharpened. They should fit easily in most hands, but big thick fingers will always have challenges with tying scissors, sorry maybe open loop scissors can help.

4" Razor Scissors

My favorite all purpose scissors are Dr. Slick Razor Scissors 4". These are super sharp and taper to a near micro tip size. They fit really well in my hand. I tie with my scissors in my hand at all times and the size in hand is important to my comfort at the vise.  The adjustable tension is also very nice to make for comfortable and delicate control. I also just recently purchased the Allen Fly Fishing equivalent of this scissor but, I haven't had it long enough appropriately to comment on its use. However, the scissors have a remarkably similar feel.

Razor tip

In the line of tension scissors I also have the 5" Razor scissors made by Green Caddis Outfitters. This size is a little big for my hand held approach and the tip doesn't taper as small as the Dr. Slick's, but they are great for cutting things like foam or dear hair when I need a long straight cut.

From Left to Right: Allen 4" Razor, Green Caddis 5" Razor, 4" Dr. Slick

My final point about the wonders of razor scissors is that they can be sharpened. Since a removable tension screw is what holds the blades together they can be removed and sharpened like a knife.  They should only be sharpened on a very fine flat ceramic (I will follow up on sharpening in another blog). If you have immediate questions shoot me a message on Facebook.

I also keep a pair of curved tip scissors at my desk which are great for setting the curve of deer hair flies or cutting the mouth out of Morrish hopper bodies.

Allen Micro tip

Micro tip scissors are in my "not used to often drawer" at the tying bench, but they are there for a reason. I don't tie for freshwater trout often, but when I am working on small nymphs they can be a real asset to deal with the small hook size. (the current pair is also from Allen Fly Fishing)






Finally I use a set of craft scissors to deal with anything
that will heavily wear on scissors like cutting dear hair off the hide. A trick I picked up from Pat Cohen's DVD. Don't get me wrong these should be high quality craft scissors. As with all scissors its about a sharp edge.

As I mentioned before, when you get into fly tying for the first time you usually end up with basic scissors. However unless you started out well mentored (unlike me), you will dull these scissors very fast because you didn't realize you should really have at least two pairs of scissors each for dealing with different materials.

Fear not......Those dull scissors can have lots of uses.

The foremost use I have for just about any dull scissors is cutting wires. Admittedly, I don't use them for heavy wires like bite tippets, but for most ribbing and lead wires they work well. Once you have dull pair that means you don't have worry about using your sharp scissors.  An additional advantage once you have your wire tied on a fly is that dull scissors fit into tight spaces a lot more easily the standard wire cutters.

If you happen to have dull pair of arrow scissors I substitute the notch below the blades on mine for wire cutters to separate bead chain eyes. I have used it for up to large size eyes without any problem, but I tie with medium eyes for most flies. The notch is more then enough to deal with medium bead chain.

I hope these tips help you take make full used of scissors. If you have any further questioins message me on the Siren Flies Facebook Page

Video of the Week: Kenny Morrish Interview

This video came through my Facebook feed from Idylwilde Flies. Its a really neat interview with one of their signature tiers. Check it out.

Commentary on Fiberglass Fly Rods

Anyone who has read some of my previous posts knows I'm a big advocate of getting involved with your local fly club and again I am drawing on my experiences with the Alamo Fly Fishers as the basis for this commentary.

I give credit to Cameron Mortenson of the Fiberglass Manifesto for first peaking my interest in glass rods, but I admit to knowing little or nothing about them when I first discovered his blog. Then as I got involved with Alamo Fly Fishers I got know several members that swore by glass rods for "perch jerk'n."

"Perch Jerk'n" is targeting sunfish and the occasional black bass. Here in central Texas that translates to wading in gin clear streams and targeting fish in shade (even fish know to get out of the heat in Texas summers). In general, I would be fishing flies in size 10 or 12 (check the Siren Flies Facebook page for the flies).

Initially, on these "perch jerk'n" fishing excursions I fished my graphite rods, but found myself very quickly moving from a 5wt to a 2wt to get the most action our of these hard fighting little fish.  My fishing buddies, however were casting old glass rods (the enthusiasts will appreciate that they were either Fenwicks or Wonderods) ranging from a 3wt to a 6wt.

I got the chance to cast them once or twice and could not get over the flex in the rods......the term noodle seemed appropriate.....I knew I wanted to try one for a day of fishing and looked around for a cheep deal online. I ended up with an eagle claw feather light 4/5 wt  and fished it, but never could quite find the right fly line to suite it from those I owned. (Update: I settled on a 6 weight...no idea on the brand...it was buried in box I had not opened in along time). I was pleased to discover that even this inexpensive rod felt like the "ultralite" fishing my buddies had described, and like all good fly fishermen that meant I needed to try out some other rods



Next came  Cabelas CGT glass rod. This is a rod I really like and would be my recommendation for an easily available rod to start with. The above Eagle Claw is cheeper, but I think $150 gets you a very good rod (and if you watch the online bargain bin they seem to go on sale regularly. The 3wt CGT I own has all the bend I wanted, but admittedly casts on the faster end of glass.

In response I decided I had to go old glass to get more feel for  my glass exploits. To Ebay and flea markets I went....

I'm still questing for the perfect feel and to be fair I know more now....but I consider myself a novice about all this stuff.  I now have an 8 wt St. Croix glass rod(casts a 7wt SA redifsh line great), a yellow Wonderod #1370B-8'6" (approx. 8wt), a 7wt Action Glass, and a spin fly combo wonderrod (6wt). These older rods definitely get you a different feel in your casting and offer unique benefits in the right situation. There are limitations the slowness of these rods would limit their utility in high wind situations like the jetties, and thats not what  I when I need to punch line out into the wind. Just to be clear I can get plenty of distance with glass rods, but the slowness leads to greater influence on the line by the wind.

Ultimately I have these final thoughts. Put the right tool to the right task. You can throw 7 wts and greater on our TX streams, with small flies and catch fish, but you will lose so much of the battle happening with that sun fish and small bass. In contrast should you hook into a large fish on a smaller glass rod it will have the back bone to handle it, but the flex will ensure you feel every turn the fish makes.


Go Glass on rivers in Central TX and you will never look back.