Gather your Hackles

I tie a lot of streamer style fly patterns that require hackle feather fibers for tails and throats and may or may not use up the entire feather in 1 tying session.

When not using the feathers I simply gather them and use an electrical test clip to hold them together.

Thanks for looking.

Handi-Grip

I have a herniated disc in my back that is extremely painful when I have to bend down. 

I keep the Handi-Grip near my fly tying to pick up materials that I occasionaly drop on the floor.

Measuring Hackle for Dry Flies

While you can spend additional money on some sort 

of hackle gauge, you really dont have to.

Or for measuring the length of the wing on streamers.

Since you already bought the hackles and hooks, use them to your advantage.

Splay out the hackle you intend to use on your fly and measure it against the hook shank.

From the eye of the hook to the bend of the hook shank (the straight part of the shank before it begins to bend) is equal to 1 1/2 times the hook gape. Perfect for hackle length.

Whatever method you use is totally up to you.

Barred Rubber Legs

http://www.warmwaterflytyer.com/bench.asp?page=13

Follow the Eye

For a neat and tapered head, follow the angle of the hook eye when trimming off materials.

Trim the hair wing on an elk hair caddis using this method.

Behind The Eye

Stop crowding the head area of the fly by leaving an eye length of bare 

shank to tie down wing cases, hackles, legs, throat hackle etc.

Fixatif for Quill Wings

Have you run out of Fixatif for those quill wings?

$8.99 @ Michaels Craft Store

Your significant other may just have a substitute.

Unscented Hairspray

$1.97 @ Walmart

Wash your Bucktail

Washing your bucktails will get rid of excess dye and also smell a whole lot better!

Learn a New Tying Technique

I've been tying flies for 35+ years and I certainly dont know every fly tying technique. And neither do you.

So every now and then I take out "The Fly Tyers Benchside Reference" book and learn a new tying technique.

I dont necessarily tie a finished fly but just try to master the technique to the best of my availabily.If it doesnt come out correctly you can always unwind everything and start over or just cut everything off of the hook.

Give a new technique a try. You can do it if you really try!

Split Tails

There are probably as many ways to split tails as there are tyers (thread ball, dubbing ball, thread tag, hockley method etc) but here is a simple method using UV resin to split tails and keep them split. After splitting the tail fibers, apply a tiny drop of uv resin and cure using your uv light to set the postition of the tails. Continue tying the rest of the fly.

Dubbing Teasers

Dental brushes for between teeth make excellent dubbing teasers and come in different sizes for the tiniest midge to the biggest of flies

Disposable Mascara brushed are good too.

Velcro on a stick

 and those gun cleaning brushes will also work.

Embossed Tinsel Substitution

Are you out of that embossed tinsel for those neat looking streamer bodies?

Substitute some twisted wire. Simply twist 2 strands of silver wire into a rope and you'll get a reasonable substitute and a little added weight on the hook

This is purely meant as a substitute if you just happen to run out of the embossed tinsel. It is not intended for the production of 1000 flies.

Size of the wire is irrelevant.

Hairwing Tying Tip

A loop of thread alone around a bundle of hair is not enough to keep the hair from rolling to the far side of the hook. The hair must be held firmly while subsequent wraps of thread are used to hold the hair in place. Without holding the hair, thread torque will roll it all over the place

Smelly Buck Tails

Every now and then you may end up with a smelly buck tail that wasn't processed correctly leaving on some flesh that is turning rotten and starting to smell.

A good tip to remember is if it stinks in the fly shop it stays in the fly shop.

If its necessary to buy from an online retailer, most of them them allow for comments on the ordering page. Just specify that if the buck tails stink do not send them in your order.

Profile Plate

A profile plate helps to reduces glare, eyestrain and blocks out the busy background on the tying bench. The plate is also perfect for providing a plain background for photographing your flies.

But they can cost $$$ depending on the vise manufacturer

So here is my cheaper alternative

I bought a typists document holder for $5 + free shipping

Insert a 39 cent piece of your favorite color craft/scrapbooking paper in the holder

Then place it behind your vise to block out the mess and clutter on your bench and you'll see what youre tying much better

Please note: this is just one way of making a profile plate. There are many more clever and elaborate ways of making one

Thanks for looking

Norm

Trout Fishing and the Color of Wet Dubbing

http://www.scribd.com/doc/142144696/Trout-Fishing-and-the-Color-of-Wet-Dubbing#scribd

How to adjust your bobbin holder

Thumb Tack Eyes

I had an idea regarding eyes for larger flies like those used for pike, musky, saltwater fish etc and thought about using thumb tacks for eyes. I had a box of white thumb tacks and a variety of lacquer craft paint and married the two together as shown below

You can start making the eyes using gold, silver, white, multi colored thumb tacks

When ready to install in your fly, just snip off the tack to the desired length and use epoxy to adhere the eyes to your fly.

I used the Wasatch eye painting tools to help make the eyes

Preserving And Storing Material

Feathers are composed of about 91% protein, 8% water, and 1% lipids.  The type of protein in feathers is called keratin, a sulphurous, fibrous protein.  Fur and hair have a similar composition so use this information for storing all natural materials.

Read the rest of the article here

http://www.flytyingworld.com/classroom/96/1182-Caring-for-your-Feathers-and-Natural-Materials--.html

Oval Tinsel Substitute

So you want to tie a streamer body of flat tinsel and ribbed with oval tinsel and you search and search for the oval tinsel and you come up empty. Do not fear! Here is a simple trick for making your own. It wont replace the real thing but it will serve as a substitute.

Tie in the flat tinsel and wrap the tinsel in touching 

turns to the bend of the hook. 

(I like to attach hackle pliers to the tinsel at this point)

Begin twisting the tinsel from the flat ribbon to a rope 

configuration. Pay attention to the twisting of the tinsel so that you get a 

silver rib on a silver body.

Wrap the tinsel into a tight rope.

Wrap the ribbing forward and tie off.

You now have a smoothly wrapped tinsel body with a rib of 

twisted tinsel that substituted for the real oval tinsel.

Continue to finish the fly.

Thanks for looking.