Fly-tying: Beginners
Material World
By Barry Ord Clarke
The second step and probably the most natural progression from fly fishing is fly tying. After the industrialisation of hook production, the time consuming production of fishing flies was moved to countries with cheap labour. The days are gone when fly fishermen tied flies out of financial necessity. As with fly fishing there is a certain amount of equipment you “need” to obtain and techniques you need to learn before you can embark on the second life long journey of the fly fisherman – to the fly tying bench.
Through fly tying the fly fisherman can open previously locked doors and enter a whole new world of their sport. The first flies a “new” fly tier normally begins to try and make are old and trusted patterns that have worked well for them through their fly fishing years. This is a good place to start, but if “simple” looking patterns involve difficult, hidden techniques or special materials that are not easy to obtain in a sufficient quality frustration can lead to the fly tying kit soon finding its way into the loft with the golf clubs and wind surfing-board. On the other hand, if beginners start their fly tying journey with a couple of fish-able patterns that are technically easy but still rewarding to tie, these can be the stepping stones to more advanced and technical patterns, through which they will eventually be able to tie all the flies they require and many more.
In most cases, fly tying begins with a fly tying kit. Unfortunately, most fly tying kits can result in the same frustration as starting to tie too difficult patterns. When you open a fly tying kit for the very first time, the first thing you notice is the overpowering perfume of paradichlorobenzene or moth balls. This is used to keep feather and fur-eating insects at bay and from making a smorgasbord of your materials. Beyond the moth ball vapours, your newly purchased kit is filled with what looks like, at first glance, a fantastic array of shiny tools and materials from the most exotic foul and beast.
Unfortunately, the usefulness and quality of “kit” materials and tools is generally poor. In nine out of ten kits the scissors are bad quality and won’t clean cut tying thread and other fine materials. Ideally you should have two pairs of scissors, one with extremely fine points for the more intricate work and a pair with larger and serrated blades for deer hair and heavier work. The bobbin holder is of equally poor quality, cutting the tying thread with every two or three turns around the hook. I am also of the thought that the natural materials in most fly tying kits are chosen by non-fly tiers for volume and not usefulness, for the new beginner. That all being said, if you have access to a reliable fly fishing store that has a good fly tying department and fly tying staff, ask if they can put a kit together for you with quality tools and materials tailored to the patterns that you wish to tie. Generally speaking, when it comes to tools and materials, the more money you use the better the quality. My recommendation for a basic starter set for trout flies:
Vice
Dubbing needle
Hackle pliers
Scissors
Bobbin holder ceramic
Whip finisher
Clear fine varnish
Tying thread
Cock Hackle mixed pack, black, brown, grizzle. Highest quality hackle that your budget allows
CdC natural tan
Peacock eye
Pheasant tail
Fine Antron dubbing Black. Tan. Olive.
Natural deer hair
Hares mask
Poly yarn white
Lead wire
Medium copper wire
Hooks dry fly: R50-94840 # 12.
Nymph: R73-9671 # 8.
Streamer: R74-9672 # 6. When you have been tying for a while you will start to understand materials more with regard to quality and uses. You will quickly see how much easier it is to tie with quality materials and how much better the end result will be. Again when buying materials, try and use a shop that has a large fly tying department, these normally have the best quality materials and staff that tie flies that are on hand to help and answer your questions. But even in these shops, the materials can vary. When buying materials, say for instance pheasant tail, don’t just take the first packet hanging on the wall! Look through all the packets and choose the one that works best for the patterns you wish to tie. There is always varying quality in size, colour, markings, fibre length… and quantity in most natural materials, which at first glance all look the same, but only under closer scrutiny is the difference noticeable.
| Vice:
Since this is the most single expensive item you will require in order to tie flies, your choice should be made carefully. You should consider how many and what type of flies you will tie and what size hooks you will be using. Beyond the prime function of holding the hook securely, modern vices incorporate a number of additional functions of varying usefulness. Height, jaw angle and full rotation are normal and found in most good models. Vices are available in several different designs and price classes. The best way to acquire a feeling for the vice that suites your tying style and requirements is to visit a retail store with a good selection of designs and price class. Ask the staff to point out the advantages and disadvantages of the different makes and try them out for yourself. |
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Tying thread:
There are many threads available today that have many different properties. The tier will want to use the one that is most suited to the task at hand, in respect to thickness, strength, stretchability, waxed or un-waxed and whether it has a flat or round profile when applied to the hook. And of course colour. For the past ten years I have used only one type, Dyneema.This has several advantages when tying. It’s an un-waxed super strong multi-filament polyethylene fibre that offers maximum strength combined with minimum weight. It is up to 15 times stronger than quality steel, on weight for weight basis. Dyneema floats and is extremely durable and resistant to moisture, UV light and chemicals. Being a multi-filament thread it can be spun against the clock, and the fibres will open and flatten out, making it ideal for the largest of flies. You can split it for making and spinning dubbing loops and it is excellent for tying with deer hair. It also makes “O” build-up under tinsel and floss bodies. If you spin Dyneema with the clock, it twists and becomes a super strong micro tying thread 16/0, suitable for even the smallest flies. The other advantage is that you need only one colour of thread, as Dyneema colours well with waterproof felt pens. The applications are therefore more or less unlimited.
| Bobbin holder: A poor quality bobbin holder can be infuriating. It is really worth investing in a good quality ceramic bobbin holder, these are far superior to other models. The ceramic tubes are far harder than even the highest-quality surgical steel, which eventually becomes worn and develops grooves that will cut the tying thread.
The wire arms of a bobbin holder need to be adjusted to accommodate the particular size of spool being used and the desired tension. The tension should be light enough for you to easily draw off thread, while still being tight enough to hang free under its own weight without unwinding. Setting the tension on a bobbin holder is as follows: |
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| Scissors: It’s unreasonable to expect one pair of scissors to do all the cutting jobs required when tying flies. Eventually you will need at least two. One high-quality pair with sharp fine points, for all the fine work and a second pair that is used for heavier work such as tinsel, wire… If you are going to tie many deer hair flies it is also useful to have a longer bladed pair with serrated edges. These “grip” the deer hair and enable flush cutting. When buying scissors, if you have large hands, make sure that your finger and thumb fit comfortably in the handles. |
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| Dubbing needle:
This is probably the most simple fly tying tool, but at the same time one of the most useful. Dubbing needles have many tasks to perform, applying varnish to finished flies, picking out dubbing, splitting hackle fibres, mixing epoxy… Your work space when fly tying can quickly become chaotic beyond recognition, especially when you have tied a few different patterns, and it’s easy to spend more time looking for your dubbing needle than tying flies. Therefore I have several dubbing needles of mixed diameter standing up-right in a piece of foam. The point of the dubbing needle can quickly become covered with a build-up of varnish, epoxy and head cement. This can be scraped away with a blade, but I keep my needles clean with another method. I have a 35 mm film canister that I have filled with wire wool. All you need to do is push your built-up dubbing needle through the canister top down into the wire wool a few times and your needle is as new! |
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| Hackle pliers: It’s much easier to correctly wind a hackle on a dry fly when you use hackle pliers. They come in many designs and price classes, like all other fly tying tools. I use and recommend a rotary model. The rotary model will keep the hackle from twisting when wound. It’s important that whichever model you choose to use that the sprung jaws have a secure grip, even on the finest hackle points. A good tip for all models to improve their gripping quality, without damaging the materials to be held, is to glue two small pieces of super fine sand paper on the gripping side of each jaw, then trim them down to fit the edges of the jaws. This will stop materials slipping out of the jaws when maximum tension is applied. |  |
| Whip finish tool: These again come in various models – the most important distinction being if they are fixed or rotate. A well designed whip finish tool allows quick and neat finishing of a fly with the correct knot. A whip finish tool is preferred by most professional tiers because the job at hand can be done much faster and neater than a series of half hitch knots done by hand. |  |
| Hackle:
This is probably the most discussed material amongst fly tiers, When buying cock capes / hackles one should understand that ALL capes come from individual birds each with distinctive characteristics. You can’t expect the same uniformity as with tins of beans from the supermarket. Consider the following factors: Colour: Brown: |
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Black:
Jet black in natural capes is a rarity. Nearly all jet black capes are dyed. A black cape is always useful for mayflies, ants, tails and nymphs.
Grizzle:
Is not really a colour but a description of the black chevron barring on a cream or white hackle background. Extremely useful not only alone, but mixed as a secondary hackle colour with brown for such patterns as Adams, Europea 12… and the standard hackle for most dry midge patterns.
Condition:
Capes from healthy birds will feel bouncy to the touch and the hackle will shine. Dr Tom Whiting, owner of Hoffman, has said that when he chooses birds for breeding he considers not only colour and quality, but also the character of birds. No matter how good the colour appears to be, if the bird is nervous and of low spirit he will be low in the pecking order. This will influence health and plumage quality. It is also useful to check the stems of a few hackles and see if they are flexible and not brittle when wound on a hook. Hackles that are brittle are useless.
Feather count:
The more hackles of a good usable quality on a cape is of course desirable. You can again gain a feeling for this just by handling the cape, check its depth (thickness). Inspect the individual hackles for barb count, (the density of fibres along a hackle stem) and fibre stiffness. This is difficult for a new beginner but will come with time spent at the tying bench.
Hackle size:
Expensive modern cock capes are generally sized. This means they give you an indication as to what size flies they are most suitable for and ca. how many flies you are able to tie with them. The most useful cape/hackle size for the fly tier here in Europe is for hooks # 10-16.
| Pheasant tail: The least expensive and most common pheasant tail used in fly tying is from the Ring neck pheasant. The best feathers come from the centre of the tail of the male bird (cock pheasant). These long centre tail feathers have the longest fibres and normally the best chevron barred markings. Uses include legs on nymphs and crane flies, tails on may flies and nymphs, wing cases and the only material needed for the most famous of all nymphs the pheasant tail. |  |
| Hare’s mask: This refers to the mask and ears of the European brown hare. Individual masks range in colour from pale tan to almost black. The texture and length is from fine and soft in the under fur, which is an excellent dubbing, to long and stiff guard hairs that can be used for feelers and tail in many patterns. The ears are covered with short stiffer hairs without almost any under fur. A mixture of hair from the ears and the mask makes one of the best buggy nymph dubbing available. As used in the Gold ribbed hare’s ear. |  |
| Deer Hair: Deer hair is normally described as hollow. This doesn’t mean that it’s hollow like a drinking straw, but that each hair is built up of hundreds of small air filled cells. This type of hair structure is most defined in deer from areas with an extreme winter climate. The result: the colder it is, the better the spinning qualities, with some exceptions. The hair from reindeer and the North American caribou. In order to achieve optimal insulation, these hairs hold so many air cells that they have a tendency to be brittle, and break under the pressure of tying thread.
The winter coat of the Norwegian roe deer has many air filled cells and is ideal for spinning, packing and clipping, while the hair from the summer coat is somewhat stiffer and extremely fine. A first-class hair for tails and winging dry flies. The colour varies from light red brown on the summer coat to dark grey with darker barred tips on the winter coat. The best hair for spinning is found on the back of the roe along the spine. This hair is extremely dense, not at all brittle, and floats like a cork. The chalk white hair on the rump is excellent for dying, or for patterns that require white deer hair. |
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| You should also be aware that the roe mask has a diversity of hair that is difficult to equal. Here you will find hair in many different lengths, shades of brown and coarseness. Ideal for dry flies from # 10 and down to the very smallest comparaduns. Anyone who ties caddis flies shouldn’t be without a roe mask.
If you know a hunter or a game keeper, try and secure yourself a whole roe skin, you won’t be disappointed. |
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| Polypropylene Yarn: A smooth or rough textured synthetic yarn available in many colours. Being less dense than water, poly yarn is particularly suited to dry fly applications, such as wings, parachute posts, shuck cases, loop wings… Silicone coated yarn, is even more water repellent than standard polypropylene. |  |
| Peacock eye: The eye tail feather from the peacock (male bird) provides us with the famous herl. Covered in iridescent green fibres and used for wound bodies and butts in hundreds of patterns. For stripped herl patterns the best herl to use is from just under the eye of the feather. These herls are stronger here than otherwise found on the lower tail. |  |
| CdC: CdC in short for Cul de canard or more correctly Croupion de Canard, was first used as a fly tying material in the 1920s in Switzerland. In more recent years the Swiss perfectionist Marc Petitjean has been responsible for popularising the use of this material. All birds have these feathers, but the best for fly tying come from ducks. The feathers are located around the gland that produces preening oil. This highly water repellent oil is collected on these small feathers, and it’s here the bird obtains the oil with its bill to dress its feathers. Without this oil the bird would drown. The small fibres catch tiny air bubbles that work wonderfully on emerger patterns. Besides its excellent floating properties CdC is not only extremely aqua-dynamic, pulsating with life in the water, but also hydrodynamic. A CdC hackle will collapse under air pressure while casting, but as soon as the cast ends the hackle opens and falls perfectly back to its intended shape. |  |
| Dubbing: Just about all natural furs, feathers and hairs can be used as one form of dubbing or another. Many tiers have become used to mixing their own dubbing material, in a particular texture or colour, or even mixing several different materials to give a special sparkle or shade. When choosing a natural material for a dry fly, think a little about the animal or bird that it comes from. The fur and under fur from a beaver or mink is excellent, as this has a lot of natural water repellent oils, which will make it float well. The under fur is also very fine, this enables you to dub extremely small dry fly bodies. Whereas for a buggy nymph you would need a material that will absorb water and sink and command a little more volume than a fine dry fly body. Synthetic dubbing is available in literally thousands of colours and textures for all types of flies. So consider the requirements of the dubbing needed for the job at hand before beginning to tie your flies. |  |
| Varnish: Head cements and varnishes used in fly tying have come a long way in the last decade. But still in some fly tying circles, purists believe that glue has no place and should never be used in fly tying. I am of the school that uses both super glue and epoxy in most of my tying. The best varnish to start with is Veniard’s Clear fine. This varnish is easily absorbed by most tying threads and dries hard with a reasonably glossy finish. If you would like a super hard glossy finish, I recommend that you firstly coat the head of your fly with Veniard’s clear fine, after this is dry, you can then give it a coat with nail varnish. |  |
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Dry fly hooks:
Dry fly hooks are normally all fine diameter wire hooks that are made from standard, fine or superfine wire so that there is minimum weight in the hook, making the fly float better. Dry fly hooks come in “Standard wire diameter”, “Fine” and “2X Fine” as the thinnest.
The most important thing to remember when choosing your dry fly hook is to choose the right hook for the particular pattern you are going to tie without jeopardising strength. A superfine hook has more chance of straightening when fighting a large fish. For “regular” high-floating deer hair and hair wing dry flies a standard wire hook will suffice. And for the tiny dry flies #18 and smaller, standard wire hooks will work fine and give you all the strength you need, even for big fish. As these hooks are so small they nearly float on their own.
Wet fly and Nymph hooks:
Both your standard wet fly and nymph hooks are in the same category, with the exception of some more recent specialist hooks that fall under the Emerger category. They are both normally made with a heavier diameter wire to give the hook extra weight, in order to make it sink. Some of the nymph hooks are a little longer in the hook shank, to give you room to imitate the slender body of the natural insect.
Relevant hooks:
S60-3399A (1XH)
CO68 (Curved, offset, 2XH/2XS)
S70-3399 (2XH)
S80-3906 (3XH)
S82-3906B (3XH/2XL)
R90 (4XH)
Emerger hooks:
These are hooks that normally have more bend than hook shaft, which are designed to imitate hatching insects that are hanging in the surface water film. The bent hook shaft helps the fly tier imitate this stage, with the rear part of the body of the insect submerged and the thorax and wing case above.
Relevant hooks:
C49S (Curved, Std/1XS)
CO68 (curved, offset, 2XH/2XS)
C53S (Curved, Std/3XL)
Streamer hooks:
Because almost all streamer patterns are tied to imitate small fish, the hooks that are used for streamers tend to reflect the natural body shape of bait fish of various sizes. Most streamer hooks are made of 2X heavy wire and come in various shank lengths. The 2X heavy is designed to give the hooks superior strength, and the weight needed to get the streamer down.
Relevant hooks:
R73-9671 (2XH/3XL)
R74-9672 (2XH/4XL)
S74SZ-34011 (2XH/4XL)
R75-79580 (2XH/5XL)
R75S-9674 (2XH/5XL)
L87-3665A (2XH/7XL)
R79-94720 (2XH/9XL)
Hook Size:
Hook sizes can cause confusion. The number on a hook generally refers to the relative size of each hook with respect to each other. For many years, there has not existed an industry standard, and different manufactures have had different standards for applying numbers to their own sizes. However, for Mustad Signature, the AlphaCode is the long a waited Industry Standard that makes hook terminology understandable.
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Signature Fly Hooks
The most important thing to remember is that the size number on a hook packet is a “relative size” NOT an actual measurement of a hook. The higher the number i.e. (# 28, very small hook) the hook size is increasing with a decreasing number. The lower the number i.e. (#1, large hook) will increase in size with an increasing number i.e. (# 8/0, very large hook) the larger the hook size.