I have never tied flys before (I want to start) and was wondering how those of you that do tie learned the art. Father, class, friends, ect. for example. I want to start, but I dont really want to attend a class with a bunch of beginners unless that is the way to go. Does anybody get together and tie or anything, groups, clubs...? Kind of like a bunch of old ladies that do "quilting night". If so, I would be interested in that.
I have never taken any classes on fly tying. I learned by reading books mostly. I just went to the library and read everything that they had available on the subject. I've probably read everyone of them in the Solano County Library system. My parents bought me a vise when I graduated from high school, and it just took off from there. One thing I would recommend is to buy a good vise the first time around. I have a Regal. They're pretty nice, and I've been using this one for about ten years now. I think you can get one of the original models for about $150.
__________________
"Nothing makes a fish bigger than almost being caught."
Its not as hard as you would think. I bought a cheap kit about 50 years ago and have been tying ever since. Nymphs are a little easier to tie and I use them on Putah 95% of the time. There are numerous books on the subject and now its even easier to start with all the web sites. Most of them have step by step instruction with pictures. As I recall the most difficult part of learning to tie flies was the whip finish when tying off the fly. I used half hitches for five years until someone finally showed me how to do the whip finish.
I used half hitches for a couple of years myself. Then, I learned how to whip finish by hand from a book. I finally bought a whip finisher and was amazed at how much quicker I could finish a fly.
__________________
"Nothing makes a fish bigger than almost being caught."
My father has tied all my flies all my life. I remember as a kid watching him tie flies, and him letting me do a loop or two, he used to let me get creative and pick what kind of material to put on, needless to say we made some really interesting flies .
I would truly love to learn how to tie. I have all the gear I need, aside from hooks. I even have a small selection of feathers, yarns, wire thread etc. I have a couple video's, and several books. I just have never sat down and done anything about it. I would love to learn with somebody. I'm actually going downstairs right now and going to get my gear out and see exactly what I have. Thanks for the encouragement.
.
