Covid strikes again. We had an instructor line up to do the Aug. class, but he unfortunately doesn’t have a computer to do a Zoom class and I will be out of state, fishing of course. A great Zoom class is planned for Sept. I will be instructing a San Luis Smelt. This has been THE fly for the past few years at the Forbay. Lee Haskins, a guru with this fly and fishing that area, has move away, but his fly lives on. Getting the materials is a bit of a challenge. The long fiber craft fur, Foxxfur, is no longer made. The Portland Fly Shop bought up all the remaining supply and sells it cheap. Not all the colors remain available. I’ll be showing, in the class, how to compensate for that. To acquire the Foxxfur yourself: web site: shop.theportlandflyshop.com/craft-fur-sale.html. To place an order: (503)265-8060.
If you are new to fly tying and don’t want to invest a lot of money to get started, there are a lot of inexpensive substitutes for tools. I’ll list a few below but, having a vise that has a pedestal instead of a clamp , and a good pair of scissors made by Dr. Slick, are important. Twizzers for pick ups, Straight pin, sewing pin or hat pin for bodkin, straw or ball point pen for half hitch tool, are just a few substitutions.
There are a lot of fly shops and web sites for materials and equipment. A couple suggestions: The Caddis Fly Shop in Eugene Oregon (good service, no tax and free shipping if over $25 I believe), The Fly Shop in Redding Ca. (Good service, cheaper excellent quality hooks under brand TFS and same numbers as TMC hooks, right off I-5), J. Stockard (877)359-8946 (inexpensive).
Books I recommend: “Fly Patterns of Umpqua Feather Merchants” by Randall Kaufmann for extensive list of fly patterns and materials to tie each. “The complete Book of Western Hatches” by Dave Hughes for detailed information about aquatic insects and flies to immatate them. “The Hook Book” by Dick Stewart for hooks drawn by actual size, description, equivalents in other brands.
Email or call to sign up for the September Fly tying class. Leave your number please.
Posted on July 29th, 2020