Recent comments

Thanks for your comm

Thanks for your comments, Jay. Always nice to talk about details of a pattern.
* Smaller thread won't cut the deer and elk hair I use (of course delicate hair isn't the best choice for Humpies), as long as you untwist the thread after a number of wraps. Also, it's considerably more bulky than the Veevus or Textreme thread I use. In addition to that: if you tie with a thread tension just below the breaking point of the thread, three wraps of thinner threads are plenty strong enough to tie down larger amounts of hair if you like a bigger hump.
* Shorter or longer tails are a matter of preference, and I'm with you on shorter tails if you use deer hair, because this will flare less because we're tying down hair towards the tips, which is less prone to flaring under pressure. An advantage of a longer (or thicker) tail is that it adds some mass to counterbalance the somewhat heavier wing.
* Hair with short tips: yes! That's the reason I prefer Elk hair because it has a steeper taper towards the tips. Yearling and early season is an excellent choice. I have some early season cow elk from Chris Helm that works very well for this.
* Elk hair is indeed more robust than deer, but the Elk I use works well on Humpies down to #16 (that's the smallest size I tie them in.)

New to fly tying
so

New to fly tying
so many tools and material. !!!
Randy

A few things I don't

A few things I don't agree with Martin:

* A 6/0 thread isn't that bad an idea. Not because you need such strong thread, but a thicker thread (spreading the pressure over a wider surface) prevents cutting through the delicate deer hair when tying the hump. To get a nice round hump you need some more hair (I'm not talking about 'obese' amounts) than showed here a and quite some thread pressure to make a nice tight hump.

* Since the Humpy will float flush rather than 'stand up on the hackle tips and on the tail' a slightly shorter tail (about 2/3rd shank length) won't hurt. A shorter tail is preferable if you tie the tail using elk or even deer hair since this will prevent excessive flaring.

A few things about hair for tying Humpys:

* Hair with short tips is paramount here so the wing tips shows up well rather than disappear in a thin curly tip.

* Elk hair makes tying small (size 12 and smaller) quite difficult due to it's robustness. Yearling elk is an excellent choice if you prefer elk above deer hair.

Thank you for the wo

Thank you for the wonderful work. Zonker is always a good choice--practically at any time.
I appreciate all the work you have put into this great "teaching" site.

Just bought a paladi

Just bought a paladine blackhole 10 foot 6 weight switch rod. My first Spey. What line would you recomend for the flats her in queensland?

Spectacular!, Very w

Spectacular!, Very well done! Thanks for sharing!
Leo

Hey guys,I was just

Hey guys,I was just wondering I tied this fly for international fly tying symposium,global fly fisher had a contest that i submitted this fly in at the somerset show in NJ .It was there first contest went well lots fun it had taken first in the saltwater bait fish contest,has anyone else submitted a fly or anything like the style of this that you have seen.Always great to see new patterns more ideas

Wow that looks so good

Wow that looks so good.Where can I buy one of these.

What a great video,t

What a great video,thank you for shearing.Your country looks very much like mine,in so meany ways.
This is what fishing and for that matter hunting is all about.Good friends good rivers in the outdoors.

Do you use any soft

Do you use any soft hackle flies as dry or wet in winter? What about a soft hackle with a nymph attached?

Chris, I am interest

Chris, I am interested in your pattern and I have been tying flies for quite a few years. I have not yet gotten into streamers as I stick to nymphs, dries and wets. I would love to try to tie your pattern but incorporate lead eyes. I have two questions. Do you have any suggestions for doing this or any better way to add weight? Secondly, since i am new to tying streamers, your descriptions are great but could you send me a couple of pictures or a video so I can see exactly how you are tying the fly. Thanks for any help you can be.

Ron, The videos s

Ron,

The videos should be in three columns as always, unless you're on a very small screen - small tablet or phone - in which case the adjust to one column only. There should be no instance where they are two by two.

I wouldn't suspect the computer. This is usually something with the software settings. Have you checked if your browser is "zoomed", meaning that it's displaying things larger or smaller than usual? That often disturbs pages. Zoom to normal size to cure that.

Martin

My GFF fly tying vid

My GFF fly tying videos are not displayed as unusual. Instead of being displaying three abreast there are ony two. Is that a new foremat or is there something wrong with my computer?

Bob, a very fair ass

Bob, a very fair assessment. You have done a great job of presenting an honest & unbiased review. I was not going to buy the book because of some of the flack out there, but have decided to change my mind and purchase it. Since it was her first book, a lot of things can be overlooked. Thank you for presenting a fair view and allowing me to change my original opinion of the author. I am learning to always keep an open mind. Cheers, Joel

ACE Hardware is sell

ACE Hardware is selling UV pocket flashlights for $9.99 US compared with the near $30.00 plus for similar units. Works on Loon products

Buying?

Hello I am interested in buying some of these flies from you for trolling for walleyes is this possible?

Rainy's

Skip,

Rainy's is your friend when it comes to foam. They have it all... and more.

Martin

Tom,

Try searchin

Tom,

Try searching for a "deep picture frame" and you may find something useful.

Martin

Great site, awesome

Great site, awesome information.

Looking to purchase a frame ready to accept flies (would like to mount flies my dad tied for his 60th birthday). Would love to make one, but don't have the time or skills to make it look good. Any ideas of where I can buy a frame ready for mounting? Thanks!

I love this fly, Gre

I love this fly, Great job. Does anyone have a source for the small foam cylinders in various colors? I can't seem to find them. Thank you
Skip

Roger,

You can sa

Roger,

You can safely wash off any powder on skins you buy. It's either borax, salt or some preservation substance. If you keep the skins dry and have them stored in Ziploc bags, you're fairly sure that no bugs will find their way to them.

Take care when rinsing the starling skins. They can be rather thin and will become fragile when soaked. Simply rinse them shortly and maybe add a bit of soap and rinse again if they are very dirty.

Martin

What about bird skin

What about bird skins like starling that sometimes might come with white powder on them (borax or drying agent for killing bugs?) I was told that sometimes the skins carry larvae and the powder is meant to kill them just in case. Is it ok to wash them and wash off that white powder?

great looking tie.

great looking tie. what type of foam is that? It looks like bigger cells than regular craft foam.

Wonderful work. I h

Wonderful work. I have been trying to find the correct pen and ink to do the job without much success. Can you tell me what pen(s) you use and what do you use for ink. I have seen and read several articles about using paints that seem to work pretty well.

Thanks and again beautifule work