Friday, September 30, 2011

Trash Fly Tools

I am going to focus on some ideas for DIY tools. Tools made from common items and 'trash'.

Hair Evener


Copper pipe and fittings.
Flair the tube with a common flaring tool.
Cut a small piece of the tube and slide in the barrel and glue at the bottom to make the step.


Tool Caddy that attaches to the shaft of the vise or similar fixture.

Tool Holder

Drill into soft plastic strip. In this case it was a scrap from a bathroom stall divider. Chamfer the top of the hole to make it easier to slide the most frequently used tools in.

Hurl stripping tool


White vinyl eraser cut with a circular punch. Fit a nail or screw into the middle. Quick way to take the fur off of hurl with a drill or drill press.

Like to hear your comments and thoughts.

Sunday, September 25, 2011

Woolly Bugger with one Material

We all know that the Woolly Bugger is a fly pattern to count on. It really catches a lot of fish. Not just trout but a wide array of species. From carp to flounder Buggers do a fine business. The Woolly Bugger is also probably one of the most customized well known patterns. Lots of tiers new to the vise start their journey getting the Woolly Bugger right.

Well I am messing with it again. I personally like a Bugger. Probably tie them the most of any pattern through out the year. The other day my mind wandered to them. I was thinking about hackle and tails. Fashion trends and material variations.

Then it hit! Could you tie a bugger with only one material. Now we know I'm probably a little weird if I have a site called Trash Flies. This idea bounced around. But what material?

Yarn?

Why not?

But yarn?

It's cheap or free depending on your connections. It's easy to work with. It comes in a myriad of colors.

So!



Hook: #10 2x Nymph
Head: Brass Cone
Weight: Lead wire
Tail: Lt Green Yarn brushed out
Body: Olive Yarn
Hackle: Lt Green Yarn twisted into a dubbing brush around fine wire.

Will it work? Comment.

I am going to make the hackle brush much sparser in future attempts.

Saturday, September 17, 2011

Three Phase Molted Midge

   The other day I was walking through one of the shops at school and noticed an electrician working. He was wiring in a piece of equipment, one that required a three phase line. He was stripping the wires for his connection. On the table I noticed some interesting fibers. It was some of the reinforcing from the wire. Without really even thinking it left my mouth, I asked 'can I have that'. He looked at what I was pointing at. With an expression somewhere between puzzled and mildly irritated he said 'sure'. I picked up my treasure and when back to my office. The fiber laid there on my desk for a couple of days. I picked it up several times as my mind would wonder away from my lesson plans and projects. Just couldn't come up with exactly what it would be good for on the tying bench.


Seems like my tying tastes have often swung toward midges between patterns for warm water trips and terrestrials for small trout streams. I do like to fish midges on the tail-waters and in the colder months.

This is what formed up from that 'molted' looking fiber.

Working Name: Three Phase Molted Midge


Hook: #20 Scud
Bead: Small tungsten
Body: Three phase wire insulation fiber.
Thread and Collar: Blk Gordon Griffith 14/0

Thursday, September 8, 2011

USB (Universal Serial Bus) and midges

Now if you've been here before you have seen flies of several well know patterns get the 'Trash Fly' treatment ear bud headphones. Some prime examples are John Barr's Copper John and a variety of caddis pupae's. Well here's a new twist on a common wire that's around a lot homes and business. A lot of us use USB (Universal Serial Bus) cables for everything from uploading pictures to charging our music storage devices. One of my Technical Drafting students was moping about his USB cable for recharging his smart phone being broken. He offered it to me and said can you make a fly from this? Now I consider that statement a personal challenge and definitely something I had not thought about before. So here's two different midges made from USB cable materials for your consideration.


First here is the cable in question broken down.



Zebra Midge Variant


Hook: #22 Scud
Tail: Gold Krystal Flash scrap
Body: Blk 14/0 Gordon Griffith Thread
Bead: Small Tungsten
Rib: Wire shielding and/or ground from a USB cable

Blue Metal Midge


Hook: #22 Scud
Body: Blue side of the foil in a USB cable
Bead: Small Tungsten
Rib: Wire shielding and/or ground from a USB cable

Who knows maybe this will set of a spark for more USB patterns? As always comments and opinions are welcome. What do you think?



Friday, September 2, 2011

Headphone Wire Midge #22

Hook: #22 Scud
Bead: Small Tunsten
Thread: Blk 8/0
Body: Rd Headphone wire

I have been tying and writing about using 'headphone' wire in flies for awhile now. It's a great material because it is made of many tiny strands. This weekend I am planning a trip to the local tail-water and midges often are the fly of choice. The fish's choice that is. So I am thinking about midges. Also just realized I didn't have a article together for the blog. So here's a small 'Trash Fly' for your consideration. Trash Flies don't just have to big creations.

The wire is tied in as a normal midge to the shank. Wrap it back and secure. Leave the thread tail to wrap back over the wire for a rib. Whip finish and coat with head cement, lacquer, or super glue.

Looking forward to testing this pattern out on some 'midge eating' brown trout.

As always feel free to comment. Your thoughts are appreciated.