Pretty ugly but everyone has to start somewhere.
Posted Mar 16, 2020, 2:33 PM UTC
7414
Some of my ugliest flies caught fish when I started. I still use some that I have left on occasion.
5
Going to try them tomorrow!
4
Mine were a mess in the beginning and it’s great to look at them just a few months later as you progress. Keep it up!
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Less is generally more when tying flies. Thin them down and dont tie in the bend of hook and you will be golden.
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Send ‘em over- I can hang them in a tree with the best tied patterns in the world
3
I’m no expert but I would say go with a slightly slimmer profile as a rule on all of your flies. If you watch or read famous tyers like Dave Hughes, Kelly Galloup, etc., their trout flies have a very slender profile. In my own experience, I’ve seen finicky native trout refuse a fly that is too rotund. Less is more, especially when you transition into dry flies. Keep tying every day and watching the legends tie and to you’ll be able to eyeball consistent proportions in no time.
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they'll catch, maybe not the most timid of trout but they will catch, and the first time you catch on your own tied fly is amazing.
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My wife said that first time we met...
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Just remind her that her flaws are what prevented her from getting a better husband.
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It's good you started simple, and these are not as bad as you think. Do yourself a favor and begin on bigger hooks. Nothing smaller than 14 until you get your legs under you.
Constructive Criticisms:
You have a good taper on the bottom two.
On all of them, you went way too far around the bend of the hook, you will have trouble getting hooksets on these. Make your flies shorter.
On the top one, It looks like you have some weird bunching at the collar. Potato prevents identification, but the taper is broken.
On the middle one, you went too heavy on the collar. Make them like the bottom one.
On the bottom one, -this is a good fly except being too long.
Thanks! Spot on. I appreciate the feedback.
NP, follow the dubbing rule: "Take the amount you need, then put 50% - 66% of it back."
I’ve been tying for a decade or so and one of the things i still have to watch is how much material (especially thread) I lay down. I think that for fly tying in most cases less is more. Resisting that urge to add a couple more turns of thread is hard but will help I think.
^ This