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Tips For Fly Tying

by Elaine- Fly tying chairman

Instead of a specific fly to tie this month I’m sharing some tips that ought to help you tie more flies in the future.

1. There are various methods to thread a bodkin. My favorite is using a ” floss threaded” which is a dental item that is sold in most pharmacies. I advise never using the wire tool that is designed for that purpose. It will score the inside and in turn cause thread to fray and break.

2. While trying to tie a particular fly, it helps to prevent materials from being lost in the clutter or blow away in the wind you using a clip or cloths pin.  For your hooks, glue a magnet to the base of your vise.

3.  Bodkins usually get freshly applied glue out of the hook eye but a feather is really effective.

4. Frustrated with the hole in your glue bottle being glued shut? Try this, after each use quickly wipe with a cloth, re-establish  hole with a safety pin or bodkin, then cap right away. If that doesn’t work try a flame  heated pin. Also cutting off the tip will often get below the hardened glue.

5. Hardened glue on bodkin or safety pin can easily be scraped off with a razor blade.