Needing A Little Advice

[Flatbottom Boy]

I’m getting ready to leave the country for a year for work. I need some help getting supplies/stash ready for tying. Although I’m guessing my free time will be somewhat limited I want to fill it with becoming a better fly tier. My skills right now are limited to only tying a few Wooly’s and midges. I want to get better at tying it all. I have a small stash right now that I use for tying jigs and the some other small stuff I basically just mess around with. I need more..

My fishing locations normally include the Current, Taney, and Niangua for trout. I would like to be able to tie up flies used for all circumstances for these rivers, with some emphasis on streamers. Not really interested in the big ol articulated stuff just the basics. Piney/Gasconade for smallmouth. I really want to get more into flyfishing these locations. I also like tying jigs and would like to create more of a standard rather than just winging it.

So with that, if you were leaving for a year to a location you couldn’t fish but wanted to fill your time with tying flies…what would you take? Jig heads/Hooks, sizes/styles…dubbing…hair.. Paint for jig heads that doesn’t require an oven. Any help you all could give me would be great. Remember I’m pretty much a newbie to this so you might need to break it down a little. Thanks in advance, I will be living vicariously through you guys for the next year!

[Lancer09]

Work on your nymphs. The standard pheasant tails and hares ears as Well. Look three reports and what people are catching on.

Look up what you need and get enough for you to tie a couple dozen of each size and color you would fish. By the time you do that many you'll be real good. Your standard dries would be good too. Adams, stimis bwo s.

[ness]

Nothing wrong with Woolies!

I'd suggest you get a good tying book -- one that covers the basic styles: dries, nymphs, streamers, wet flies, poppers. I assume you've got a vice, some tools, threads, hooks, etc. Then get the materials you need to tie the ones you're most likely to use. On my list would probably be Stimulator, Madame X, Elk Hair Caddis, Adams dries; Pheasant Tail, Hare's Ear, Copper John, Prince nymphs; Clouser Minnows, Wooly Buggers, Thunder Creek streamers; I don't fish wets much, but I'v always got a few soft hackles with me. Poppers are fun to 'tie' from styrofoam or cork bodies. Check the suggestions for materials you'd need, but I'd say get some buck tail, elk hair, marabou, gold wire, hare's mask, pheasant tails, at a minimum.

[Buzz]

Just curious, where will you be going for the next year?

[fishinwrench]

Remind me when you come over and I'll show you some patterns, I can probably help out your material stash too.

[duckydoty]

Eric,

Pick up a chartreuse, a black and a grey pine squirrel skin, a couple hundred size 10, 3x long streamer hooks and a hundred or so 5/32 black nickel cyclops beads for the hooks. Pine squirrel sculpins are easy to tie and rank right up there with the woolly buggers. Both can be tied on the same streamer hook as mentioned above. Also get some flashy dubbing and marabou in colors you like to experiment with both the wooly buggers and pine squirrel sculpins.

[Flatbottom Boy]

Nothing wrong with Woolies!

I'd suggest you get a good tying book -- one that covers the basic styles: dries, nymphs, streamers, wet flies, poppers. I assume you've got a vice, some tools, threads, hooks, etc. Then get the materials you need to tie the ones you're most likely to use. On my list would probably be Stimulator, Madame X, Elk Hair Caddis, Adams dries; Pheasant Tail, Hare's Ear, Copper John, Prince nymphs; Clouser Minnows, Wooly Buggers, Thunder Creek streamers; I don't fish wets much, but I'v always got a few soft hackles with me. Poppers are fun to 'tie' from styrofoam or cork bodies. Check the suggestions for materials you'd need, but I'd say get some buck tail, elk hair, marabou, gold wire, hare's mask, pheasant tails, at a minimum.

Great idea on the book Ness. I was planning on watching some of the videos on here too for help with some of the flies. Do you have any suggestions on which books, there seem to be quite a few?

[Flatbottom Boy]

Just curious, where will you be going for the next year?

South Korea....I just found an american bass club over there so I will be researching that a little.

[Flatbottom Boy]

Eric,

Pick up a chartreuse, a black and a grey pine squirrel skin, a couple hundred size 10, 3x long streamer hooks and a hundred or so 5/32 black nickel cyclops beads for the hooks. Pine squirrel sculpins are easy to tie and rank right up there with the woolly buggers. Both can be tied on the same streamer hook as mentioned above. Also get some flashy dubbing and marabou in colors you like to experiment with both the wooly buggers and pine squirrel sculpins.

Thanks Duane, I was hoping that you would throw in your two cents. I picked up some mink from Phil's shop the other day. I will be down there again this next weekend so I kinda wanted to go in there with a list to help me. I also picked up the "olive" color you showed me, looks kinda chartruese.

What about jigs guys... I'm interested in what sizes for smallmouth, goggle eye, and trout. Also the paint for the heads. Are there paints out there that you don't need to bake on? I'm not thinking I will have an oven.

[ness]

I haven't kept up on tying books. The one I learned on was by Eric Leiser. It's about 30 years old, but a good one.