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First attempt at the Infallible.
Tied in hand.
Out the herl head.
I should’ve tied the woodduck tip down.
I lost the gp centre tail behind the wd. I just can’t marry this thing...
I am happy with the head this time. Which is a huge accomplishment! 🤣
I couldn’t tie it as clean as I wanted it but I have done worst!
I wish I had claret silk.
As always, pointers very welcome! Thanks.
Wow! Really nice 👍
Definitely my all time favourite out of your hands!!!! Superb tying right there 👌
That's awesome 👏👏👏
That's a beautiful pattern and outstanding tying!
Awesome!
🔥 yes sir, really beautiful
Very nice! I’d just say keep that wood duck a little higher, tips up or down don’t matter much. Just needed to be up the middle of the wing and following the curvature of the wing. It’s nice to be at a point where it’s just little details to fix 😁
Lil 💎 Really like it Jacquis !
Beautiful tying Jaquis!
Wow!!!!! 👌👌👌
You're coming on nicely, beautiful fly. Go a tad thicker on the woody too next time. Best G
Yeah man, your tying is coming along. Very nice indeed.
Popham
Sz-5 vintage iron
Sorry about that throat Robert Verkerk but at this size ... I tried lol
Wing a bit messy
4/0 Colonel, took some liberties with the pattern. Forgot the horns, and used embossed for the rib.
This is a gorgeous fly. Wow! 👏
Busy week.....
Great work - practice makes perfect! Dx
Love these! Hard work, i really know that! 👊
Wow!! That would have done my back in 😂😂😂
Q.
Is there a trick to make the jay hackle fibers curved instead of spiky like this? When I wet them, they lie backwards ok but they stay straight as hell.
Thanks!
I make sure all fibres stand 90 degrees on the rachis before I wrap. I found that that at least gives them a decent orientation. To get some curve, I soak them in a lot of saliva and put the fly as you have it now, on a glass plate. Then force an exaggerated curve to them and let dry, then leave for an entire day. Much of the curve comes undone, but some of it remains until the first time you fish the fly.
I prefer to tie it in rather than wrap it
Thanks gentlemen. I note everything and I greatly appreciate your help! More flies to come and they should look better! 🤘🏻
So now I have dressed that ugly worm. What else am I going to do with that tinsel chenille? :-/
The comet
I mentioned the Mrs Grant on your other post, it’s one I’ve always wanted to tie even though it’s ugly as hell
You can send me some
Gimme some 😂
Snart er det jul.
3/0 Candlestick Maker...I have always liked this dressing, I think its the body with the golden olive and the claret. Compliments the other parts of the fly.
For some unknown reason the tag looks awfully fat, not as bad in the hand...camera adds 5lbs or so they say.
Love it, one of my favourites👏👏👏
Another Baron on a 2/0. Kind of lost this one at the end. Also went a bit heavy on the roof! It still needs a coat or two of varnish...
Lovely looking fly.
My effort at Arno Geldenhuys Major. I'm either brave or stupid following on from Dave's showing or both ;0))
Lovely looking fly.
Gorgeous!
Another beaut Richard! I like it a lot. Man you guys are setting the bar high!
Top notch tying, hats off Richard 👌
Lovely tying Richard. I love the profile on this one!
Awesome tying!
Being brave and stupid pays off! 🤣
Damn nice man
One of your best! Killer body
Excellent Richard nice old school look to this one. i second swissy.
Thank you gents. I'm looking forward to seeing other variants. I know Arno has one on the go.
Glow Worm, using copper tinselled chenille I found some weeks ago. Weird stuff. Like tinsel for dubbing. Cool to work with and will look cool in the water. Messed up the body segments, so I sacrificed the head to compensate. Nothing special, actually, but still part of the heritage.
You forgot the wing : )
We don’t see this one often, great job on this cool pattern.
Good to see that type of fly. Looks super nice!
Mrs. Grant next?
Cool looking material!
Cool, Very Cool!
Awesome! I love grubs In the vise. Then I get it to the water, and fish them...and I have second thoughts lol.
Nice find Robert 👍.. As I mentioned to Stuart there is at least one Marbury pattern - photo attached - that uses this type of chenille. I've never seen it and always wondered what was used on this pattern called Massasaga in terms of the body - Looking at this picture I am starting to wonder now if this was copper, maybe gold - I'm sure it has some tarnish so makes it abit harder to determine.
Heres a closeup of body -
Major 6/0 - my tying of Arno's lovely original. A huge fly for me nowadays (apart from the big hybrid speys, Nicholsons etc I've tied recently). Added the claret hackles into the wing as they're in every version I know. Much more 'full dressed' in style than most Majors. Quite pleased with this one, but need to do some better 6/0 hooks. Dx
I've never wanted to try this one until I have seen what you have done Dave! Truly inspiring! Now the material search is on! Full Flex wishes!
I see Claret hackle in the original’s wing
Got in close and I reckon it's the horns from the far side - though older the pic I have defo shows hackles in there. Dx
Arno sent me pictures and he describes claret hackles in the wing.
Oh wow!! Dave that is an absolute beautiful fly and it has just become my favorite fly! Thank you for tying it.
BOOM! Cracking job.
So wonderful Dave !!!! i think it's the most beautiful fly i saw from you ! love it !!!!
You're a fussy bu**er Dave 😝. Superb job as per usual, must have a go at one of these when i find a decent shark hook. 😂
Love the color combo on this variation. Killer fly, Dave.
1/0 Buchan; my first real go at a maned fly... huge room for improvement. Looks more like overgrown, unkempt armpit hair dyed rainbow decorated with plumage... a whole new take on “hair feathers”. Next time I’ll use less mohair for sure, which will clearly assist the wing and make the cheeks sit more flush.
Looks great to me!
"Overgrown armpit!" 😅
That’s quite a pattern! My mohair is also very curved and crazy like that, making it hard to get any decent flow to the wing with any length.
Looks like it would be a killer fly for steelhead. Name sounds familiar 😉
Great looking fly Tony! Looks like most of the Taos women! Gotta Wear Velcro gloves to catch em!
Did my best to get as close as possible to the Black Dose from the CFT gallery that Robert posted this week.
I believe I did not levelled enough over the tippets stems so the veiling is too high.
Quickly wrapped a wool head without varnish to redo the wings someday.
That’s a beaut! Longer tippets might help to, but honestly just nit picking.
I love it.
🤩 beautiful fly , I love it too
Love it!!!!!
That is a spectacular fly. The original uses an overshank, allowing for longer, slimmer tippets, and the veil slips are much sparser. Yours is a cracking job though!
Lovely looking fly.
Fantastic looking build well done 👏🔥💯
Huge thanks gentlemen for the feedback, I honestly still think it’s not that nice but I appreciate your thoughts. ✌️
An antique patterns from Farlow, tied in hand per Kelson
Briliant. Dx
Yeah, superb!
Top tying!
Magnificent!
That’s a superb Black jay right there 🔝.
Sweet
Outstanding tying!
Red doctor, skipped the wool head, and jc too short.
Lovely build buddy 💯👏🔥
Lovely looking fly.
Photos from Eros Tommasi's post
You are doing great my friend !! (Y)
thank you my friend, your compliment is an honor for me
Namsen for fishing.
Tough to dress sexy. You pulled it off.
Wow, that’s stunning! For what it’s worth, my favorite rendition of this pattern!
Lovely tying - always looks very fishy to me. Dx
Lovely looking fly.
Installment 2
**Materials**
**“Jy kan noe koek bak met kak nie!”**
Directly translated this means, you can’t bake cake with shit!
Salmon flies are no different. The quality of the materials you use will have a direct impact on the final product that rolls off your vice .
The best way to buy materials is to look at them, touch them and experience them for yourself before you buy them. Feathers are a natural product and will thus differ from bird to bird. A physical sorting process is thus beneficial.
Unfortunately most tyers are dependant on online shopping due to the fact that we live in remote corners of the world where Classic tying is a very Niche persuit. We’re largely dependant on what material suppliers send us. If the quality is bad there is very little that can be done about it. That’s why it’s important buying stuff from reputable sources.
Steve Cooper from Cookeshill is probably tops of the pops when it comes to quality and consistency. I bought some GP heads along with a few other things from him a while ago that were amongst the best I’ve ever seen. The proof of the pudding is in the eating. Classic tyers from across the world praise the quality and service that Steve provides on a daily basis on Facebook.
John Mclain from Feathers MC is also very good, have bought goose from him that tied out to 5/0 with clean edges that looked more like they belong on turkey. Look, this stuff is more the exception than the rule but it does exist.
John has also been single handedly responsible for making Kori Bustard accessible to the masses through an agreement he has with a Kori Bustard breeding programme.
Always be on the lookout for lots that come on sale from widowers of deceased Classic tyers. This might seem grim but Classic tyers are hoarders by nature. Most tyers I know will never use up all the material they own. A good example of this was G M Kelson himself! Stuart Hardy is currently the custodian of what has become known as “ the Kelson collection” . Bits and pieces of it still remain in private ownership by people who came into it via a mystery lot at an auction of an old estate.
Some people occasionally sell bits of their excess materials. There are a few forums on facebook where one can do this. Some nice materials can be purchased like this.
Bartering is also a very good way to get decent materials. I’ve attained excellent stuff over the years through trades with other tyers who’ve become my friends in the process. Having a decent network is essential. Facebook has made communication with other tyers very easy so connecting with people is a lot easier than it was say 20 years ago. Tyers , Pet shops, Zoos, Bird Parks, Pet owners, aviarys , pheasantries and taxidermists are all worth knowing. You just never know what’s going to come up!
A very well written post and very true however there is one big thing about ordering online for people in Australia...customs and quarantine....they will not allow you to have any animal products unless they go through Lucas heights reactor...which costs a fortune...plain feathers with no skin can be brought in..however they must not Identify with anything listed on the cites list...black bear for instance is considered a pest in north America however its on the cites list and cannot be imported here...peacock has now been put on endangered list...not allowed Etc etc...it is so very difficult to get good quality feathers and fur these days unless a major supplier gets them in and that doesnt happen here unless there is a bigger market for it so the tyer is oh so very restricted to he or she may be able to tie with
So Gordon, don’t forget me in your will, and I won’t forget you in mine! You’ll no doubt score though🤣
Corbett
Size 2
New Hardy Book
I combed my white tip out to give the underwing more pizazz ( IMO)
That is an absolutely superb head. Wing a tad long, otherwise great fly!
I’m with Robert, your flies are getting better every time mate 👍
Great job. Dx
