Well, there you are.. And very well put, I am endeavoring to learn as I go
and getting better, no 32's yet, ( don't even know what that hook would look
like..8^))
Good to see back on my friend, was getting concerned.
Jimi
OK, My pittance worth...
Bob brought up the issue based on hackle trimming, and mostly pointed at
small flies.
>From what I'm hearing, if you don't have hackle small enough, trim it.
If you have trouble with wings on small flies, just leave them out.
At one time trimming hackles was almost necessary. And winging size 18 and
smaller can be a real chore. Let's look at a few 'rules' of our little
sport here:
Rule 1. On any given day, a trout may eat just about anything he can
swallow.
Rule 2. On any given day, a trout may be extremely selective-
for what...every situation is different.
Rule 3. Your advantage, as a tier, is that you can prepare yourself for
rule 2. Any one
can be prepared for rule one.
Rule 4. Your skills as a tier determine how well you can prepare yourself
for rule 2.
Rule 5. Your skills as a tier can overcome a lack of adequate materials,
but are definately augmented by a diverse and
adequate selection of materials.
Rule 6. Better to be over-prepared than underprepared.
Next is 'purism' vs 'pragmatism', tradition vs 'adequacy'.
We're all here because we love our sport. Where we settle in reflects our
personality. How we progress reflects our personality and committment. Are
we comfortable with adequate and status quo? That's OK. Are we
over-achievers, bent on giving it 10 when 5 will do. That's OK too. Plenty
of room for all of us.
Now let's look at Han's proposition:
Most of the gist of his letter points to the opinions about what we do-
whether to trim or to omit wings. I personally would go with the group
consensus of fishing guides if I'm dealing with the practical aspects of
fish-catching on trimmed and wingless flies. Why? They make their living
off of fishing success and opinions matter for naught. But then, whatever
they say works for their waters, winged or not, I'm prepared. Rule 2.
But if I'm being limited in what I tie by shortcomings, either in myself or
with the materials, I see that as the challenge of my sport. Winging and
hackling that size 22 is just as much enjoyment and accomplishment and
catching that 4 pound brown with that same fly on a 6x tippet and a 3wt rod.
Yeah, he would have taken a size 8 hopper on a 1x tippet on my 9wt.
He would also have taken power bait on a closed-face spinning reel. Yes, I
could have caught him on a wingless, trimmed hackle fly, but maye not, too.
So 'what if' the big brown was being selective, and winged flies did make a
difference that day to him. Can we accept the fact that we're unprepared
because we decided to forgo wings because they are just too hard for us? If
I flat don't believe wings are necessary, that's one thing, but maybe that
guy a hundred feet down the river- the one catching fish on almost every
cast- the one with wings on his dry fly- knows something we don't.
To Han's question... If you really feel that wings are not necessary at all
on a certain size and below, then leave them off. If you feel this way only
because you can't tie them on, then learn how to tie small winged flies,
even if it's a spent-wing style. If you can't tie small winged flies
because you have ball-park franks for fingers, I understand. My big ol'
nubs make it real difficult to wing a size 32 fanwing coachmen, so I
understand. If you really can't tie wings on midges, just say that and
don't adopt the opinion they they aren't needed- but read the last sentence.
So I agree with Hans in this apect.
The excuse of inadequate materials no longer exists, either. Whiting has
midge saddles that make hackling a #24 a simple process. As Bob H. has
found out, Whiting 'Winger Capes' are just the ticket for people who have
problems with small winged flies. If you're good enough to tie the hackle
on a #22, you'e good enough to tie Winger wings on a #22.
And to all of you who think your fingers limit you in what you can tie, I
would like to introduce you to a tier here in town. His name is Ralph Moon.
He's in his 80's. He needs double magnification in order to see to tie.
His fingers are so terribly deformed and crippled by advanced arthritis that
it is a miracle he can even HOLD the flytying tools, much less tie ANY fly.
He does a damn good job of tying MUSTAD #32 flies! Winged, too.
DonO
