Whit flee noo.

[chrishconnolly]

I'm sure many of us have done it first run down the pool and nothing taking but you know fish are there what will I try next.
Open the box to an array of fur and feather and trying to choose is a nightmare and it signals a chop and change spree.
Soooo after much deliberation I have decided my boxes are going to be thinned and an array of flees sent to new owners but that's another story.
I have decided next year I will have various sizes of flee in just 3 patterns yes just 3.
So what were my final choices. I have
Gone down the traditional Willie Gunn
The newer cascade/ flame thrower and a snaelda pattern.
So not the vast array and less time contemplating and more time fishing.
If you could only fish 3 what would they be ???

 

[scoops]

1/2” monkey tubes
1/2” cascade hot head tubes
Posh tosh type doubles

 

[Loxie]

I pretty much only use 4 "patterns". I have a few specials for specific tasks but my big four for doing nearly all or it are, in no particular order: Monkey, Beetle, Snaelda and Sunray.

Specials are nymphs, bombers, snakes, mufflers and mini plastic tubes.

I carry some "ordinary" wet flies: silver stoat, stoat, squirrel cascade and silver/orange shrimp mainly but rarely use them. When I do it's normally as a dropper.

I'd suggest that rather than worry about patterns go for different styles: I really don't believe a salmon will refuse a Willie Gunn but take a cascade, but it might refuse a snaelda but take a Sunray.

 

[Salarspeycaster]

I can only seem to narrow it down to 4 patterns, and I have to admit they are what I have been using for a good few seasons now.

Black and Yellow Gledswood
Cascade
Pert Shrimp
Francis

Tied as dressed, coneheads and tubes.
That’s it.

 

[Lamson v10]

Willie gunn
Willie gunn
OH and a Willie gunn

 

[Andrew B]

Better to have various sizes for that change fly I’d of thought?

 

[Elibank]

1. Willie Gunn

2. Gold-bodied Willie Gunn

3. Another of No.1, alternatively No. 2.

 

[The flying Scotsman]

Black yellow monkey
Gold bodied Willie gunn
Park shrimp conehead

 

[Rennie]

Not so much as changing the flee, more change what you do with it and how you do it!
Pedro.

 

[ACW]

Silk cut shrimps ,doubles singles tubes and the odd sunray type things

 

[keirstream]

It's interesting that most folk only use 4 patterns and some only 1.
Why then, when you all go to fish, do you need a trailer and roof box to carry all your flies?
Secret Society and JJ are my 2 top summer and early autumn flies but I struggle to find them in among
all the useless Willie Gunns, sunrays, monkeys, frances and cascady thingies that have choked the boot of my car because of all you
fly guys.

 

[HOWKEMOOT]

Another vote for the WG in various guises, mostly tubes remainder doubles.

M

 

[ozzyian]

I'm sure many of us have done it first run down the pool and nothing taking but you know fish are there what will I try next.
Open the box to an array of fur and feather and trying to choose is a nightmare and it signals a chop and change spree.
Soooo after much deliberation I have decided my boxes are going to be thinned and an array of flees sent to new owners but that's another story.
I have decided next year I will have various sizes of flee in just 3 patterns yes just 3.
So what were my final choices. I have
Gone down the traditional Willie Gunn
The newer cascade/ flame thrower and a snaelda pattern.
So not the vast array and less time contemplating and more time fishing.
If you could only fish 3 what would they be ???

I'll give this experiment 3 weeks





You have a very good point, like most I have countless patterns that sit unused cluttering up the flyboxes and I should really simplify the whole mess. I'm not at all convinced that you need any more than a few patterns - GBWG in tubes and cascades as dressed flies and a few variants on each is really all you need, so long as you can cover speed and depth, the rest of it is fishing them. If you tie your own I think you end up settling on a particular style anyway. Easier said than done though, I expect a photo of your flybox in 12 months

 

[Rrrr]

Cascade
Ponoi gold
Temple dog tube.

Sent from my SM-G981B using Tapatalk

 

[Rrrr]

It's interesting that most folk only use 4 patterns and some only 1.
Why then, when you all go to fish, do you need a trailer and roof box to carry all your flies?
Secret Society and JJ are my 2 top summer and early autumn flies but I struggle to find them in among
all the useless Willie Gunns, sunrays, monkeys, frances and cascady thingies that have choked the boot of my car because of all you
fly guys.

Ive got boxes of flees that either never get uses or ill fish them through once or twice and decide they dont work then go back to something ive got confidence in

Sent from my SM-G981B using Tapatalk

 

[Gustav]

Collie Dog variant
Cascade variant
Black Micro Francis variant

 

[clydesider]

Anyone on the riverbank with less than 100 flies is seriously underdressed!!
Mike

 

[keirstream]

Anyone on the riverbank with less than 100 flies is seriously underdressed!!
Mike

Mike,
most anglers I see have more than that in their bunnet.

 

[RUSH]

Clyde raider ghillie firetail cascade i don‘t usually stray to far from them

 

[RUSH]

And I should have mentioned anything mcandy ties with feelers/legs on it

 

[keirstream]

Clyde raider ghillie firetail cascade i don‘t usually stray to far from them

Whit???????
Nae Vision 110s?????????

 

[carbisdale caster]

Having calculated roughly how much time i'd waste staring at a box full of patterns several years back I only carry about three patterns in various sizes: Frances, Wullie Gunn and a wee tube I tie with a copper body (works well with a silver body too), black squirrel wing and a blue throat hackle (pictured on hooks but I prefer it on small plastic tubes)

 

[larry_grayson]

When I first started salmon fishing in the 70s I just took a few flies from my fathers box and lost them.
In the 80s he decided that it would be a good idea if I provided my own, this was fine but as I pointed out Doncaster was not a centre of salmon fly tying. He gave me the address of a friend of his in Aberlour and suggested that I drop him a line explaining my position and asking for help, this was aided by the inclusion of a £10 note. After about a week I received an envelope stuffed with Monroe Killers and Stoats Tails for which I was very grateful. In my wisdom I opted to added some orange shrimp flies (not Ally's) and these 3 flies lasted me until the end of the 88 season when I gave up salmon fishing. When I realized the error of my ways in 2018 I also developed the bug for tying salmon flies. Now I have about 8 fly boxes full and several containers of tube flies.
Am I any more successful, I think not but I'm still addicted.

 

[mc andy]

Clyde raider ghillie firetail cascade i don‘t usually stray to far from them

I Was going to mention that conversation pleading with me to tie you more feeler flees up cause the one you had was worn oout!

 

[RUSH]

It's interesting that most folk only use 4 patterns and some only 1.
Why then, when you all go to fish, do you need a trailer and roof box to carry all your flies?
Secret Society and JJ are my 2 top summer and early autumn flies but I struggle to find them in among
all the useless Willie Gunns, sunrays, monkeys, frances and cascady thingies that have choked the boot of my car because of all you
fly guys.

Nae floating devons