Video: How to Tie a Scotty’s McFly

Smelt are among the main forage species for many game fish that live in lake-and-river systems. Whether you’re casting for landlocked salmon, smallmouth bass, or pike, you’ll want to have a few of these bright patterns in the box. Scott Currie of . . .

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Video: How to Measure Hackles

One of the keys to a well-proportioned fly pattern is using the correct size hackle. And it’s not just about the appearance of the fly, as most dry-fly patterns depend on a certain length of hackle to ride properly on the . . .

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Video: How to Tie the Calico Caddis

In the latest how-to tying video from Tightline Productions, Tim Flagler walks you through the steps to create a two-tone caddis-larva imitation that looks buggy as heck. He notes than net-spinning caddisflies (of the family Hydropsychidae) . . .

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Video: How and Why to Use Maximum Thread Tension

In this great video, Tim explains why he believes that thread tension is the key to improving the quality, look, and durability of your flies, and then he sets about showing how to achieve this level of tension. From adjusting your bobbin to bracing the . . .

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Video: How to Debarb Hooks Before You Tie

If you like to fish barbless–the value of which is a debate for another day–you’ll find it’s much easier to do a good job mashing the hook barb before you tie the fly. That way, no materials are in the way, and you’re not trying to do . . .

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Video: How to Tie the March Brown Emerger

Since it’s the first of March, it seems like a good time to start tying March Browns–even though these mayflies don’t start hatching until mid-May in some parts of the country. On a fishless evening on the Battenkill a few years ago, I had the opportunity to . . .

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Video: How to Make Hare’s-Ear Dubbing

This week, Tim shows you how to make two kinds of hare’s-ear dubbing–one for abdomens and one for thoraxes. He shows you which parts of the hare’s mask to cut from and the how to blend the different kinds of hairs. You may never want to buy . . .

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Video: How to Tie the Corded Cased Caddis

In the latest great fly-tying video from Tightline Productions, Tim Flagler shows you how to tie a cased-caddis imitation that, weirdly, has a tail. While this may offend die-hard hatch-matchers, I have a strong belief that, . . .

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Video: How to Touch-Dub for a Buggy Effect

There are many ways to use dubbing to create bodies, thoraxes, and such on a fly, and each creates a different effect. Here, Tim demonstrates a technique called “touch dubbing,” which . . .

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