Tie your first flies.
Tying your own flies is cheaper, oddly relaxing, and there's nothing like catching a fish on something you made. You don't need a fortune in kit or years of practice - a handful of tools and six forgiving patterns will get you catching. Here's where to start.
The five tools to start
Clamps the hook rock-steady so both hands are free to work.
Holds the thread spool and feeds it under control - the tool you hold most.
Fine, sharp points for trimming close. A cheap pair blunts fast; buy one good pair.
Ties off the head with a tidy, secure knot. A few half-hitches work in a pinch.
A needle on a handle - picks out fibres, frees trapped hackle, dabs head cement.
Add a spool of thread, a bag of beads and a few packs of the materials below, and you're tying. A cheap starter kit covers most of it.
Six flies to learn, in order
MaterialsHook #12-16, red thread, red Ultra Chenille (or Vernille).
- Pinch the hook in the vise and lay a base of thread along the shank.
- Lay a length of chenille along the top of the shank and bind it down in the middle, leaving both ends hanging.
- Wrap thread to secure it, build a small thread ball at each tie-in point so the worm stands proud.
- Whip finish, add a drop of head cement, and singe the chenille ends with a lighter for a tapered tip.
MaterialsHook #6-10 (streamer), black thread, bead, marabou, chenille, saddle hackle.
- Slide a bead to the eye, clamp the hook, and start the thread behind the bead.
- Tie in a marabou tail about a shank-length long, then tie in a saddle hackle by its tip and a length of chenille at the tail.
- Wrap the chenille forward to the bead and tie it off - that's the body.
- Palmer (spiral) the hackle forward over the body in open turns, tie off behind the bead.
- Build a thread head, whip finish, add head cement.
MaterialsHook #16-20, black thread, silver bead, fine silver wire.
- Slide a small bead on and start thread behind it, catching in a length of fine wire at the bend.
- Wrap thread smoothly forward to form a slim, slightly tapered body.
- Counter-wrap the wire forward in evenly spaced turns for the 'zebra' rib and tie it off.
- Whip finish behind the bead. That's it - deadly and quick.
MaterialsHook #14-18, brown thread, pheasant-tail fibres, fine copper wire, peacock herl (optional).
- Start thread and tie in a few pheasant-tail fibre tips at the bend for a short tail, plus a length of copper wire.
- Wrap the pheasant fibres forward as a body and tie off two-thirds up the shank.
- Rib the body with open turns of copper wire (it protects the fragile fibres) and tie off.
- Build a small thorax with peacock herl or dubbing, whip finish, cement.
MaterialsHook #18-22 (dry), grey thread, peacock herl, grizzly hackle.
- Start thread and tie in one strand of peacock herl and a small grizzly hackle by the stem at the bend.
- Wrap the peacock herl forward to the eye for a fuzzy body and tie off.
- Palmer the hackle forward through the body in open turns so the fibres stick out all round, and tie off.
- Whip finish a tiny head - keep it neat, these are small.
MaterialsHook #12-16 (dry), tan thread, dubbing, brown hackle, elk body hair.
- Start thread, tie in a hackle at the bend, and dub a tapered body up the shank.
- Palmer the hackle forward over the body in open turns and tie it off at the front.
- Clean and stack a small clump of elk hair, measure it a touch past the bend, and tie it in as a wing at the front.
- Trim the butt ends to a small head, whip finish over them, and add cement.
Now you know what each one is for: see when to fish them in the fly box, match them to the right rod with the fly rod & line matcher, and tie them on with a solid knot.
⚠️ A starting point - tying styles, materials and hook sizes vary widely, and the best way to learn is to tie alongside a video or a local club. Take care with sharp hooks and scissors, and keep head cement and tools away from children and pets.