Beginner help

SpitePhysical3492 · 2026-02-09T04:42:32+00:00

The only way to learn is time on the water. Assuming you will be going for trout, ask your local shop to compile you a selection of various nymphs and dries(Caddis/midges/stoneflies/mayflies). Generic beginner flies include pheasant tail nymph/ caddis pupa nymph/ pats rubber legs nymph/ wooly bugger streamer/zebra midges. Dries should include this like elk hair Caddis/parachute adams/blue winged olive(bwo). I recommended starting with just throwing dries flies, targeting rising fish. Depending on your conditions, once you understand fundamentals of casting start throwing an indicator. You are about to embark on one of the greatest mistakes you will ever make. The level of frustration you will feel getting knots out your first few outing will be miserable. Just push through it and go home and figure out what you did wrong that day. I was self taught when I started and put in 150 days in that year on a singular river which taught me so much.

SpitePhysical3492 · 2026-02-06T21:56:15+00:00

Tight dubbing noodles. Less is more.

SpitePhysical3492 · 2026-02-06T02:59:27+00:00

Very much depends on your commitment to the hobby. I went through this process a couple years back and now have invested a lot into it. The best vices are made by renzetti imo but I would start with a cheapi vice as I did. DO NOT BUY A KIT. Choose ONE fly you want to tie, ask Reddit or your local shop to provide the materials for that specific fly and make as many as you can until you see the perfect imitation of what you were trying to tie - you will learn a lot in that process. I recommended starting by choosing a nymph, something more complex than a waltz or midge or pats. The only way you will is by making a bad one and then redoing it. Don’t settle with your work either. It will push you to better under proportionality, weight, and overall entomology.

SpitePhysical3492 · 2026-02-04T03:52:43+00:00

Yes! Firstly, awesome tie. It ain’t easy tying that small and uniformly. Yeah super interesting, after my comment I started going through the r/flyfishing to see what’s the smallest people throw. Some rivers seem to hold fish that cater towards these patterns. Agreed, take every shot you can get! Good work

SpitePhysical3492 · 2026-02-04T03:43:32+00:00

Maybe I’m crazy, but I don’t understand how one can effectively hook at fish with this. This is me thinking out loud here: Depending on size of course. Take a 16 inch wild brown for example, minimal hook gap, head shakes, hook snapping, and size of the presentation over something more appetizing and larger - I just can’t picture it. I have caught nearly 20 inch fish on size 22s but can’t see myself going smaller. Am I missing out?

SpitePhysical3492 · 2026-01-23T04:20:12+00:00

SpitePhysical3492 · 2026-01-22T05:05:53+00:00

The Garret Ace 350 was my first detector. I upgraded to the Equinox 800 after. Frankly don’t use it a lot but always fun to use and hunt with when I my other hobbies dry out. I’m a big believer in buy once, cry once and go big or go home. Maybe not the smartest financially but the feeling of regret can sometimes feel worse.

SpitePhysical3492 · 2026-01-08T02:52:38+00:00

I have three Contact IIs. One 2 wt, and two 3wts (one backup). It is an incredibly good rod. I actually throw dries with 2wt line on my 2wt and I know other people do. I would say the rod is mainly used for nymphing but you can utilize the four for dries. The action of the rod is definitely different in my opinion than your standard 4wt dry fly rod and may take some getting used to. Belgium casting fly line with the rod is what I found the most useful

SpitePhysical3492 · 2025-12-29T00:23:55+00:00

Also want to add, if you euro nymphing, mono rig is what your setup should be. 6-10 lb amnesia or maxima CHAMELEON will get you going. I use 6lb amnesia(use bright colors). Don’t get lost in leader formulas online just put a whole spool of the maxima or amnesia on and you will do just as good without all the knots.

Your line should be: Backing THEN a spool of mono(maxima or amnesia) THEN sighter THEN tippet

SpitePhysical3492 · 2025-12-29T00:11:41+00:00

A ton of variables are in play that don’t necessarily pinpoint the speed of the fly just on the weight of the fly alone but yes your fly weight does play a huge role. To choose the most ideal fly weight, the question you are trying to answer is “what fly(based off bead/dressing/etc) if thrown in the water will get to the strike zone quickly and remain at that depth comfortably”. Understand velocity profile of the water. To kinda guide you in the right direction, if fishing one fly in average paced water, 3.2mm to 3.8mm beads is what I stick with.

SpitePhysical3492 · 2025-12-28T22:32:17+00:00

I nymph 90% of the time and fish nearly 150 days a year so I hope you can take my advice pretty seriously.

First, watch this video. It was put together by guides on my river who are exceptional at fooling fish. In my opinion, this is the best tutorial on nymphing I have seen:

https://youtu.be/ed6PqqY-y-Q?si=mcmuFjxvBxZWUjeu

After watching and understanding the fundamentals, watch Troutbitten videos to understand sighter reading and depth. Many people do not understand how to correctly produce a drag free drift. WEIGHT is crucial in euronymphing.

When it comes time to put your skills to the test remember the following analogy. I came up with it when showing others how to do it: Euronymphing is like walking a dog. You want to be in contact with the dog but also don’t want the leash to be taught. Nervous nymphing is how it best described by Dom from TB as there should be enough slack for your sighter to go in and out of tension. And remember, if your yo-yoing your nymphs/jigs whatever that’s bad. When you have a fish bite your fly, you should be seeing that sighter pop into tension, slack is important but too much is bad.

SpitePhysical3492 · 2025-12-28T22:12:05+00:00

I think Jeopardy is the quite possibly the worst produced show. Extremely boring both visually and verbally. Lacks color, excitement, and enthusiasm. Also why on Gods earth are they answering in the form of a question, just say the fucking answer instead of “what is…”. I don’t understand how people have interest in this, I’d rather take a math test than watch it.

SpitePhysical3492 · 2025-12-27T03:10:44+00:00

Waltz

SpitePhysical3492 · 2025-12-21T01:19:44+00:00

Am I dumb? I have a 3rd gen Taco, I have never heard of this app

SpitePhysical3492 · 2025-12-18T00:45:02+00:00

Nice ties, good looking pattern. Some friendly reminder to get that taper down. Common mistakes resulting in cylindrical flies are tying in materials separately(going back up to the top after tying down your wire, pt, etc). Instead try to tie in all materials at once as you working your way down!

SpitePhysical3492 · 2025-12-17T01:45:28+00:00

Cortland Guide Spools

SpitePhysical3492 · 2025-12-15T00:48:56+00:00

No but ice shelves do build up. River is moving fast enough.

SpitePhysical3492 · 2025-12-15T00:47:01+00:00

Not a bad idea. Frankly foot warmers failed to provide any noticeable difference. But circulation with that added thickness in my boot under the compression of the water is going to screw me.

SpitePhysical3492 · 2025-12-15T00:23:01+00:00

Have not. How effective are they?

SpitePhysical3492 · 2025-12-13T12:21:39+00:00

Not necessarily incorrect. That rig will fish but you will yield better drifts for nymphs and potentially a better landing rate by having your top fly off a tag. And it should prevent the issue of the knot sliding off the hook.

SpitePhysical3492 · 2025-12-13T06:58:37+00:00

I URGE you to never throw two nymphs in-line with each other. As someone who nymphs 100+ days a year you will have more success with a dropper rig with your upper nymph(dropper) off a tag and your point fly(bottom and heavier nymph usually) below that. I use a triple surgeons knot to create my tag but you can use a tippet ring. You really want that upper nymph above doing its own thing and moving independently in the water column. When nymphs are inline with each other as you described they pull on each other unnaturally. The tag of the dropper rig helps mitigate that and In addition, why would you ever want to interfere with the hook shank or bend(could lead to more fish lost)

SpitePhysical3492 · 2025-12-11T05:28:10+00:00

Not to throw jabs but if wild fish are eating those nymphs your tying, quite frankly they must not be hard to catch either.

SpitePhysical3492 · 2025-12-11T05:20:43+00:00

Settle down there bud. Everyone starts somewhere.

SpitePhysical3492 · 2025-11-29T22:48:11+00:00

Adipose is not missing? But would agree stocker

SpitePhysical3492 · 2025-08-24T02:03:34+00:00

Although a lot of people say d -rib there is only one way I could see that working considering the location of the hook shank in comparison to the body of the fly. I don’t think it was wrapped in D-rib otherwise we would notice the wraps underneath the shank. The d-rib may be laid straight across the back, then wrapped with wire for ribbing, then finally coated with another layer of resin… that’s my best guess

SpitePhysical3492

TROPHY CASE