FLYMPH FORUM

William and I were emailing comments to each other about the Half Stone that some of us tied for the recent swap. That method of construction is easy and versatile.

Out of curiosity, I went through the rough photos I've taken of vintage flies in my father's collection looking for flies with similar construction. I selected some that, like the Half Stone, have fur thoraxes; their abdomens are either of thread or quill. The first row contains variants of the Iron Blue Nymph.

It can be refreshing to look at vintage flies, tied before we all became so hyper-conscious of macro photography.

Great specimens to illustrate the point, Lance. Thank you.

Lance, those flies are spectacular! I notice how full the top left pattern is. Not all are sparsely tied. I get a kick out of seeing this patterns. I never grow tired
of seeing them. Thank you for sharing these!

I find the variety of tails even more intriguing!

Lance, thank you for posting these, seeing original flies gives us a foundation upon which to base our own interpretations. In profile, these flies look much more nymph-like than the North Country Spiders. While some Spiders sported a bit of fur or herl behind the hackle, it wasn't as pronounced as on the Leisenring/Hidy ties. Also, I believe that the thoraxes served different purposes; on the Spiders it was primarily a bolster to the hackle and on the L/H patterns it was an important part of the silhouette.

Beyond the stylistic and constructional aspects, when looking at vintage flies, (and I'm not talking about commercial flies but rather those dressed by competent angler/tiers) ones sees a sense of purpose in their materials and construction. I recently came across the term 'casual fluency', a reference to the mastery of a craft,and this term, in my opinion, certainly applies here. First and foremost these flies were tied to catch fish. If they appealed to the aesthetic senses of the tier's friends and angling peers, well that was nice too, but it was the effectiveness of the fly that really counted.

I find the hooks interesting too, they look like Sproats with a bit of an offset. Perhaps Allcock 6812 T.D.E.?

Greenwell wrote:
I find the hooks interesting too, they look like Sproats with a bit of an offset. Perhaps Allcock 6812 T.D.E.?

I meant to say "Some look like Sproats, etc."

What kinds of fur make good thoraxes?

Randy

Randy most any fur will do. Fox, muskrat, mole, Aus. possum and rabbit. I don't think there is any that are better than another.

Thanks for posting these. Great flies and a reminder to myself that I need to tye some flies like these up. I actualy prefer fur thoraxed flies for some reason.