Here April Vokey helps out a fellow tyer at a fly-tying symposium. April Vokey is a modern-day superstar of fly tying. She has made waves throughout the steelhead world as a fly fisher and has made many contributions to tying tube flies.
Catching Mo Betta
By Skip Clement
We’re profiling two flies today that enjoy excellent riverine successes because of the hooks interplay, and by that it is meant the fly; as hook-tied flies, they would each require a #10 [hook], but as a tube-tied fly, a smaller hook enjoys a much better outcome with trouts. Furthermore, tied correctly and rigged with a smaller hook than a hook tied #10 fly, the tube version can be unseeable by the trouts, an undeniable advantage.
In each case, the flies profiled are stimulators; as such, dominant colors and even materials can be substituted
Most fly anglers are receptive to the idea that seeking out big gamefish like tarpon, sails, and other billfish with tube flies is a good approach; dedicated ‘troutsters,’ however, are generally too often stuck in yesterday.
Of course, some flies, like #20s and even slightly smaller, are best tied conventionally – on a hook.
McKenzie River Special Trout Fly.
About hooks
Many among my tying companions have elected to do or die with one hook producer and found they are not in a bad place substituting.
Over time I have become convinced that Mustad can almost 100% meet my wants; others, of course, have made different choices and remain satisfied. Some commented, “I hate to buy a package of 12 or 24 ‘XYZ’ hooks only to be stuck, as the years pile up, with hundreds of hooks I’ll probably never use.”
Hooks are expensive
Of course, the argument is getting overstocked could happen to those buying from one hook manufacturer as well. True, but becoming so familiar with one company’s hook profiles seems to eliminate a lot of duplicate purchases; at least, that has been the case with my tyer friends and me.
Help support these conservation-minded corporations with purchases and dedicated conservation organizations with your generosity
Patagonia, Tiger Hill Nature Conservancy, Thom Glace Art, International Game Fish Association, Atlantic Salmon Federation, Trout Unlimited, Backcountry Hunters and Anglers, Costa Del Mar, The Nature Conservancy, National Wildlife Federation, Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership, Long Island On the Fly, The Sierra Club, The Wilderness Society, Orvis, American Rivers, Wild Salmon Center, The Outdoor Industry Association
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Video 1. Caddis Fly Angling Shop, Jay Nicholas demonstrates how to tie a McKenzie Special Trout Dry Fly on a Tube. Mid sizes trout flies tied on tubes allow the angler to choose hook styles and tend to be easier on fish and flies.
Video 2. Taking a look into why a tube fly video . . . [Anchored With April Vokey]
