Learning fly tying

[dabhoy]

Im self taught myself and not the best but Im usually reasonably happy with the end result after possibly several attempts. I find this forum and a few others are great for gaining help on tying problems and with all the other stuff that is available on the web.
So what are other peoples opinions is it like fly casting where the majority seem to think that lessons are the way to go.
What camp do you fall in to self taught, taught by a friend or flytying lessons at a club etc.
I would have put a poll up but have no bloody idea how to do it.

Cheers
Kevin

[hellbound1]

im self taught from books web and forums . like you im happy after a few adtemps and end of the day thet catch fish .

dont think you can relly have lession in something with no real rules you find ur own way of doin,

[sage5]

Kevin,i started tying a year ago and i am self taught,and i rely on videos and books.I am mostly quite pleased with my flies and i normaly keep tieing the same pattern till it looks ok but i still mess up a good few,i woul like to get lessons but there is none in this area. what i need help with is knowing what to use is it cock saddles or capes or hen capes i find id all confuesing
Duncan

[the stig]

like u say kevin i,m learning from books as i tried a club no name given but all wee got to tie for 4 weeks solid was a black spider and found that the more senior ones were,nt interested in u more showing off what they had done and others were trying to sell u stuff am not saying all clubs are like this but by the time u pay ur fly dressers membership their membership, and ur fees for that night its quite alot just to be doing spiders i know rome wasn,t built in a day or my spiders are perfect but would have liked to have been shown more to try and challenge me hence the reason i left

cheers bert

[Wee Jimmy]

I bought a wee Veniards tying kit and taught myself,mostly copying stuff that I saw in magazines.Bob Carnill did a great series on flytying in TF during the early 80s which was a great help to me.Nowadays we have guys on youtube showing us how to tie in real time.
It actually took me a couple of seasons before I built up any confidence in my own flies,I felt they were not up to scratch and would take them off my cast after only five minutes and opt for a shop bought one instead.Slowly though you begin to catch a few fish on your own tyings...,then things develop from there, as far as how we like our flies to look is concerned.

To be honest,its us that create the problems in our own minds,the fish are less fussy about our flies than we are.

[arkle]

I have been involved with tying tuition for quite a few years. I do private lessons, have taught at evening classes & am founder/life pres. of my local branch of the F.D.G. amongst other things. The very best way to learn is on an individual basis, as the instr. can lead & spot mistakes as &/or before they're likely to happen. This is something that a video cannot do, but for those who are unable to learn directly from any of the above methods, it's a lot easier now than when it was when I started some 40 odd years ago.

The thing that started me, was seeing John Veniard & Geoff Bucknall tie at a fishing exhibition. I then scoured the local library for everything they had & often didn't have. Trout & Salmon was the only mag around in those early days & often beyond the reach of my pocket money. Then along came Angling with Dave Collyer's monthly column.

Some years after, tying was growing in popularity & Brian Harris, the then editor of Angling left & started up International Flyfisher. This is when things really started to change & other people came into the material supply market as it was growing like topsey.

[shortea]

I was lucky to be taught the basics as a kid by a friends dad. Over the years i have picked up far more by talking to other tyers and more recently off utube -theres always something new to learn.I have also found a club to be useful-maby you were unlucky-dont be afraid to ask questions,most people are glad to help

All the best Nick

[oddgitt]

Self taught from books and step-by-steps on the internet.

This is good up to a point as techniques can be easily seen in videos online.

However where this way of learning falls down is trouble shooting, and explaining the finer details of the art. The videos can't answer your questions.

That's why I've been doing a class at college (under the watchful eye of Pete Arfield), and recently started going to my branch of the FDG, which was a big learning curve, but the people there were extremely helpful and accommodating.

I would definitely recommend some 1 on 1 tuition whether this be a class or a group meet like the FDG.

[dabhoy]

Originally Posted by Wee Jimmy

I bought a wee Veniards tying kit and taught myself,mostly copying stuff that I saw in magazines.Bob Carnill did a great series on flytying in TF during the early 80s which was a great help to me.Nowadays we have guys on youtube showing us how to tie in real time.
It actually took me a couple of seasons before I built up any confidence in my own flies,I felt they were not up to scratch and would take them off my cast after only five minutes and opt for a shop bought one instead.Slowly though you begin to catch a few fish on your own tyings...,then things develop from there, as far as how we like our flies to look is concerned.

To be honest,its us that create the problems in our own minds,the fish are less fussy about our flies than we are.

Sounds quite familiar in that I also went and bought a kit most of it pretty **** to be honest. I started learning just over 3 years ago on and off but have certainly put more in to it in the last couple of years.It does take time to be confident of your own flies to catch fish but that slowly evaporates.
The material available now to help in books videos and forums certainly helps in making it easier to learn.
When I first started tying I have to admit in thinking it would be cheaper but it is a great thing to do during the long cold nights during the close season.

[ruby pennel595664]

Self taught via books then videos then the net, the videos on you tube by Davie McPhail, Dave Cammiss and others have been of great help.