do trout care about impressive tying?

[fourmations]

hi all

im only starting out with tying
and am wondering about the above....

we all (myself included) want to tie
beautiful works of art that wow fellow anglers
but do the fish really care if your flies are a bit rough

ive caught a couple of trout on my first tied fly
a scruffy, uneven, basic thread and hackle size 20
(when they would not take any of my bought flies)

i know tying is an artform and I strive to tie stunners
but do the fish really care if your wings are a bit crooked
and your hackle is a bit uneven?

and my main point is about trimmed hackles on dries....
i have a cape that was included in a veniard kit i was given
and the fibres are too long for anything i tie (14-22's)
i have trimmed them to suit each fly so far
and while they dont look as nice as the correct lenght hackles should
do you think it really matters to the fish or is it just human aesthetics?

regards

4

[cu wader]

Unless someone on this forum is equipped with gills and fins, the only one that can answer your unique question, is the trout!

[s fontinalis]

Originally Posted by fourmations

ive caught a couple of trout on my first tied fly
a scruffy, uneven, basic thread and hackle size 20
(when they would not take any of my bought flies)

i think this answers your question...
If if looks familiar they will eat it if thats what they're feeding on.

Only humans really care, especially when they're shelling out a clean fortune for framed flies...otherwise...keep tying, you'll get better and the fish will get more plentiful

[la_jolla1]

For most of us , it is a very enjoyable craft. The most important thing is that you learn about entomology and get an eye for the detail of what trout are eating, and that makes you a much better angler.

[ameliasdaddy]

I don't think its that the trout care so much, but a lot of people have a natural instinct to want to improve at what they do, and it is this that makes us strive for better tying rather than a request from a trout.

That said, my thoughts are that tying can be split two ways, imitation or suggestion. I prefer suggestion as I'm colourblind and have sausage fingers so can't do imitation too well. Also it depends a bit on your type of fishing, suggestive patterns work for me with what I do.
Imitation, especially by those with an interest in entomology is as far as I'm concerned an art form.

Whatever way you look at tying, there is always scope to improve your catches, sometimes even the way a fish takes a certain pattern can prompt a tweak at the vice which can have an impact on results.

[Vermontdrifter]

Don't forget that most of what trout eat is small, dark colored and hairy!

By the second or third trout that has taken an Elk & CDC sedge in a session the fly really doesn't look that good anymore or even like it did when I first tied it on but it keeps producing so I'ld say good looks just don't count. The lesson to be learned is to make it appetizing rather than beautiful.

Take care

Terry

[shrek]

as for crooked wings and it not being just right, most of the trouts feed will be cripples etc (dry fly anyway), so I thing an "imperfect fly" is the "perfect fly" as far as the fish is concerned

[Kingfisher28]

The scruffiest flies catch the most fish, looks more natural and as been said before, the fish don't mind if a wind or hackel is slightly off the p***

[andreb]

Sometimes, wild trout, particularly large educated ones, will only eat a perfectly proportioned imitation, that behaves exactly as the natural. In some New Zealand rivers at certain times of the year in particular conditions, the fish feed very specifically, and even will refuse a fly on a hook size that is marginally too large or small. I can agree that for still water fishing, especially in stocked locations, it really doesn't matter, but there are times when wild river trout, require near perfect flies and technique.

[Watersplatter]

I'm in agreement with most of the above, I tye most of my flies to catch fish and to some extent don't care what they look like and in the most part prefer fuzzy outlines for flies rather than hard sharp outlines but there are the odd exception.
However I don't like to cut hackles to size unless I am cutting them completly off the underside for presentation, cut hackles dont float as well as uncut and give a harder outline.
Try the split thread technique with the oversize hackles you have got or try using CDC instead of Hen/Cock hackles.