I have no idea what the fish think of copper wire; I doubt they give a rats arse. But I do.
Me, I have always been a fan of the deeper, darker, copper colors. The standard run of the mill stuff we buy today, from the various purveyors of such things, excites me not; it's so... bland. I've got a lifetimes supply of vintage wire, in various sizes, from days of yore; all wound on old crumbling wooden spools, all with a much deeper, red-ish hue to it. Some of this wire has a wax coating on it that must be scraped off (I run it between fingernails) before tying with it. I haven't noticed the wire oxidizing after I scrape the wax off..., but maybe I just haven't been paying enough attention either.
Maybe I just like tying with old materials. I'm going to go with that...
Re: Frank Sawyer's Nymphs
Posted: Wed Oct 13, 2021 8:43 pm
by wsbailey
Re: Frank Sawyer's Nymphs
Posted: Wed Oct 13, 2021 9:50 pm
by DUBBN
Re: Frank Sawyer's Nymphs
Posted: Fri May 27, 2022 11:16 am
by Terrestrial12
PhilA would you still consider coming off of some of that wire? I've fallen down the sawyer hole....
Re: Frank Sawyer's Nymphs
Posted: Fri May 27, 2022 1:57 pm
by Updtate
P_20220527_104801~3.jpg (155.67 KiB) Viewed 52522 times
coincidence I was gifted some Chadwicks 477 yarn just a couple of days ago by a good friend and tied up a sawyers Killer Fly just this morning.
Tom
Re: Frank Sawyer's Nymphs
Posted: Fri May 27, 2022 6:38 pm
by ronr
Variant recently gifted me a bit of 42 gauge wire, partridge hooks, and pheasant tail that measures the full 2.5 inches.
Working with the wire is a _itch and having Oliver Edwards video tying the fly does make it easier sort of..Hopefully, I won't use up all the wire before I am able to tie a decent looking version of the fly. Very thoughtful of Variant to gift me the correct material to tie one of the iconic flies with the correct materials.
Re: Frank Sawyer's Nymphs
Posted: Tue May 31, 2022 9:05 am
by Terrestrial12
Part of the beauty of fly tying (in my mind anyway) is that 10 of us could all tie the same pattern, follow the recipe lick for lick, and all come up with 10 very different looking flies. Its art, and a reflection of your own creativity and how your mind works. It's good to show reverence for the history but at the end of the day if it looks right to you, it catches fish, and it's legal...tie it however you want! My question is, is the gray goose tied in the exact same manner? It looks to be but I can't find much on it.
Re: Frank Sawyer's Nymphs
Posted: Tue May 31, 2022 11:26 am
by Variant
Great job Ron !
That fly will catch fish.
Lou
Re: Frank Sawyer's Nymphs
Posted: Tue May 31, 2022 11:49 am
by tworod
Mike62 wrote: ↑Wed Oct 13, 2021 7:08 pm
I have no idea what the fish think of copper wire; I doubt they give a rats arse. But I do.
Me, I have always been a fan of the deeper, darker, copper colors. The standard run of the mill stuff we buy today, from the various purveyors of such things, excites me not; it's so... bland. I've got a lifetimes supply of vintage wire, in various sizes, from days of yore; all wound on old crumbling wooden spools, all with a much deeper, red-ish hue to it. Some of this wire has a wax coating on it that must be scraped off (I run it between fingernails) before tying with it. I haven't noticed the wire oxidizing after I scrape the wax off..., but maybe I just haven't been paying enough attention either.
Maybe I just like tying with old materials. I'm going to go with that...
38, 42 and 46 gauge copper wire gifted me by Gary Howells. I prefer the two darker colors though not the typical copper color you see today.
Re: Frank Sawyer's Nymphs
Posted: Tue May 31, 2022 7:57 pm
by Mike62
Love the middle spool; that's some nice wire there.